2. Culture Shock

My first two weeks in Luzhou were very difficult. The previous three months I'd lived in Southern Oregon, arguably the most beautiful place in the world, and was constantly in the company of not only family and friends, but also my wonderful girlfriend Sarah.  Leaving it all behind for a new place was going to be
trying, but I felt up to the challenge. I'd spent the greater part of the past two years away from home and Oregon, having lived in Germany for six months and on Catalina Island (20 miles SW of Los Angeles) for eight months. I am accustomed to the idea of being out on my own and am content that way. 

What was more difficult than I'd imagined, and compounded the aforementioned emotional drains, was the unbelievable culture shock of Sichuan and China.  When my plane first broke through the clouds on our descent, and I glimpsed for the first time the
terraced rice-paddies, hundred shades of green, and rolling hills of Chongqing, I felt I was landing on a different planet. An hour into my ride to Luzhou I remember thinking to myself "Boy Joe, you've really gone and done it this time". Its hard to describe to
anyone who has never traveled abroad, but the bottom line is, when you splash down in a new country, everything seems so-foreign. 

There were so many things, big and small, I'd never seen before. There were old men pulling rickshaws alongside the road, motorcycles with side-baskets overflowing with ducks or chickens, rural houses made of stone amidst endless farm crops, an apparent absence of anything resembling traffic rules, and,
above all, construction on a level I'd never seen. In a lot of ways I felt like I'd slipped back in time several decades. At times all of these new sights left me exhausted, other times homesick, other times confused, and more often than not, completely awe-struck. But as funny as it sounds, this is what I wanted, why I chose SW China over Beijing or Shanghai; to go to a place unlike anywhere I'd ever been, to jar my senses and emotions, to do something unique and challenging. No matter how lonesome or frustrated I
was at times, I never doubted my decision to come to China. 

Thankfully I had an incredible support network to help me through. If I ever felt really low I would call home and have a chat with my parents, who seemed to understand exactly what I was going through despite never having set foot in China. And Sarah, with her supportive emails, was my daily ray of sunshine. Then
there was Phil, the other English teacher at the Medical School, an Englishman who returned for his second semester here about a week after I arrived for my first. Through him I gained six months worth of experience and knowledge, about teaching, about Luzhou, and about living in China. Not only was he an 
invaluable well of knowledge, he was generous, supportive, and a true friend. 

By the end of February I was teaching 21 hours each week, learning the ins and outs of Luzhou city, and beginning to feel comfortable and confident with all aspects of my new life. The turning point was the day I called home and spent an hour complaining about all the reasons I didn't like China. That day, after I hung up the phone, I suddenly felt free to appreciate
China for what it was, rather than for what it wasn't.

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