Here are some highlights from a Culture Shock Report from Roquebrun, France:

What are some things you appreciate most about the new culture?

Pace of life in the village, availability of high quality fresh food and wine, friendliness of the people and willingness to work with my language shortcomings, lack of rampant materialism compared to the US, secular nature of the society, ongoing traditions. I am in a winemaking village in the Languedoc.

What are the most challenging aspects of the new culture?

Becoming fluent in French and being patient with the inordinate amount of time bureaucratic things take to be accomplished. Dealing with the utility companies, internet, etc. is very frustrating, as it takes months to get some things taken care of that would take hours or days in the U.S.

Did you “commit” any embarrassing or humorous cultural blunders? If you did and you’d like to share them, please do tell!

Several times I have mistaken one word for another in French, so gave a funny response. Everyone finds it amusing, but it has been funny rather than embarrassing. Best one was at the notaires, I’m buying a house and was there with the seller and we are talking with the notaire about the transaction. He confirms that I am paying cash, and I reply yes I am contented. There is an expression for paying cash that sounds exactly like, Are you contented? – I was unfamiliar with that terminology, so we all had a good laugh about that.

Please take the time to provide your culture shock report for anywhere (and everywhere!) that you have lived abroad. Remember how challenging it was when you moved abroad – this first hand information is what expats appreciate most while they prepare themselves to take the expatriate plunge!

English expats in New York are not a rare sighting. You’ll encounter them all over the city doing as many different things as you would any old run-of-the-mill American. The BBC.co.uk has a wonderful slide show about British expats in New York City that focuses on the work of photographer Jason Bell:

His [Bell's] photographic results – published in a new book ‘An Englishman in New York’ – are on display at the National Portrait Gallery in London. BBC Radio 4’s magazine programme Broadcasting House travelled to the US – and caught up with Jason, and some of his subjects.

My favorite part of this slide show is the variation of professions that are represented. It would be interesting to hear the perspectives of Americans and British with regard to the views expressed about New York City. American expats in London who would like a taste of home might find this a great way to spend an afternoon!

Culture Shock exists on a spectrum. Some expats get a little, some expats get a lot, and there are a lot of people that fall somewhere in between the extremes.

So, there will be people that simply are not prepared or unable to cope with what they encounter when they move to a new country and culture. And just because someone happens to do well on one assignment does not mean they will be able to adjust to another.

Here’s an example of one expatriate’s reaction to Saudi Arabia, which can be found in his Saudi Arabia Culture Shock Report for the cities of Dammam, Riyadh, Najran, Khafji:

How significant was the culture shock you experienced when you moved abroad?

Mind Boggling

Did you receive any cross-cultural training for your move abroad? If yes, was it before or after the move?

Yes, before I have lived and worked all over the U.S. and Korea while traveling to Japan, Viet Nam, Thailand and now I live in The Philippines.

What are the most challenging aspects of the new culture?

[I] found it very frustrating to be always “negotiating” more time off with the students. On one hand I was required to teach and on the other hand, not to push the students too hard because they would report my efforts at maintaining classroom decorum as being “culturally insensitive.”

Share your Culture Shock Report on ExpatExchange.com!

Culture shock. On some level every expat experiences it. Yet, one of the more interesting aspects of the expatriate experience is Reverse Culture Shock. You know…the reality that the adjustment to one’s native culture can be just as difficult as the tranistion abroad in the first place.

A slightly different take on Reverse Culture Shock popped up on the Expat Blog on Telegraph.co.uk. Instead of a focus on a move home, it addresses what one British expat noticed on a trip home:

After 12 years in Dubai, driving on the M25 was as civilised an experience as a visit to the opera. There was no under-cutting, no lane-swerving, no mad camera-dodging; none of the random driving that you see every day in Dubai. Kids were even in car seats. The words “Stay in lane” actually meant something. People queued in the right lanes – nobody forged up the hard shoulder and barged in at the top.

We’ve addressed Reverse Culture Shock in the past on the ExpatExchange Blog, and here’s another article on the topic of Repatriation. And here’s one more for good measure: a Reverse Culture Shock Checklist.

It’s always of great interest to hear the things that shock an expat upon return. Feel free to share your thoughts here or to this post about Reverse Culture Shock on our Expat Global Forum.

