Time flies by tremendously fast, which is something incredible when you think of it, which turns out you rarely do. Life is seldom predictable and sometimes ends up giving you opportunities you never thought you would get. These opportunities vary in type and the time they come around,but one this is for sure, they are always enriching. However, you must first be determined and be willing to take to take them. My family and I did, and we all knew this would be huge. It has not really been long since we all decided to leave everything behind and emigrate to a new land, but I do not regret it. All I can really say is that it was both an exciting, full of new yet somewhat unexpected experiences.
I can still vividly remember that day. The first time I had ever set foot in a foreign country. Just imagine how wonderful it was. Not only had I never left the city I was born in, but the first time I did, I had the good fortune of visiting a completely different land and culture. A land that has been so defined as the ''Land of Opportunity'', and who am I to contradict?. Personally, the United States, being an immigrant, has offered me more chances to keep on growing than Colombia would have ever given to its own citizens. Also, a culture of which all I knew was what I could picture from watching films and photographic albums from people who had been here a few days, months or years ago. Incredibly enough, here I was despite all the odds. It was now my chance. The experience of visiting a new country almost always occurs as expected. although people in general may experience it in different ways, mine did not happen to be an outlier. As soon as we got off the plane, I could feel it. I do not know about my parents. They had been here before after all. This probably did not feel like such an accomplishment to them, but I did feel it, and I am sure my brother did as well. This was no longer the place we had boarded in about three-and-a-half hours ago. As a matter of fact, the first impression I got from this place was unusually, that you get sometimes when you open your freezer; a sudden cold breeze as soon as I stepped out of the plane. As I write this, I start to wonder if I could have seen my own breath. Definitely, I should have tried. Even though Bogota, the city we departed from is already cold, this was not something I was completely familiar with. I knew the building was air conditioned, but I could not avoid thinking it was exaggerated. Especially, because I knew we had arrived during the winter, and you would have expected the very opposite; apparently winter is not what you would think it is, at least not in Florida. After waiting for about twenty minutes and meeting this innocent-looking, underdressed, yet scary and authoritative immigration officer who carefully checked all of our paperwork, we proceeded to take our luggage and leave the airport terminal. Surprisingly enough, I was about to find out why the air was so cold inside the building. I have got to tell this was not something I was prepared for, but what awaited us outside was totally unexpected. Once the airport gates opened, an almost suffocating wave of heat and humidity hit our faces. Definitely something I was not wearing the proper clothing for. Language was also a sudden punch my face. Mispronunciations, misunderstandings and consistent misuses of words became our daily bread. I cannot believe I have managed so far. As the hours and days kept going, we found ourselves facing many of the prior awkward and sudden situations along with others which have given the reality of visiting or moving to a new country a wonderful meaning, for they create memories, and memories are the hardest to forget.
In contrast to the many positive experiences that visiting a new country offers to most people, there are still some unfavorable aspects that are important to take into account. Some of which I could experience at first hand. If you have ever traveled to a country different than your own, you have most likely experienced a phenomenon known as 'Culture Shock'. Some specialists even consider 'Culture Shock' as an actual disease. Not surprisingly, everyone experiences its phases in different ways, and yet some people still remain captives of the very first ones. I recall it had not been long after arriving to the United States that I started to feel anxious and uncomfortable whenever we went out. I rather stayed at home, protecting myself of embarrassment from doing things the way I knew, but not the way I should. How was I not supposed to feel this way when I was perfectly aware that I was no longer at 'home'?. It would have been foolish from me to think this was going to be an easy and that not only mine, but also my brother's transition would require no major efforts. These feelings remained as I continued to find out just how unfamiliar I was with this country and its culture. This place was new, and it was our life from now on. What has made it even more frightening was the fact that there is no coming back. At least, not until I am able to afford it myself. Fortunately, knowing I was neither the first nor the last person to ever go through something like this took enormous amounts of pressure off my shoulders. However, it is not only the first days of transition the most scary, but progressively you learn that when you emigrate, you lose some of your foundations. You arrive as a totally new person. In different words, you must start back from scratch, for the past becomes that and not many people care where you came from or the things you have done.
Whether you are a tourist or a future resident, visiting a new place can be both an amazing yet scary experience. No matter how much I read about the customs, how well I thought I managed the language, how much had I interacted with people from the place I was intending to visit or how ready I thought I was; It was not until I was finally there, that I acknowledged how unprepared I probably was to face it. I do not remember where I read it neither I intend it to sound as a life lesson, but I will always remember this: ''You are never completely ready to face a new challenge; you just go whenever you consider you are ready enough.'' As harsh as it sounds there is no reason to be discouraged, for I know there are going to be many things in life I will be unfamiliar with and that I will most likely cannot prepare for.
- J. Ramos ENC1101
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