Reverse Culture Shock

Currently, I feel like a foreigner in my homeland, Singapore, after being away for five years. The first thing I noticed was the humidity and heat when I emerged from Changi International Airport. Like a wet blanket, the humidity engulfed me, making me feel sticky and sweaty. Showering twice is a must since I smelled bad in this sweltering weather. My skin started to have boils and outbreak, not a pleasant sight and experience. In the dead heat of the day, I just felt my energy draining away from me like big cats at Savannah sleeping under shades in the afternoon to lower their body temperature. Also, within 47 days, I caught the flu bug twice. My immune system is definitely undergoing major stimulation from a new set of pathogens and allergens.

Majority of Singapore local food is oily and spicy but cheaper compared to US. Most Singaporeans eat out since food is cheap and they have no time to cook. My gastrointestinal tract could not take the oily and spicy food since I had been cooking my own food in the USA for five years, consisting of rice or noodle, meat (beef, pork, and chicken), lots of vegetables and fruits. Beef is hardly sold in local markets, or if sold, will be expensive. I laughed when someone visiting home from Baltimore mentioned that she had to order double portion of local food. Yes, US food portion is twice that of Singapore. I wonder if the smaller portion is causing my acid reflux as my stomach is producing the same volume of acid but digesting half the food portion. The acid reflux, which is causing me to have sore throat constantly, is especially bad when I lay supine at night. Nowadays, my sleeping position is raised to prevent the stomach acid from re-entering my esophagus.

The vast expanse of USA is starkly contrasted against the crowded and tight spaces in Singapore. I am still getting used to sharing a room. People are everywhere, especially during peak rush hours when the trains and buses were packed like sardines. Driving in Singapore is right-handed, opposite to driving in USA. As a precaution, I am looking both ways even on a one-way street as I am confuse with the traffic direction. Drivers tailgate a lot here, or turn suddenly into your lane; I will not be driving for a long time but will still convert my US driving license. I had booked for the Basic Theory Test on 3 Jan and the earliest test date was 24 Feb. Even the date format is different, US writes mm/dd/yy whereas Singapore writes dd/mm/yy.

Nowadays, English is often spoken at public places. Even cleaners and store vendors communicated with me in English as opposed to five years ago when dialects and Chinese were the norm.

The pace of life is very much faster here and people are dead tired when they reached home around 8pm. People also walked faster and seemed more impatient and rude. They are always hurrying to somewhere.

Only those who had stayed away from home could empathize with me on the culture shock that I am experiencing. Even my family don't understand but I hope to re-adjust back eventually.