Reverse Culture Shock

A simple thing, just paying for gas, signaled my reverse culture shock

http://stevemckelvie.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/100_35161.jpg

I have lived outside of my home country of the United States for the last two and a half years; I lived in Turkey for two years and in Portugal (the Azores) for the last six months. While I have traveled back to the U.S. a few times for conferences, these conferences were always held at resort locations and not in the "real" world.

This December, I had the chance to travel back to the U.S. to visit family and friends for three weeks. I felt a little out of place and a little confused about things that used to seem so simple. I couldn't put my finger on it until a conversation with a friend. He is South African living in the U.S., and he spoke of reverse culture shock.

Reverse Culture Shock is defined as "The shock suffered by some people when they return home after a number of years overseas. This can result in unexpected difficulty in readjusting to the culture and values of the home country, now that the previously familiar has become unfamiliar."

I had heard of this phenomenon before, but I never thought I would experience it myself. Granted, my reverse culture shock was mild, but that is exactly what I had.

Here is just one example:
I went to the gas station, and I forgot what to do. I know how to pump gas into my car, but I typically just stand by the gas pump, wave my ID card to the guy inside, fill up, then go inside and pay. Those in the U.S. may be laughing right now, but my friend Ron will verify. I stood outside the car and could not remember what to do. Do I go inside and pay first? Do I pump first and then pay? After a few confused seconds, I saw the pay-at-the-pump... oh, yeah! I forgot about those. I swiped my card and filled the gas tank. Then, obviously forgetting that I just swiped my card, I started walking inside to pay for the gas. Ugh!

I had numerous other episodes of just not remembering how things work, most dealing with shopping or ordering food or paying for bills. None were very significant, but they all slowed me down a bit. I realized I was more comfortable when no one was behind me in line, so that I had a few more seconds without pressure to figure out or remember how to order or pay for things.

I also witnessed many encounters with other individuals that either made me shake my head in disgust or disbelief (because of their rude or self-centered behavior) and others that made me smile (reminding me that there are some really good people in my home country).

This gave me a new appreciation for those people returning from deployments, the mission field, the Peace Corps, or even just living outside of their home country for a few years. It takes time to readjust.

Something to keep in mind if you are planning on spending any time outside of your home country for an extended time... as many in Permaculture do.

Picking, and Eating, Tomatoes with my Daughter

My daughter on the rocky shore near our house.

She wants to be outside every chance she gets.

On almost a daily basis, I try to do at least a quick walk through of my garden with my daughter. She is only 15 months old, so the walk through usually consists of my carrying her. I tell her which plants are growing well. I will pick some mint or crush some thyme and let her smell the fragrant leaves. She only has a few words, so most of the conversation is one sided. She does manage a high-pitched, "oooh, oooh, oooh" when she spots a plant at which we normaly stop to examine further. However, since her first taste of a vine ripened cherry tomato a few days ago, she can barely contain her excitement when she realizes we are going anywhere near that plant.
 
We had a lot of roadblocks to a decent tomato harvest this year. The biggest problem was that I moved in the middle of the summer and could not get my seeds in the ground until late August. I only planted a few plants, and a short while after fruit set, Hurricane Nadine came through... twice! The plants were almost entirely shredded by the winds. There was one side of one plant that made it through relatively unscathed. The half dozen small green cherry tomatoes were protected from the wind and are ripening on the vine.
 
These are the tomatoes that my daughter loves. I’ll pick one and take a bite. Then, I’ll give my daughter a bite, but she grabs my hand and tries to eat the rest at once. Well, to be honest, I love them, too. They are tomatoes that taste like tomatoes are supposed to taste. These are tomatoes that remind me that tomatoes are in fact, technically, a fruit. They are sweet. They burst with juice and flavor.
 
We've picked and eaten three of them so far, and now there are only three left. Within a few days, they will be gone. I’ll wait until these fruit are perfectly ripe, and my daughter and I will together savor the last of tastes of summer. I would venture to say that these few tomatoes may be the best tasting tomatoes I have ever tasted… or maybe it is just because of the girl who is eating them with me.

