America

Dama came to America for the first time when he was moving here to attend Trinity University. He arrived on August 18, 2009 in San Antonio, TX and stayed in a hotel for a short while before moving into the Calvert dorm. He already knew much about American culture from the popularity of American films and music abroad.

Interestingly Dama has gone through little to no culture shock since moving here, most likely due to his living in many different nations growing up and attending international schools that were taught in the English language. Dama said one of the few changes that he encountered since moving here was the level of religious faith of America. Coming from a predominantly Buddhist nation that is fairly secular the outward expression of faith was a mild surprise. Perhaps the most overwhelming change from Thailand to America that Dama experienced was the weather. Thailand is extremely hot and intensely humid and so the lack of humidity and temperature drop that he encountered in San Antonio was a shock, but a welcome shock.

Dama’s main complaint in regards to America is the almost complete lack of public transportation which was not a problem in Thailand.