Usman Hameed Ullah
Mr. Ko, Paul
Social and Cultural Anthropology HSP3U7
October 19th, 2017
Culture Shock: A personal account My first encounter with culture shock occurred when I immigrated to Canada. This was back in August of 2014 and I was just under thirteen years of age. When my plane finally landed in Toronto, I was completely over the moon with everything. This concept of a ‘whole new world’ had revolved in my mind for at least seven months now. Full of adrenaline, I took in the fact that I was here at last. Driven by violence and hatred from home, I had come to Toronto in hopes of a new beginning. As I walked through Pearson International airport, I began to observe the multicultural mass of people that surrounded me. At this moment, and I distinctly remember this, I turned to my sister, and these were my exact words, I said,“Hey, there are barely any white people here”. Coming to a foreign western country from a third-world country like Pakistan, you develop certain assumptions, and this was one of them. Within a couple days of our arrival, me and my family were given a “Welcome to Canada” introductory presentation by some of our community members. Even though this was done in an effort to help us settle in and adapt, nothing could have avoided the inevitable culture shock that was to come. At first, I was going through the …show more content…
Unknowingly, I had become more familiar with my surroundings, made some friends, and had adopted a routine to help me adapt and release feelings of frustration. I had entered an adjustment phase. I had taken on a new approach to adaptation, in regards to observing and accepting differences, and recovering after having gone through multiple challenges in a day. I realized making a few friends and having those people help you adapt can be very
Mr. Ko, Paul
Social and Cultural Anthropology HSP3U7
October 19th, 2017
Culture Shock: A personal account My first encounter with culture shock occurred when I immigrated to Canada. This was back in August of 2014 and I was just under thirteen years of age. When my plane finally landed in Toronto, I was completely over the moon with everything. This concept of a ‘whole new world’ had revolved in my mind for at least seven months now. Full of adrenaline, I took in the fact that I was here at last. Driven by violence and hatred from home, I had come to Toronto in hopes of a new beginning. As I walked through Pearson International airport, I began to observe the multicultural mass of people that surrounded me. At this moment, and I distinctly remember this, I turned to my sister, and these were my exact words, I said,“Hey, there are barely any white people here”. Coming to a foreign western country from a third-world country like Pakistan, you develop certain assumptions, and this was one of them. Within a couple days of our arrival, me and my family were given a “Welcome to Canada” introductory presentation by some of our community members. Even though this was done in an effort to help us settle in and adapt, nothing could have avoided the inevitable culture shock that was to come. At first, I was going through the …show more content…
Unknowingly, I had become more familiar with my surroundings, made some friends, and had adopted a routine to help me adapt and release feelings of frustration. I had entered an adjustment phase. I had taken on a new approach to adaptation, in regards to observing and accepting differences, and recovering after having gone through multiple challenges in a day. I realized making a few friends and having those people help you adapt can be very