Expats often feel there is little to love about how they are regarded – legally – by their native countries. While living abroad, many feel they are treated like second-class citizens in terms of things like taxes, voting, citizenship and other issues. Each nation is a little different, and this article from The Globe And Mail about the Downside of Expat Life for Canadian citizens highlights that reality:

Kenny Zhang, a researcher with the Vancouver-based Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, argues that government policies punish so-called transnational Canadians. For example, naturalized Canadian citizens living abroad can not pass on citizenship to children born outside the country. Also, a Canadian who lives abroad for more than five years is no longer permitted to vote in federal elections.

The article also highlights some high profile Canadian expats. The article notes the importance stated by surveyed expats with regard to maintaining their Canadian identity. The vast majority also indicate that they intend to return to Canada.

A recent Gallup survey, highlighted on Forbes.com, found that the world’s happiest countries tend to have something in common… money! Here’s a few excerpts from a Yahoo summary article about these happy countries:

The Gallup researchers found evidence of what many have long suspected: money does buy happiness — at least a certain kind of it. In a related report, they studied the reasons why countries with high gross domestic products won out for well-being, and found an association between life satisfaction and income.

“Money is an object that many or most people desire, and pursue during the majority of their waking hours,” researchers wrote in the report. “It would be surprising if success at this pursuit had no influence whatsoever when people were asked to evaluate their lives.”

Social and psychological prosperity, fostered by tighter social networks, also contribute greatly to happiness. That is why some countries with cultures that exhibit these traits, such as Costa Rica, ranked highly in the survey.

Where does your destination country rank? Do the findings resonate with your own experiences?

British Expats have rated Australia as the best country to live in away from home. The South Pacific island/nation/continent has taken the cake in the survey, which was conducted by the Centre for Future Studies:

More than three quarters of expats cited the better environment and quality of life for their children as the number one reason for living in Australia.

Nine out of 10 said it was the overall lifestyle which kept them there, while four out of five said the weather was one of the top five reasons for their contented state.

Additionally, the survey found that it is simply easier to do things like get a job or a mortgage in Australia than other countries.

Expatriates find all kinds of jobs to make a move overseas. Some in China are finding that one job that can be had is that of a fake executive – as long as you have a pale complexion:

I’d be paid $1,000 for a week, put up in a fancy hotel, and wined and dined in Dongying, an industrial city in Shandong province I’d also never heard of. The only requirements were a fair complexion and a suit.

There are all kinds of industries that engage in this practice:

And so I became a fake businessman in China, an often lucrative gig for underworked expatriates here. One friend, an American who works in film, was paid to represent a Canadian company and give a speech espousing a low-carbon future. Another was flown to Shanghai to act as a seasonal-gifts buyer. Recruiting fake businessmen is one way to create the image—particularly, the image of connection—that Chinese companies crave. My Chinese-language tutor, at first aghast about how much we were getting paid, put it this way: “Having foreigners in nice suits gives the company face.”

Draw your own conclusions from this practice, but it is something interesting to note. Perception is obviously critical.

Scottish Expats will return to Shetland for Shetland Hamefarin, which means Shetland Homecoming and is held only once every 25 years.

According to BBC.co.uk, the Hamefarin will include “music and dance sessions, guided tours and lectures and demonstrations of crafts and old photographs.”

The even kicks off today and will continue through June 26.

As noted on BBC.co.uk, it turns out that the young expat who allegedly kissed a woman on the mouth in Dubai will have to spend that month in jail after all.

His “accomplice” has already served her time and returned to the U.K.

Expats need to be aware that something like this can happen in a country that is governed by strict islamic law, even if one sees or has engaged in this type of behavior in the past.

One of the BBC’s correspondents noted the following in the sidebar:

Yet in many ways, this case is about much more than a kiss. With 80% of Dubai’s population made up of expatriates, there is a fear that the influx of foreigners could erode local customs and culture.

A minority in their own country, Emiratis are pushing to maintain their traditional values. Enforcing laws like this is one way of doing that.

Importantly, it should be noted that this is something that the U.K. government advises against explicitly on its own website:

A statement on its travel advice website reads: “Britons can find themselves facing charges relating to cultural differences, such as using bad language, rude gestures or public displays of affection.”

Our mantra at ExpatExchange.com has always been “do your research.” Maybe we should something about actually employing the knowledge you gain from doing this work!