Stages in Adjusting to Japan
The attitudes that you will likely experience can be broken down into three predictable phases, of varying lengths 1)The Honeymoon Phase, 2) Culture Shock Phase 3) The Integrating Phase. Let's look at each of these.
1. The Honeymoon Phase
This always is the mindset of the eager foreigner who has just arrived, and usually lasts a few months to a year. Since your time here is two months, you may remain in this phase your entire time or it may be relatively short, the first two weeks or so. During this phase, every day in Japan is like a new day at Disneyland; everything is new, there are lots of places to see and things to do, meeting the warm Japanese is always a joy. Usually the language is not much of a burden since you will be able to communicate in English quite a bit and will not be spending extensive amounts of time studying. Enjoy this time and soak up the Japanese culture. Learn as much as you can, and take as many photos as you can.
2. The Culture Shock
For those that stay longer, they usually leave the Honeymoon Phase and then enter Culture Shock, which might last several months to even a few years. Again, for your two month stay, this time may or may not occur, and the length will vary for each individual. The disillusionment of Japan not being a Paradise on Earth sets in hard and frustration at dealing with the language, cultural differences, and Japanese social obstructions begins to surface. During this phase, you may feel that some of the young Japanese have been really friendly more to practice their own English than to become genuine friends. The comforts of the people or things back home become missed more. Depending on the person, isolationism or alienation may also set in. A person in this phase may also believe he or she has all the answers to everything wrong with Japan and become more irate with the fact that Japan is not following his or her brilliant conclusions. If you enter this phase during your time here, I encourage you to go to Jesus with these feelings. He will help you understand and, in time, bring you out of this stage.
3. The Integrating Phase
If an individual sticks it out though, he or she will usually enter the Integrating Phase, the more objective of the three. She will be able to see both the good and the bad of Japan as well as of his own country, and learns to appreciate the best of both worlds. It is not unusual for long-term foreigners in Japan to always have a love-hate relationship with Japan, but over all, they have a stronger resilience as well as a greater tolerance than most people back home. Lastly, different people, of course, will behave differently. Keeping an open mind, learning about yourself and God as well as Japan and your own country, and not getting bogged down with negativity are important for your time here. Allow God to teach you about Himself as well as about your true citizenship, which is not here on this earth, but rather is in Heaven.
