Jun 25

Written by: Jayanthi
Monday, June 25, 2007

I have to say, I was relieved that we were returning to India after only 7 months (we came last in November 2006).  The reason for my relief was in the last visit, which was our first visit; we had a whirlwind tour of all the relatives and family friends.  Almost daily for a week we met about two to four families a day.  These families were not generally limited to 4 or so people, but many homes were located in a complex, where we ended up meeting anywhere from 10-20 people living in these complexes. So, obviously, me being the new person, and hate to say it, a foreigner, everyone will remember me (and in some cases make special arrangements to meet me).  But I feared I would have a difficult time remembering them.  In fact, my fears were solidified because I could not place the right name to many people’s faces.  I could remember their face and their names, but not together, and not in the right context.  The other part of the puzzle that added intrigue was the language barrier.  What I found was very few people could speak English.  I am not expecting people to speak English for my comfort, but my impression of the English usage in Kerala was not at all what it was in Chennai.  In Chennai, English is used generously in spoken Tamil, so minimal Tamil knowledge is required for a native English speaker to follow Tamil in Chennai.  However, meeting people in Kerala (Trivandrum and Kochi) was much more challenging. It seemed if people knew English, they would speak in English, but if not, English would not show up in Malayalam unless there was no word to translate what so ever.  This meant that plenty of antiquated words could be used in Malayalam on a daily basis as compared to Tamil, and of course daily phrases are more Malayalam- centered than in Tamil.  (An example that may not be the best- English- I want to use the phone.  In simplest Tamil it is “Phone use panna” and in Malayalam “Naan phone chai-yette.” Panna means do, naan means I, chai-yetta means doing.  If you have any examples of English integrated into Tamil, do post and I will see about getting a Malayalam equivalent from my family.)

In any case, because of the language challenges, I am like a one year old in an adult’s body.  I can’t communicate with many people by talking.  In this way, I can tell you that I empathize with baby’s cries.  I sometimes want to cry and wail because neither can I understand, but I can’t make myself understood!  But, because I could neither understand nor make myself understood without considerable concentration, I would become extremely tired and at some intervals, fell asleep.  Of course, that is considered rude in any culture, and I felt bad.  I still feel bad about that.  In this visit, I realized more than in my last that it is not only me that losses out in these exchanges, but, of course, they loose out too.  We can’t interact together.  This becomes most apparent in two types of situations, one where important information needs to be exchanged, and the other, when jokes are exchanged.  The good news is in most situations important information can be translated and understood between languages, but jokes are not always translated in ways that remain humorous.

 

Thank you for reading and participating!!!

References on Culture Shock from Alaivani (my website):
Am I an ABCA?
An American in Ecuador
Cross Cultural Experiences – Keeping it in Context
Educational Entrepreneurship: The First American To Matriculate at Madras Christian College
Honeymoon with Husband and his Family: Experiences in the Life of an Extended Family
How To Choose the Right Path in Studying or Living Abroad (Questioning how much cultural change can you handle?)
Integrating Two Worlds: Life in America with an Indian Twist
Is Mine a Case of Reverse Culture Shock?
This article has been published in the book Culture Shock.
Japan Through American Eyes: Joe Conley
On The Move: How have you absorbed Culture Shock?
Preparing for a trip to India to visit Family
Test Taking Trials and Tribulations in India
Yearning to Return (Why I want to go back to India.)
Relearning How to Communicate (Interactions in an Intercultural Family)

Others thoughts and experiences:
Culture Shock- Moving Back to India by Isheeta Sanghi
A Returning Indian Entrepreneur Reflects


Thank you for reading and participating in this journey with me! E-mail me with your comments, questions or feedback!

 

Part 5 in Series: Kerala 2007

Copyright ©2007 Jennifer Jayanthi Kumar

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