Culture Shock

Thanks to all of you who are sticking with me despite a month-long hiatus from blogging! As a segue into Singapore life, I thought it might be amusing to explore what might happen if a Nigerian showed up in Singapore or vice versa. This is how I see it playing out:

Nigerian in Singapore
"Tunde" arrives at the airport in Singapore and is immediately stopped by customs. He bought 20 IPods during his layover in London and brought two cartons of cigarettes from Nigeria. He's questioned by customs thoroughly, tries to slip the agent some cash which is quickly rejected, raises his voice and yells a bit (to the consternation of the customs agent), and gets his cigarettes confiscated.

Looking to replace his lost goods, he browses in the duty free shops for a bit and finally emerges at baggage claim to a worried looking chauffeur. Your plane arrived over 2 hours ago. Is everything alright? No wahala, Tunde says. His nervous driver quickly drops him off at his new home and leaves hurridly...he's already 5 minutes late picking up his next appointment.

Tunde leaves for work the next day...no car, no driver, no security? He wonders why he must take care of his commute himself and opts for a cab over the subway. He stops at McDonald's on the way, eats his McMuffin enroute, and discards his wrapper out the car window getting a couple odd looks as he does so. He arrives to work about 9:30...not bad considering he had to arrange transportation himself.

His new boss introduces herself, gives a quick overview of his job duties, and sets him to work on a project. Rude, he thinks. She didn't even ask about my family.

Singaporean in Nigeria
"Wan Li" arrives in the Lagos airport and waits for her company vehicle to pick her up. Why she couldn't just take a cab into the city she does not know. After two hours of waiting, her van finally arrives. She's wondering if the van driver did something terribly wrong; afterall, there are four gentleman armed with AK47s following behind. Just for security they tell her. Security? How dangerous is this place?

She's been informed that her commute to work will be long. I've had to commute in from Ang Mo Kio 6 days a week in Singapore, she thinks. Long commute, no problem. Her first day of work, she arrives late...two hours late! Who'd have thought 15 kilometers could take 3 hours! Completely embarrassed she profusely apoligizes to her boss. No wahala, her boss says. He's just arrived as well! Her boss procedes to ask her about her family and chat for the next two hours. By now it's lunch time. Wan Li is getting nervous that she has not yet settled in and been given an assignment. Once again, no wahala. The assignment will come when it's time.

She decides after work she wants to do a bit of shopping. Wan Li heads to the market and is immediately accosted (figuratively, of course) by 10 salespeople wanting her business. She quickly ducks into a make-shift booth to look at a tank top from H&M. "3,500 Naira" the gentleman says...she does the math in her head...$30? I could get this for $5 in Singapore! She finally talks him down to 2,500 and leaves feeling ripped off.


As Americans, I believe we have an advantage. Partly because of language (everyone speaks English, and those that don't know someone who does); partly because of media (we automatically have a common ground based on the international reach of American films and TV); and partly because of a general American knowledge (because of its high profile on the international scene, most people know how Americans act more than Americans do). But for those coming to and from countries such as Nigeria or Singapore, good luck. They are the ones who will truly be culture shocked.