Isn't culture the same anywhere you go?

Cultural shock is a funny thing. Some people live their entire life without realizing that not everyone is like them. My first cultural shock was when I first moved to United States, but since I was relatively young, it did not impact me very much. However, when I want to Australia 4 years ago, I was very pleasantly surprised. People there are much more laid back than in New York. Sydney is a big metropolis just like NYC, but there is just no rush. No one pushes you on the streets or metro, store clerks are eager to spend 5 minutes talking to the customer. Being "American," I had to take a step back and relax. I realized that what I thought was normal pace of life, was only normal for NYC.

Story of my life

I was born in Belarus, also known as the last dictatorship in Europe. Moved to States with my family in 2001, exactly 2 months before 9/11. Graduated from James Madison HS in Brooklyn and went on to Baruch as undergrad. I always wanted to run my own business, but got side tracked in high school by investment banking's promises of insane bonuses. Now after 2 years of college, I decided to go back to my original goals of owning my own business. I am a full time student and work full time in the auto industry.