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5 Things I Learned in East Asia

You can never prepare yourself for culture shock. No matter how hard you try, experiencing a whole new culture is way different than hearing about it. This November, I had the opportunity to go on a week-long trip to East Asia to visit friends, eat lots of amazing food, and be completely immersed in a culture that is almost a 180 flip from American life.


Here are a few things I learned while over my trip...



1. Subway ride or sardine can?


There is no good way of explaining this. During rush hour, personal space is almost impossible. People are pressed up against you on all sides. To an American, this concept is very uncomfortable to think about, but to this culture, this is a part of everyday life. My first time experiencing a rush hour subway ride, a man standing behind me sneezed 4 TIMES on my backpack... you better know I whipped out the hand sanitizer and dowsed my bag with it!!






2. Don't be cocky when using chopsticks



Don't be fooled by my "pro" chopsticks skills. Before the trip, I barely ever used them to eat. The second I sat down for my first meal, I boasted that I had the hand positioning and execution down -- I was even teaching others how to use them! Unfortunately, as the trip was nearing its end, my hand muscles were getting so worn down, I threw in the towel and started stabbing my food. Lesson learned: it's okay to ask for more familiar utensils, even if it risks you being hard-core judged my a local... overall, it's not worth starving!




3. Try not to get hit by a scooter



There were a few close calls of me being hit by a car or a scooter zooming by. Also, crosswalks aren't crosswalks -- it's more like walking to the middle of the intersection and waiting for a u-turn on a one-way street. My friends that have lived there for a while decided to name one of the intersections, "The Corner of Death & Glory."


4. Lays potato chips taste WAY better across the world. Enough said.


5. Take it all in


I am very thankful to have reminded myself throughout the trip, when are you going to be here again, doing this? I think it's so easy to want to do the next thing, that we don't slow down and enjoy the moment we are in. Deciding to go on this trip was definitely a blessing from God and it taught me so much about His love; how it exceeds all borders, all language barriers, all classes of people, races, religions, and so much more.


Someday, I wish to go back and see how the Lord continues to work in that area of the world.


Below are a few of my favorite pictures from the trip!!



 
 
 

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