A Lesson in Culture Shock

I've been to Costa Rica once before, and loved every minute of it, so I didn't think I was susceptible to culture shock.  Apparently, I was wrong. 

Our first week in Samara was discouraging.  We didn't like the food, couldn't sleep because of the humidity, the bugs were eating us alive, and we felt like we were unwelcome by the local ticos.  We'd walk around town and wave and say the customary "buenos días" to ever human we saw.  Most of the time we got a few mumbled "buenos días" back, but sometimes people wouldn't even acknowledge that we'd spoken to them!   Also, we kept hearing how dangerous Samara is, and how we have to be extremely, almost overly cautious.  They told us stories about being robbed at gun point and about being chased down by robbers.  Of course, this is all because of the Columbians living down at the far side of the beach, so, we were told to never walk on the beach at night. 

More and more, Kevin and I started spending time at the apartment and feeling like it was the only place we could relax.  We even threw around the idea of changing locations and heading to a different place in Costa Rica.  We decided to try and stick it out for two weeks, and if we still were unhappy we'd go somewhere else.  I'm proud of us for not giving up because as the new week started things started looking up.   We realized that we'd been kind of harsh on the local ticos and acknowledged that maybe some people are just grumpy....they don't even really say hello to each other, so it wasn't just us!  We started getting used to the humility, and started making friends. 

On my first day at the Samara Language School they gave us a little booklet about the school, the town, and getting used to life abroad.  I thought it was really interesting and realized that we'd been going through culture shock.

It says:  Culture shock is brought on by the anxiety that results from losing all our familiar signs and symbols.  These signs or cues include the thousand and one ways in which we orient ourselves to the situation of daily life, when to shake hands and what to say when we meet people, when and how to give tips, how to give orders in a restaurant, when to take statements seriously and when not.  These cues may be words, gestures, facial expressions - all customs or norms which we aquire in the course of growing up, and are as much a part of our culture as the languages we speak or the beliefs we accept.  When an individual enters a strange new culture, all or most of these familiar cues are removed.  No matter how intelligent, broad-minded, or full of goodwill he or she may be, a series of props have been knocked out from under him or her.  This is followed by a feeling of frustration and anxiety.  All people react to this frustration in much the same ways, but in varying degrees.  First, they reject the environment which causes the discomfort.  The ways of the host country are bad because they make us feel badly.  Another phase is regression.  The home environment suddenly assumesa tremendous importance.  Some other symptoms of culture shock are: excessive concern over cleanliness and the feeling that what is new and strange is 'dirty'; a feeling of helplessness; irritation over delays and other minor frustrations, out of proportion to the causes; excessive fear of being cheated, robed or injured; great concerns over minor pains. 

The booklet, outlines four phases:
The honeymoon phase - I think we felt this when we were in Costa Rica before.  We were with a group of friends, and every second was filled with fun and activities.

The hostile phase, the grin and bare it phase, and the effective adjustment phase.  I think we are past the hostile phase, and are towards the end of the grin and bare it phase.  It feels like we are getting used to being here, and are enjoying ourselves.  The bugs seem to have gotten used to us, and we them.  The sound of the rain lulls us to sleep, and the humidity really isn't a problem any more.  And the more we immerse ourselves in the community, the more we feel like a part of it (go figure), and find local Ticos that are warm, friendly, and inviting. 

All in all, I'd definitely say we experienced some culture shock - which is a shock! :P