When you move to a new country, everything is unfamiliar; weather, landscape, language, food, dress, social roles, values, customs and communication – basically, everything you’re used to is no longer there. You’ll find that the day unfolds differently, that business is conducted in a way that may be hard to understand, the stores are opened and closed at hours that you could never predict.

Anyone who has lived, worked or even travelled
extensively in another country, has lived through culture shock. Culture shock is the inevitable process that people go through and is a recognised symptom of interacting in an environment that is different – be it work, domestic or both. It’s a natural emotional reaction to the situation of being in a new (foreign) place and/or adapting to a new language. People used to moving around become more flexible and adaptable, therefore minimising any culture shock symptoms. So how can you recognise culture shock?