Culture Shock on Expat Exchange

Even with the NaBloPoMo madness, I somehow found time to do a report on Culture Shock in The Netherlands for Expat Exchange. This is a new series by Expat Exchange, offering expats in various countries the opportunity to share their experiences with culture shock.

I've written for Expat Exchange before (Vogue: Fashion in Holland, Weighty Issues: The Dutch Edition, Expat Relationship Advice: The Netherlands), so it was nice to be able to write something else for them. They provide other reports on schools, cities, and relationships and have a great collection of articles on tons of countries.

My report on Culture Shock in The Netherlands was featured in Expat Exchange's newsletter The Foreign Exchange on 17 May 2010. The following is an excerpt taken from the report for the newsletter:

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do." This cliche has done me nothing but good. Always remember that you are in someone else's country. What is acceptable in your home country may not be here and vice versa. At the same time, don't let go of who you are or where you came from. Of course things will be different, but that's the beauty of living in another country. Different does not mean good or bad, better or worse. It simply means 'different.'"

Speaking of interviews, I will be running a series of Expat Interviews here on Clogs and Tulips beginning in June. If you're interested in participating, email me at americancloggie@aol.com.