I don't care either way.

 

Harvesting Seaweed

Collecting seaweed from the coast, with my boys and my dog.

 

I have written in previous articles about always being ready to grab what is on hand for your home vegetable garden or forest gardens. With the passing of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Nadine, one of the beaches in my neighborhood became inundated with seaweed. So I went out with my boys, dog, garden cart, bucket, and shovel in tow to the beach. I did wonder how the locals would react to me walking the streets with a large wheeled cart full of seaweed; however, I ended up meeting three groups of people who were collecting seaweed as well in just my brief twenty minute shoveling session . I think they were more surprised that a foreigner was out there with them than I was. 

 

Seaweed is a great compost addition (I'll talk more about that in a day or two). Everyone was gathering it for their gardens, orchards, and vineyards. One local man, in his 60's, told me that he had never seen this much seaweed washed up at one time. The boys loved running in the feet deep seaweed. To them it was like a super-sized trampoline. The dog was acting like it was a field of brown snow. Fantastic memory.

 

 My boys playing on the bed of seaweed.

 

 

Tidepooling with my son!

Elijah and me on the Azorean coastline.

I take about 100 steps from my front gate and I am here on the rocky southern coast of the island on which we live. Most days of the week, I will go with one or both of my boys (or even the whole family) to "climb on the rocks" and visit the tide pools. This place is truly good for my soul. There is such an amazing diversity of life on this rugged jumble of rocks. Fish of all sizes, shrimp, crabs, starfish, sea snails, seaweeds and other sea plants, tiny things crawling all over the place, seagulls and terns and sparrows high overhead or fluttering close by... this black outcropping, called Ponta Negra (Black Point) by the locals, is so alive.

There is so much life here!

This Sunday, Father's Day in the U.S. and celebrated by us living overseas, I took Elijah with me to the tide pools. I took Isaac out shopping with me later in the day...that is another article coming soon. Walking along the rocks before the tide really started coming in, we saw a number of local Azorean men in wetsuits scooting along the water's edge carrying buckets. This is a pretty common scene. There is a large variety of foods to be gathered here. I have seen shrimp, large crabs, limpets (aquatic snails), and seaweeds already. I am planning to get some local insight on the types and cooking methods of these wild foods just as soon as my Portuguese gets a bit better. I am also barely able to wait for my snorkeling gear to get here as spearfishing is a very popular local activity. I am enamored with harvesting foods from the wild. I love that the locals have been doing this for hundreds of years in such a sustainable way. The sustainability I have already seen on the island is amazing, but this is also an article for another day.

Elijah pointing out is favorite limpet shell.

Here is Elijah in front of the tide pools at the beginning of our "adventure". The tide was just beginning to come in. As the waves were starting to splash a bit higher, we quickly climbed to higher ground. About twenty minutes after this photo of Elijah was taken, we were on the ledge behind Elijah in the far distance. I took the photo below which shows the same spot Elijah was standing now covered in water. How better to explain tides and how they change then to actually show it to your kids? To let them see it and feel it. What fun!

We've Moved to the Azores, Portugal!

I can see my house from here!

http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/25682115.jpg

I apologize for my absence in the last week or so, but we've been quite busy moving (again) across the world. This time, we've stayed at almost the exact latitiude; however, we are are a very different place.

We have moved to the Azores. More specifically, we have moved to the island of Terceira.

The Azores are an archipelago consisting of nine main islands in the North Atlantic Ocean. The Azores are considered an autonomous area of the Portuguese Republic. They are located almost 1,000 miles west of Lisbon, Portugal and about 2,500 miles east of New York, USA.

The Azores are in an Oceanic Sub-Tropical Temperate Climate. The temperatures year-round are in the 50-70's F (10-25 C). Rainfall averages 42 inches (109 cm) per year with most rain in the winter (about 5 inches (12 cm) per month) but still with an average of about 2 inches (5 cm) per month in the summer.

