Back in San Diego. Reverse Culture Shock Time!

If you follow these posts I’ve made over the past 20 years, you know I like to take random trips to various places without warning. This year is the 50th anniversary of a film I obsess about a lot, 2001: A Space Odyssey, which I love partially because it was released in the year of my birth. When I saw that the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum had a special exhibit that re-created the room at the end of the film which visitors could enter and take photos in, I knew I had to go, which I did after arriving on Sunday. If you or someone you know is a fan of 2001 and are anywhere near the D.C. area, you should totally check out the exhibit before it ends May 28. You’re supposed to sign up for free tickets, you if you show up, the staff will let you in. Enjoy!

As usual, it’s great to be back in San Diego, though of course hopping across the Pacific always causes some reverse culture shock, which is when your home country looks strange to you because you’ve been away. Some reverse culture shock I’m going through right now are…

• The time shift makes the first day in the U.S. about 36 hours long, subjectively, since I arrive before I leave when heading from Japan to California. I can really kill my Apple Watch steps thanks to the extra hours in my “day,” but jetlag makes everything seem to slow down like a Quentin Taratino film.
• Naturally, I need to drive on the right side of the street, which isn’t too difficult as long as there are other cars on the road I can follow. When there are no other cars, things can get confusing. The situation isn’t helped by my mild dyslexia, or by my jetlag. (The trick is, always make sure you’re closer to the center of the road than your passenger, whichever country you’re driving in.)
• While Japanese beer is nice, it’s all kind of the same old thing at the end of the day. When I’m back in San Diego, a city renowned for amazing craft beers, and I have a hard time saying no to a frosty IPA.
• Japan is a wonderful country, but it lacks in some important areas. By which I mean Mexican Food. Unlike California.
• J-List is based in Isesaki, a pleasant rural city of 200,000, which has quaint, short traffic jams mostly on Sundays when people are out shopping. Back home in San Diego, the traffic is so bad that I plan any route meticulously and avoid all driving from 4-7 pm if I can help it.
• Advertising everywhere in the U.S., and filled with legal jargon spoken at 10,000 words per minute. My wife loves listening to it.
• It goes without saying at this point, but a “small” drink in the U.S. is so much larger than in Japan it makes me do a double take until I get used to it. Then the reverse happens when I go back to Japan.
• In Japan, the “default” drink is unsweetened bottled Asian or black tea, and there are usually a dozen or more varieties to choose from in any store. In the U.S., the struggle to find anything to drink that isn’t sweetened or faux-sweetened is real.

Have you ever visited Japan (or another country) then experienced reverse culture shock when you came home? Tell us about it on Twitter!