A few month ago I made a promise to my oldest friend – and
by oldest, I mean I’ve known her since we were 7. She’s the same age as me, so
of course she’s not “old”. But I failed to keep the promise, until now. The
promise was that I’d post entries to my blog more often, and it’s been 6 months
since my last confession... I guess “better late than never”?
Why do I find it so difficult to write my blog? It’s not
that I’m too busy – quite frankly, I think most often I have too much time on
my hands. It’s not that I don’t like writing – when I get started, I actually enjoy
it, and can usually think of some crap to speak about. So what is it? Those of
you that know me well can probably answer the question with ease – I’m lazy!
Yes, I admit it. I would rather watch TV, play on heliPad, listen to music, or
read, than use my brain to think and write. The extent of my laziness is best
demonstrated by my “opposable thumb” story. A few, actually it’s more like many,
years ago I broke my thumb in a skiing mishap. I was fitted with a custom-made
cast, which I had to wear for 6 weeks. When the cast came off I was given thumb
exercises to be done several times a day in order to restore full movement. Well,
I was too goddam lazy to exercise my thumb, and as a result, it’s no longer
completely opposable... I rest my case.
Anyway, back to life in Jamaica. After all, that’s what this
blog is supposed to be about. I have six weeks left on this likkle island, but
I’m not going to write about that (yet). Instead, I’ll share a few things I
wish I had known before embarking on this adventure...
- No matter how much you learn or are told about the importance of understanding different cultures, culture shock, and the whole tip of the iceberg analogy, nothing can prepare you for living in a developing country. You have to learn as you go. I’m not saying don’t think about it beforehand, you definitely should. But don’t assume you’ll be prepared, because you won’t.
- The heat we experience in Canada (Vancouver in particular) can never ever, ever compare to summer on a tropical island. There are no words to describe it. It saps every ounce of your energy, it’s there all the time, and just when you think “wow, I’ve finally acclimatized,” you realize it was winter.
- Yes, I grew up in a country where, in theory I was a “visible minority”, but back then, that wasn’t the “real Africa”. Being Caucasian in Jamaica means you are always conspicuous. Blending in is not an option. And, although it’s politically incorrect to admit, it’s really true – people of different races have a tough time differentiating between people of another race. U git me? To many Jamaicans, me and my 2 brunette friends are one and the same person.
- This is related to #3, but it’s for women who wear makeup: if you’re going to a country where the majority of the population has a different complexion to you, make sure you take enough foundation, because it’ll be really tough (and expensive) to get something that’s even remotely the right skin tone.
- And finally, if you happen to fall in love with a person from a completely different culture, well, I have no advice for this one. Love and relationships are hard enough, trying to bridge the gap when you’re virtually (and soon to be literally) worlds apart is, at times, almost impossible. And don’t get me started on how to deal with leaving – maybe I’ll tackle that in my next blog entry, scheduled for February 2013!
