I lay on the floor in a stranger’s house dripping in sweat with mosquitos buzzing around my head. I was in a small poor village in the South of Thailand and I was the new English teacher for the only primary school in the village. I had just met all of my 1000 students, hundred of confused eyes staring at me while I nervously introduced myself as clearly as possible had Thai people speaking to me in a language that sounded like baby noises while staring into my eyes and picking at my skin. I was given this soup for dinner with chicken feet and spices that made my eyes swell up and explode with tears and all my fellow teacher burst out laughing at me. Before bed, I bathed in a bucket full of cold water already used by the other 3 teachers staying in the one house before putting on clothes that the teacher gave me that covered every patch of skin as my pyjamas exposed my knees and elbows which was deemed as too ‘revealing’. I lie here wide awake listening to the gecko lizards slithering around the house and wonder what the hell did I get myself into?! I started to shake. I started to cry. I tried to calm myself down and reassure myself that what I was experiencing was culture shock as everything I went through today was normal life for these people. Immersing yourself in a completely new culture can be overwhelming and frightening and takes time to get used to. It also opens brand new doors for you and gives you experiences you will never get back home…