Tobias Essuah-Mensah

AMST 100     
Dr. Nicole King
November 15^th 2012
                                                             Culture Shock
        Like most kids in Ghana, I grew up watching movies such as ‘Twins’ and ‘Last Action Hero’ both starring the one and never dying hero Arnold Schwarzenegger. Many rumors and stories were constantly being told by those who visited the USA on a regular basis about walking up to celebrities such as Arnold and Stallone and sharing an ice cream cone whilst recounting past movies and discussing future movie productions. A lot of rumors abounded about how you could walk into a store and have all the candy you wanted without paying a cent. I dream't daily of the wonders of the USA.  Imagine my excitement when my parents decided to relocate to the USA. However, my excitement was short-lived and gave way to utter shock.Walking out of JFK was an experience in itself: I watched vapor rise from nostrils and lips of New-Yorkers as they filed past us with a stare that said ‘get the hell out of my way you or get knocked down”. Everything moved ten times faster than normal and was rude and unfriendly.  I knew certainly that i was in for a rude awakening.
         High School presented its own culture shock. First day of school began with the dreaded introduction: name, and birth place. When it was my turn I hesitantly stood up and said “Hi, ‘my name is Tobias Essuah-Mensah and I am from Ghana’.” Aside from their difficulty comprehending my accent, it took a whole year for my teachers and classmates to pronounce my name correctly. Shockingly, some of my teachers hadn't heard of Ghana and called it Guyana. Students asked whether I had a pet monkey named bobo, if people lived in huts, climbed trees like Tarzan and wore loin clothes. I still wanted to know “where were Arnold, Sly, the free candy, soda, and ice cream I always saw in the movies?”
        I realized that assimilating meant sharing my culture and learning the culture of my classmates. I realized they weren't being hostile, they were simply curious about my world. My shock decreased as i worked to understand this new society.