Welcome!

Author :  Charlotte Wittenkamp 



Many people who have moved to a new country suffer needlessly from culture chock. If this applies to you - or to people you know - this website may offer help. Some of our problems are practical. We don't know how society works in our new country. Some discomfort is psychological and we may feel incompetent and alienated. But look at that last word: alien-ated - moving has made you an alien, naturally you feel alienated.

There is no cure for discomfort, but there is information to figure out what the new norms are, and there are ways to sort out feelings; when we own our feelings and can talk about them, they no longer own us. In addition to what is on this website, you can download my free ebook “Building Bridges across Cultural Differences” by following the link at the bottom of the page.

US DK Expats’s primary focus is currently on people moving to Silicon Valley, but other expats may find information of interest as well.

Under Local Information you can find descriptions of multiple aspects of life in the US/California/Silicon Valley. As a Dane, my angle has naturally been how the US in general and Silicon Vally in particular differ from Denmark. The English version of the website is intended for non-Danish immigrants to the US and without comparisons to the Danish norm. Consequently the contents are not exact translations and if you are Danish, I suggest you press the little Danish flag and switch to DK mode.

Under Theory you can find an introduction to research from the social sciences about culture differences, adaptation, communication among strangers, learning – all subjects chosen to make entry into a foreign culture more enjoyable. When you understand that your experiences with adjusting are normal, everything becomes easier. You can use this part of the website regardless if you move California, to Denmark, or to any other part of the world. You can even use it right at home to get a better understanding for friends or colleagues from foreign nations.

The Blog: Being active on LinkedIN, I have often met other blogs and wondered if I should comment on the original website or on LinkedIN. To spare you for this, I have no comment section here. Feel free to comment on the company page on LinkedIN; you can follow US DK Expats and get automatic updates when a new post comes up, or you can use the contact page on this website with your reactions to the blog or if there are subjects you would like me to research or/and blog about. There is a link directly to the company page on LinkedIN at the bottom of this webpage.

Under Resources I have added other websites you may find useful.

Information about moving to Denmark can be found on newindenmark.dk, the official and very comprehensive website by the Danish Government. Under Resources are additional websites focused on helping people adjusting in Denmark.

Under Biblio you can find an extensive list of books and articles directly or indirectly referenced throughout the website. Some of the biblio entries link to the article if it is available online.

You are welcome to contact me directly if there are topics you would like to know more about. Knowing which topics are of particular concern to new immigrants will help me prioritize which informations to include in new revisions of the website.


Please visit the website link below for more info .

Thank you.

http://www.usdkexpats.org

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© 2019 Charlotte Wittenkamp


Danish American Chamber of Commerce in Northern California

PO Box 156710, San Francisco, CA 94115-6710, Phone# (650) 285-0178

DACC-NCAL is a 501(c)6 non-profit organization FEIN 91-2129146

    

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