For comparison, here are the latitudes of some other locations around the world:

• 38.15 - Louisville, Kentucky, USA
• 38.00 - Athens, Greece
• 37.48 - Adana, Turkey (We just moved from here!)
• 37.46 - San Francisco, California, USA
• 37.44 - Azores, Portugal
• 37.41 - Witchita, Kansas, USA
• 37.33 - Seoul, South Korea
• 37.23 - Sevilla, Spain
• 36.51 - Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA

I'll have a number of posts in the next week of our new home in the Azores and all my plans for the plot of land here, but for now, I'll just show some photos of the island.

The main city on Terceira... Angra.

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Biscoitos on the north side of Terceira Island, Azores

http://decareaux.tripod.com/Island/images/DSC03084.JPG

Serra do Morião ou da Nasce Água, ilha terceira, Açores, Portugal.

(not really sure what this means yet, but this is a common view here)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Serra_da_nasce_%C3%A1gua_ilha_terceira_a%C3%A7ores.jpg

Saying Goodbye to the Amazing Diversity of Turkey

Isaac and a large, blooming bougainvillea (Bougainvillea species).

After spending the last two years of my life here in Adana, Turkey, it is time to move on. I have enjoyed learning about and growing plants in a Mediterranean climate. This location has an amazing diversity of plants and animals that I will never forget.

Eurasian Siskins (Carduelis spinus) are common here but rarely seen.

http://www.birddb.co.uk/img/Bird1187.jpg

White Spectacled Bulbuls (Pycnonotus xanthopygos) are common in these parts.

http://www.birdforum.net/opus/images/3/33/White-spectacled_Bulbul.jpg

For those interested, and for my recollection years from now, Adana, Turkey is under 100 miles from the Syrian border. This is considered a Mediterranean Sub-Tropical Temperate Climate. Plant Hardiness Zone 9 (averate annual low temperature is 30-20 degrees F (-1 to -6 C)). AHS Heat Zone 8 (number of days above 86 degrees F (30 C) is 90-120 days). It rarely drops below the 40's F (5 C) in winter and often climbs above 105 F (40 C) in summer. It averages 26 inches (66 cm) of rain here each year with most rain falling in the winter months.

Pomegranates (Punica granatum) in flower.

There is a variety of pomegranate here that has seeds much smaller than the ones found in grocery stores in the U.S.  The fruit is a pale rose color instead of the more common bright red.

Loquats (Eriobotrya japonica), perfectly ripe and so sweet.

These are great to grab and eat on the go while taking a walk.

I took a walk with my four-year-old son today. Within ten minutes, literally, we walked past banana trees with young fruit, pomegranates in flower, a wide variety of citrus (orange, lemon, and grapefruit) all with ripe fruit, a walnut producing large husks, prickly-pear cacti full of unripe fruit, and a half-dozen loquat trees hanging low with branches covered in perfectly ripe fruit... we grabbed a few handfuls and ate these sugary-sweet fruits on our walk, spitting the large seeds in the grass.

Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia species).

The fruit is forming under the flowers that have budded off the cladodes (flattened "pads").

Originally from the Americas, it is widely distributed around Turkey.

We saw a single male Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris) today.

http://www.cartinafinland.fi/en/imagebank/image/87/87029/Male+Greenfinch+(Carduelis+chloris)+87029.jpg

If we would have walked the other direction, we would have passed persimmon and fig trees just starting to bear, apples, quince, and mulberries dropping thousands of ripe berry-like fruits. In fact, my friend Jake and I took our sons to pick mulberries about a week ago. In just a few minutes of shaking branches over sheets laid on the grass, we had our buckets full.

Jacaranda, from Central/South America, are one of my favorite tropical/sub-topical trees.

The trees here are likely Jacaranda mimosifolia, as they have been widely planted around the world.

The Syrian Woodpecker (Dendrocopos syriacus).

Along with the closely related Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos medius),

these birds are common here in Adana, Turkey.

http://www.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/k/KingGuile/600.jpg

And that is just the fruit trees within a ten minute walk from our house. Don't forget the dozens of rose bushes, the bougainvillea with their almost-neon-glowing flowers, the beautifully bare trunks and scent of the eucalyptus trees, and the tall jacaranda's with their pale purple-blue, wispy flowers swaying in the breeze.

