Being a foreigner in any part of the world is hard enough, but a foreigner in China is definitely a tale worth telling. The extremities of culture shock and language barrier coupled with the distress of making things work in your circle of finding a job o
Being a foreigner in any part of the world is hard enough, but a foreigner in China is definitely a tale worth telling. The extremities of culture shock and language barrier coupled with the distress of making things work in your circle of finding a job or new friends, acing extremely hard tests in school and basically just trying to cope deserves to be discussed. The sad part is when we have no one else with experience to guide us on our steps in this new environment. In this article we hope to look into the common problems facing foreigners, especially new ones, and a guide to deal with them.
Photo: forum.china
The Food
There may be Chinese cuisines you may liken to your local dishes but once in a while a yearning to try your home meal actually comes to mind. Other times, you may not be the type of person willing to try new things because your taste buds just aren’t cut out for it! So there’s the problem of what to eat or better still, how to not get thin within a short span of months. Forcing to adapt to a new tradition of cuisines is a problem almost every foreigner goes through. Luckily for those in the cities, they have easier access to popular fast food restaurants like McDonalds and KFC but we can attest to the fact that such places relatively suck our pockets dry in a short while if not just unhealthy for our bodies to some extent. Actually, the way out of this problem is to be willing to try new things. Giving yourself a hard time in trying to adopt to your new environment may cost some discomfort especially when you intend to stay for the long run. Other foreigners do a great job in cooking their home countries thus not having to worry about what to eat.
COMMUNICATION
Photo: popoho
You know you are in China when every comment you make is combatted with ‘ting bu dong’. And so the hustle continues that you either find a way out by learning the language or finding someone who can to follow you around. Similarly some Chinese make efforts to speak the English language so you may have a field day when you meet one. However, being in China provides the perfect environment to learning a new language which is definitely a plus in finding a desired career.
FEELING HOME SICK
Photo:bilibili
Foreigners usually refuse to address this issue, but this demon kills everybody inside. Especially for foreigners that live in China for long term purposes, home sickness is an inevitable feeling. It is mostly triggered by memories and past experiences; the thoughts of your family back home and good friends that have been left behind. Dealing with home sickness entails that you accept your new environment and take up whatever endeavor you find yourself in with positivity.
CULTURE SHOCK
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Till date I still haven’t come to terms with the constant spitting by locals and that is not the only culture that electrocuted me. There are so many differences like the way parents leave their babies’ butt bare that I never really understood. I actually picked up some pretty bad habits like chewing food loudly unawares and eating a little faster than I used to. Discussing culture shock is a whole coursebook on its own . in short, however, is the fact that culture shock poses as a big problem to foreigners because it obviously isnt what we grew up to accept as normal. Whatever the case the story still goes that you must adapt to your new environment with as much positivity as required.
With that being said , it must be pointed out that the above issues discussed are only just a handful out of numerous other issues foreigners face in China. But what is a life without challenges that push us to become the better versions of ourselves. Don’t hesitate to comment below on the other problems foreigners relate to below. Till next time, continue to live with a positive energy towards your undertakings.
Author:Abena
