Beards and bicycles

On July 14^th I landed in Chicago’s O’Hare airport in the early afternoon. As the plane touched down a terrifying thought crossed my mind:

“I don’t know when I am leaving the country next.” As I walked through the airport to my connecting flight, stopping for the best margarita I’ve had in years at Chili’s, I heard the last calls for several international flights and for a fleeting minute thought I just might run to one of those gates and try to buy a last minute ticket. It’s not that I am not excited to be home, or even that I was already missing Thailand, but maybe just anticipating the upcoming challenge of returning home after many years abroad and trading one lifestyle and identity for a very different one.

Truthfully culture shock hasn’t been too bad yet, or maybe hasn’t set in, but rather than get into the more negative details of this I wanted to share some of the good feelings and experiences that come with returning home.

First, seeing the positive changes to the community that have taken place in my absence. Spending time in DC this week I have seen a significant increase per capita of both beards and bicycles, which I wholeheartedly support. (However, the beards do all look a bit like disguises because they are all the same style.) And for those of you who may be wondering- they're not all hipsters (definition of a hipster pending). DC has installed bike lanes all over the place so not only are there more bicyclists, there is now actual bike traffic. Wow. And it must be said that Trader Joes is an excellent addition to the U Street corridor. Finally, while this may reflect a not so positive trend, I like that there is a very visible campaign to spread awareness about human trafficking in the city.

Second, I appreciate feeling like an objective observer during my readjustment period. When you live in one culture, while losing touch with certain parts of your own culture (notably pop culture) there is a feeling of not needing to conform to either culture because the influence not heavy from either (for example in terms of fashion, social trends, etc.). This feeling was much stronger when I returned from Ecuador, likely because I was far more integrated there and social media was virtually non-existent (is that a pun?). Access to information over Facebook has allowed me to keep up with conversations and trends which I wasn't able to in Ecuador. Not being completely integrated in either place yet also creates kind of a 'free space' to be more objective about both cultures. Unfortunately, it doesn't last long.

Finally, some things don't change. Most friendships don't skip a beat, 3 minutes have passed instead of 3 years. Roots don't change. Even though the role that your family has you pegged for might be a little outdated (for me its that I break computers- from the one that died on me in college, and that I am a timid driver despite the fact that I drove the entire rim of the country after college) there is comfort in knowing where you stand with the people who have known you the longest. City culture evolves but doesn’t drastically change. I knew the moment I arrived in DC that I was here. By the conversations, the personalities, the advertisements, the businesses. Oh and the acronyms of course! DCisms abound freely in only DC.

Reverse culture shock happens slowly, and I'm a little concerned to not know when I'll be leaving the US again, but overall I am glad to be back for a little while longer than usual:)