The Hooded Crows (Corvus cornix), like all crows, are very smart birds.

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The Crested Larks (Galerida cristata) are a familiar sight along my running trail.

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Then there were the birds... Hooded Crows and House Sparrows all over the place, a few Crested Larks near the open fields, a number of White-Spectacled Bulbuls on low branches and in the grass, a pair of Eurasian Siskins (the male was a brilliant yellow) darting in the shade of the conifers, and a single male Greenfinch sitting proudly on a fence. There was also a quick blur of white, black, and red... either a Syrian Woodpecker or a Middle-Spotted Woodpecker as we have both, and they are difficult to distinguish out of the corner of the eye.

The Oranges (Citrus species) here are quite sour... more in taste of a lemon.

The "heart" of a Banana (Musa species), more acurately an inflorescence (cluster of flowers).

You can see the unripe fruits forming above.

These are the things I will miss about Turkey. Of course the food. Without question the few amazing people I will always call friends. But it has been quite an experience to live in one of the original breadbaskets of the world.

The Eucalyptus trees (Eucalyptus species) are the tallest trees in this area.

I am not sure which species grow here... just never got to researching it.

I came across this Walnut tree, but I am not sure of the species.

I am pretty sure it is a Persian Walnut (Juglans regia).

Agama Spotting... and other Turkish animals.

The Starred Agama (a.k.a. Stellion or Star Lizard), Laudakia stellio.

http://www.american-buddha.com/photo.speybroeck.85.jpg

This morning, my family was taking a walk to the park. My two boys were on their big-wheel-type bikes. Isaac, now four years old, was at the front of our procession when he suddenly skidded to a stop. He froze with one arm pointing to a tree a few feet from the sidewalk we were walking, reminding me of a bird dog who had spotted a hidden pheasant.

For a second or two we tried to figure out at what it was he was pointing, but we were obviously too slow in identifying it. Isaac hopped off the bike and ran to the base of the tree, running with his arm fully extended and finger still pointing. This sudden direct charge on its hiding place was too much for the well camouflaged, foot-long lizard.

I can't help but wonder what that lizard was thinking... There I was, sitting in the sun, soaking up the heat, relaxing all morning. It was a great spot. I was blending in perfectly with the roots at the bottom of my favorite tree. I had seen dozens of those gangly, two-legged animals walk right past me. They make so much noise all the time. But as long as I don't move, they keep right on going. Then, out of the blue, one of them stops and stares right at me. He's one of the small ones. They usually aren't that smart. Is he looking at me? Did I lose my camouflage? No. He can't see me. I just have to stay still. Hold my breath. He'll keep on going any second now... Oh, crap! He's running right at me... don't move... don't breathe... ahHH! Forget this! I'm outta here!

These guys can scale a tree in seconds!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/Laudakia_stellio_002.jpg

The lizard, whose proper name is the Speckled Agama, bolted up the tree. Only, poor thing, it climbed a tree that had a sparrow's nest in it. The male sparrow started to dive bomb it. It hopped from limb to limb dodging the bird until we started to walk away. Then it quickly scurried back down the tree and then hid in a pile of rocks. I am sure it was hyperventilating, saying a prayer of thanks for not getting eaten by that scary animal that charged him out of the blue.

Not a minute later and Isaac spotted another Agama. The scene replayed itself, only without the sparrow attack. After a few minutes of watching the lizard climb in the tree above, we moved on. Now I have studied animals for a long time. I understand their behavior. There are obviously many people who are better than I, but after years of trying to spot and observe wildlife, I can humbly say that I am really good at it. But I think my skill is a learned craft. It is pretty amazing to see a four year old come at it with such ease. It is going to be fun to see how this develops.

Long-Eared Hedgehog (Hemiechinus auritus)

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This just reminded me of how living in Turkey has allowed us to experience a completely new range of flora and fauna. Whether it is the scorpions on my running path, the hedgehogs digging holes in the yard at night, the hooded crows sitting on the fence waiting for my boys to drop some food, or the Hoopoe I wrote about a short while ago, it has been a lot of fun to see the amazing diversity of God's creation.

Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix)

http://ibc.lynxeds.com/files/imagecache/photo_940/pictures/Crow-0326.jpg

Indian Crested Porcupine (Hystrix indica)

Well, we actually only found a few quills on one of our hikes.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3042/2653583753_06dc0a915d_z.jpg

Boys Meet Grasshopper

Isaac trying to figure out this grasshopper.

Over the weekend, the boys and I were in the backyard. I was cleaning up the garden beds a bit, and I came across a rather large grasshopper. They boys have seen little green grasshoppers and crickets before, but never one of this magnitude nor one with such a non-flighty demeanor. They held the grasshopper and just marveled at it. I love the fact that they have no fear. They haven't been taught by squeemish adults that you must be afraid of bugs or dirt or pretty much anything in nature. They are still in awe of the natural world and curious about it and want to touch it and pick it up. I hope they never lose that innocence and wonder.

Elijah wondering why the grasshopper has "spikeys on hims legs".

An "Adventure" with my Boys

The "treasure" we collected on our "adventure".

A couple of days ago, the sun was out (finally), the sky was blue, and I just wanted to be outside. I told the boys, both three years old, that they needed to get ready for an adventure. They brought me their magnifying glasses, a pair of large, plastic, green forceps (tweezers), and a plastic box with a string  on it (aka "the collection kit").

We spent the next hour walking in the small fields of grass and weeds behind and between the houses in our neighborhood collecting "spess'mins" for our collection kit. In total, we collected leaves from seven new plants (many of them were "reawy pokey!"), shells from two species of snails (Elijah likes to call them "nail-ohs" for some reason), two pine cones, about ten flowers from half a dozen weeds, and two small clusters of seed pods.

Isaac was not feeling great, so I let Blue Bear and Li'l Doggie tag along... in the pockets of my jacket. Here he is showing them our treasure.

Elijah, who is never quite serious.

The boys just getting back from the adventure.

It is so fun to be able to get outside and spend time with my boys. They are willing to try anything if Daddy is there, not holding their hand of course since they want to do everything themselves, but ready to lend a hand if they need it. I think the real fun as a Dad is just getting started!

 

Let your kids DO something in the garden!

This pathetic pepper is my favorite plant in the garden.

It is almost dead.  Still barely clinging to life.  There is but one leaf that still has some green on it.  It never grew more than about ten inches tall, but it did produce one pepper.  This pathetic little pepper plant, probably the one plant that has thrived the least, is by far my favorite plant in the garden.

The reason is because my son planted it.  One day toward the end of the summer, when the blazing heat of our Mediterranean sun was at last less intense, at the time of year that was a bit too late to plant summer garden vegetables, I had a tray of seedlings that I finally got around to planting in the garden.

My two boys, ages three and two and a half, were contentedly playing with their cars and trucks on the patio and in the dirt at the edge that we call the sandbox when I started my planting.  My oldest, Isaac, enjoyed observing me from a safe distance as I knelt at the edge of the garden bed planting cauliflower, spinach, and a few pepper seedlings.  When asked if he wanted to help, his response was a short, "No fanks.  I just wanna play here with my cars."  And this he did for the next thirty minutes.

Although playing with his cars looked a lot more like watching Daddy try to keep his brother Elijah from killing every seedling Daddy was trying to plant.

My youngest son, Elijah, in classic opposition to his neat and clean older brother, within minutes of being asked if he wanted to join me, already had dirt caked under his fingernails and grass stains on his knees obtained while trying to "he'p Daddy".

I would let him carry my hand shovel to the next work area.  I would let him try to drag the bucket of compost, and then scoop up the trail of dark dirt he would leave behind.  I would let him slide the tray of seedlings.  But planting required a bit more finesse than his two year old hands and bull in the china shop demeanor could quite muster.  So I ended up planting the seedlings one after the other with my son just glad to be there with me.

