In many ways, New Zealand’s culture is similar to the US. People speak English and are very familiar with American pop-culture. However, there are many small differences that add up and need adjusting to, such as understanding some accents and driving on the other side of the road. The biggest difference for me was the…
A Semester in New Zealand
New Zealand and the US share many traits in common as far as general amenities go. There is a lot of overlap between the music, food, and media. However, they have different attitudes toward many things. The most notable difference to me was their attitude toward consumption and waste. New Zealand does not have the…
FINAL BLOG POST
My family is originally from Mexico therefore I have visited Mexico various times. But like every country given that there are different regions, it is most likely that they will each have slight differences whether it be the food, clothing, traditions or weather. For me Oaxaca was a completely new state that I had never…
A Semester of adventure in New Zealand
As someone who has traveled a significant amount in their life, I did not find many aspects of my host culture incredibly hard to adapt to. That being said, the biggest difference between my host culture and my home culture would have to be the education system. The New Zealand education system is heavily exam-focused,…
TEAN at Newcastle, Australia – Post #1
JDRAKE In thinking about which core tenant of US culture I wanted to focus on I landed on an interesting dichotomy. I believe there can be two categories, US culture and American culture. The US culture tends to encapsulate how the world views Urban Americans (upper class) as opposed to middle and lower class Individuals….
Jusqu’à la prochaine fois paris #3 blog
One of the biggest adjustments that I had to make when living in France after a while was to not smile at others. Although it may seem small and silly, I think smiling and making eye contact with those around you in public is a big part of American culture. It isn’t like that in…
Sydney, Australia
Adam Quinto I have just returned back to the United States after my semester in Australia, and already dearly miss it. The biggest cultural issue I had to face were different then I though they would be. Australia is an English speaking country so that made it a lot easier, but its the demeanor of…
pre-departure
1. One major aspect of the USA’s culture is emphasizing individualism over the collective. Essentially, US society tends to value and favor the actions that benefit and accentuate the individual, rather than a collective. Cultural individualism largely manifests in people’s behaviours, such as the choices that they make. For example, someone would likely decide to…
Pre-departure
I grew up on St. Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands and have been in the continental United States for school for a few years now. So, the culture I was raised in is very different from the one here. This has given me a unique perspective on some of the attitudes and values…
Pre-Study Abroad Post
An aspect of U.S. culture I want to explore, especially during my time abroad, is the culture around work. Our economic system in the United States is capitalism, so that means work is an integral part of how our society works. Because of capitalism, we have to work to buy the things we want and…