The Sound of Settling
I feel settled. This is new, different.
Japan was comfortable and by the end I felt at home. This is a lie. The end had nothing to do with it; I slipped into the groove almost straight away and then kept running. Tearing at the seams where I needed to. Getting out when it hit boiling point. I was lucky to be able to duck in and out, but I was always happy to be back, even if the ride from the airport was uniformly grey and horrible. It was comfortable, but it was also transient, and there was always a calendar somewhere, counting the days.
When I first hit Perth, I felt trapped. Suffocated. I hate the idea of reverse culture shock: it seems like such a cop-out. To me, the whole point of living on the other side of the world is to revel in the difference, and to bring that difference back with you. Appreciate that every country, every city, is different, and run with the best of both. I’ll admit for a long time I was wondering where I could find the best of Perth. You can only go to the beach so many times. Watch the sun set. It all seemed so provincial. So safe. So easy. It took a while to find a balance I was comfortable with.
These days, the phone rings a lot at work, and I’m always busy. My days fly past. This is not something I will do forever, but it’s a routine, and my life is full, and I’m happy. I start Mandarin classes tomorrow. Maybe that will take me somewhere, maybe not, but it’s going to be fun finding out.
Posted in Mwah on Tuesday July 24, 2007.
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#2· James Zurek
483 days agoI’m kinda surprised that you haven’t mentioned anything about reverse culture shock in any previous entries as it is such an absurdly abstract concept for someone who hasn’t experienced it. On my return to W.A after time in Japan I hated the isolation, the violence bubbling away under the surface (go to northbridge on a friday night; drunk miners etc) and the overweight, neurotic perth women. Like you say, you can only go to the beach so many times, as with the ribbon of green down south. Perth is a parochial, isolated place with the most expensive housing in the world when you take into account wages. who wants to live in an urban refugee camp with a life long mortgage at 7.65% in the outer suburbs, or with their parents?
#3· Dan
483 days agoAndrew: I came back to find that half of perth had been knocked down to make way for a train. That’s pretty different.
James: You’re right about the violence, it’s something that i still haven’t come to grips with. Just listening to kids talking about how they’re going to “smash that cunt” is pretty fucking disconcerting. Get off my damn lawn etc, but what the hell is wrong with kids these days?
Ditto with the houses. I’m not buying into it just yet, but what are the alternatives: throw money away on rent, sign your life away or get the hell out. Some choice.
#4· Amanda
480 days agoI’m one day fresh back in the States, and I think it will take me well until past the 3 week mark to realize I’m not actually going back. Even though all my shit is with me and being put into clothes drawers, it still didn’t feel real leaving Japan.
On another note, I had a small fit at Target this morning while in one of the THREE AISLES of shampoo. Bought the same Dove stuff I used in Japan, just because I knew what it was. Went to the lotion aisle, saw something with “soothing moisture stripes.” Too much choice.
#1· Andrew Tetlaw
483 days agoHey Kris and I had a similar experience. Even thought we loved Japan, we were very excited to be coming home. However, places change over a couple of years, and when you return you can feel the place is different somehow.