• Author Mary Ann Santoro Bellini identifies four separate stages of cultural shock that occur when a given person moves to a foreign country. Other experts separate the process into more or fewer stages of culture shock, but Bellini's model covers all of the basics. It includes the process by which people identify different aspects of foreign culture, accept or reject their tenets, and slowly acclimate themselves to both their new surroundings and the memory of their old ones.
  
  

Honeymoon

• Visitors in the honeymoon stage view the new culture as something exciting and fresh. Differences in culture and appearance seem fascinating, while similarities stand out as common bonds. The energy associated with this stage often leads visitors to explore their surroundings and treat their new environment as a source of joy. The honeymoon can last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. Vacationers and similar casual visitors rarely move past this stage, since the length of their stay is limited and they focus their activities in service-oriented areas such as hotels and tourist sites.
  
  

Rejection

• As the first stage fades, the visitor confronts feelings of frustration and resentment. Cultural and language differences create complications in mundane tasks. Feelings of inadequacy predominate, and the reality of the visitor's new life starts to hit home. Disappointments tend to build upon each other, while members of the surrounding culture may treat the visitor like a child or a fool. The visitor becomes extremely sensitive and may develop significant fears about the surrounding culture.
  
  

Isolation

• The disillusionment created by the second stage causes the visitor to retreat into a shell. He becomes extremely critical of the surrounding culture and thinks of his home culture in idealized terms. Homesickness can become pronounced and emotional anxiety increases dramatically. The visitor may experience crying jags, changes in sleep patterns and continued irritation over comparatively minor issues. The exact length of this stage varies from case to case, but often lasts from one to two months, according to Bellini.
  
  

Assimilation and Acceptance

• In order to function, the visitor begins adapting to his new circumstances. Slowly, the new culture begins to make more sense. He finds fellow countrymen who have adapted to their new culture, or makes new friends in the surrounding culture who help him feel more at home. He integrates more readily into his surroundings: basic tasks become easier and the local language and customs present fewer problems than they did before. Eventually, he's able to function in both his new and old circumstances with ease, balancing his cherished past with the promise of his future.