Back in America from China
Being back in America after 2 1/2 years of being away feels more than a little bit strange to me. How so?
Everything is the same, and yet everything is absolutely different.
Coming back from China, one of the loudest and most crowded countries in the world, to the United States, one of the more quiet and not so crowded countries, is strange. Especially for an expat living in China going back home..
That pretty much sums it up, but I want to tell you that America is incredibly:
- Quiet
- Clean
- Wealthy
More not so profound observations:
- People in America are a little ‘bigger’ than in China. Make that a lot bigger
- Traffic is mostly orderly, and I don’t feel like I am going to die (not to say I am scared) every trip out
- People are more friendly to strangers on this side of the world, and less hardened to the outside world in general
With all of that being said, it is incredibly nice being back home. It’s unfortunate only having a couple of weeks here, it feels like a couple of months would be much more like it. Since I am flying out of my hometown in just a couple of days, I have only had the chance to see several friends, and wish that were not the case.
How about you? What’s it like going home from China?
What were your experiences like after having been away from home for extended periods of time? How long has it been since you’ve been home?
my observations are almost identical to yours. the cleanliness, largeness of the people, and the friendliness to strangers, were all apparent immediately upon arrival.
On my last trip back I couldn’t get over how short all the buildings in my (very small) hometown were. I was feeling slightly agoraphobic!