Everyone has heard of culture shock but have you ever experienced reverse culture shock?

After living in a different country for a while, you start to adjust to the environment around you. Transporting from one place to another gets easier, your stomach is craving that certain dish that you can only get at that ONE restaurant,  and you even start to get used to the different language. Just when you’re finally starting to get the hang of things, it’s like you have to go back home way too soon. It can especially be an upsetting feeling when the country that you were traveling in suddenly started to feel like home.

After living in Paris for 1 month and coming back to America, here’s a list of some of the reverse culture shock that I received:

  1. During my first night back in Philly, I went out to eat with my mom and her boyfriend for a “Welcome Back” dinner. When the waitress served the food to our table, I said “merci beaucoup” instead of thank you. *facepalms*
  2. My friend & I ordered a medium meal at a drive-thru and I was genuinely shocked at how big my drink was when it came out. It took me a while to realize the portions are bigger here in America and I was generally disappointed.
  3. TIMEZONE- Trying to recover from jetlag, I found myself falling asleep early only to be up and ready by 8am. Plus, I was getting super hungry at odd times too, ugh.
  4. Money- after using Euros for so long, holding bills and coins in my hand felt weird. Being honest though, I’m so happy to be back on the dollar rate because Europe can be PRICEY.
  5. Clothing- the fashion in Paris felt so much more advanced than the fashion in America. Being a fashion merchandise major, I realized that Paris had certain styles that weren’t featured in American stores yet. I’ve gotten complimented so far on everything I bought and wore from Paris!

There’s definitely more culture shock than there is reverse culture shock, but I hope you enjoyed reading this short post about my experience with it. Stay tuned for more posts to make up for the lack of posts in January!

x

Jessica