Immersed in the Culture
Before going abroad, everyone was required to learn about culture shock and the different stages. Every culture around the world does things differently, so if you aren’t aware of that in advance, you’re in for a real shock. What I found most interesting was how little culture shock I felt in Iceland. Now I’m not saying that the American culture and the Icelandic culture are exactly the same, but they are not drastically diverse. Even so, I made sure that I immersed myself in the culture.
Iceland is filled with geothermal pools due to the abundant amount of geothermal energy. Everywhere you go there is a new one to experience. Before going into any of these pools, you are required to shower. While this may seem like no big deal, it is for many tourists. There are no stalls to shower in, so you must strip naked and shower in front of everyone (there are separate sides for men and women) prior to putting on your bathing suit. For people who are private and don’t feel comfortable with this, it is hard to overcome. This is the biggest cultural difference and challenging for some people on my study abroad, even people who had been there previously. At first, I was uncomfortable with it, but I knew I wanted to engross myself in the culture and the only way to do that was to do what the Icelandic do and not cheat.
Another difference to get accustomed to was the weekend schedule. In Europe, dinner is usually served late and the nightlife starts later and ends around 5 in the morning. This was what I was expecting in Iceland, but their schedule was a little bit different. Dinner time was at the same time as in the U.S., around 6-8 and most restaurants closed around 11. Even though this is what would happen in the U.S. it was annoying at times when we would come back from traveling around 11 (the sun was still up so we didn’t realize what time it was) and nothing would be open. As for going out on the weekends, the clubs wouldn’t open until around midnight and would close at 5 a.m. Clubs in Boston open earlier and close around 2. Altering my schedule so I would be able to experience the Icelandic nightlife was hard for the first few weeks, but I eventually got used to their schedule.
It took me some time to adapt to the Icelandic culture and living in a new city like it does most people, nevertheless, I think I did well trying to adjust to the local way of life. To do this, I made sure I immersed myself into their culture.