Then I paused.  What was I doing here?  Was I trying to teach him to be a good helper or a gardener?  Did I want him to appreciate the grunt work and not the joy of giving a plant a new place to grow  Fortunately, when I realized this, I had at least one plant left in the tray.  It was one of the smaller pepper seedlings.  It was probably a bit too late in the season for it to even flower let alone produce any peppers.

But it was this plant that I gave to my son.  With a "saved the best for last" attitude, I relinquished control, albeit a tad late, and gave full command to my two year old son.

"Fo' me?" he asked with wide blue eyes, and yes he actually said this.  I showed him where to dig the hole, helping only a bit.  I let him take the plant from the tray and remove it from its container.  He put it in the ground and piled the dirt back around it.  I only straightened it a bit... okay, I picked it up off its side.  We both tamped the soil back around its roots.  Finally we both held the hose and watered it in.

That was too much for Isaac to resist.  Shooting water all over the backyard?  He had to help with that.

Over the next few weeks, every time I went out back to water or weed or prune or harvest, Elijah would point out his pepper plant with such pride.  "Daddy, that's mine pepper pwant!"  He would help water it with the hose when I was outside with him.  When I was not outside with him, he would just drop his pants and water it himself.  He would walk back to the porch, pulling his underwear back up and telling me that his "pepper pwant was rearey firsty."

Surprisingly, the weather stayed warm enough for long enough and a few flowers bloomed.  Shortly after that, one little pepper began to form.

As the days have gotten shorter and cooler, we have spent less and less time in the garden, but that pepper has continued to grow very slowly.  The last few weeks have been more cold, and the plant is showing signs of throwing in the towel.  With vigor that originates from deep down in the cells of that plant, it is doing all it can to grow that pepper, to mature that fruit and produce seed.  It has been time to harvest that little pepper for weeks now.

Elijah will have none of it.  That is his pepper pwant.  That is his pepper.  When I remind him that his pepper is going to have to be picked soon, he tells me, "I don't fink so, Daddy.  I don't wanna pick my pepper."

So the pepper sits.  The plant has given all its resources to keep that pepper alive.  The last leaf wilted with last night's drop in temperature.  I don't know how much longer it will survive.

I still don't know how I am going to handle that one pepper.  I am glad I have a few days to try and come up with a good idea.  But for now the pepper plant remains.  My favorite plant in my garden.

My Criteria for Land

http://www.indiatalkies.com/images/farmland29826g.jpg

As I am actively looking to buy land, the following are the ideal requirements that I have given to real estate agents.  If a parcel of land meets all these requirements, I would be amazed.  This is more a set of semi-flexible guidelines.  If the land fails to meet too many of these guidelines, then it is removed from consideration.  Google Maps is a fantastic resource to rule out / rule in the majority of these requirements.

1.   20-40 acres is the goal (less if the land is ideal, more if the land is cheap).
2.   Land should be dividable.
3.   Relatively flat, but the major slope should be toward the south or west.
4.   No hills or mountains to the south or west that would cause significant shade.
5.   No easements.
6.   Absolutely no Associations.  Will consider a Covenant if it is very limited in scope.
7.   Flowing water (river, stream, creek) on the land would be great. Ponds would be nice.
8.   Well on the land would be great, but the ability to have a well is mandatory.
9.   No more than 25% of the land in marsh or wetlands.
10. No more than 25% of the land in "untouchable" wildlife or resource habitat
11. No large power lines bisecting the land.
12. Not bordering a major road or highway.
13. Ability to have multiple living units on the land. Plan to have parents live full/part time with us.
14. Within 30 minutes of a decent sized shopping area.
15. Within 60 minutes of a moderate sized city.
16. Ability to discharge firearms on the land without legal or neighbor complaint.
17. Ability to raise crops and livestock on the land without restriction.
18. Bordering a state or national park or other land that will not be developed would be great.

Please let me know if you know any criteria that should be added to this list.

A New Daughter!

My daughter: Abigail Grace

Born 16 July 2011

I'll be out for a few days... hope you understand!

The only ethical decision is to take responsibility for our own existence and that of our children.

- Bill Mollison