America

So the much anticipated trip home!  I had been counting down for months for the trip home.  Me and my friends that were  going  would constantly talk about what we were going to do and eat.  The days before we all had to go to Lima for our mid-service conference and doctor’s visits.  It was hard to concentrate because all I kept thinking about was in just a few short days I would be in the United States. 

My Dad and I had talked a lot about culture shock and what I may experience coming home.  The very first thing I noticed was when I got to Miami, and due to the very large Latino population, most everyone in the airport was speaking in Spanish of with a thick Spanish accent.  This is one of the things I have struggled with since I came to Peru.  When someone talks to me in English with a Spanish accent I immediately want to respond in Spanish.  So although I was finally back in the united States I kept talking in Spanish.  The 8 hour lay over in Miami was painful!  It felt like I was so close to being home, but just had stupid time in the way.

When I finally took off to go to D.C. all the emotions came rushing too me.   Although I had seen my parents only 6 months before, the excitement of seeing them never gets old and I just couldn’t stop thinking about it.  When I got to Washington I was really lucky that the customs process did not take to long and I raced to baggage check where my parents were waiting for me.  With a combination of exhaustion and excitement I started crying.  There is no better feeling in the world!  Next we went outside, which I was not prepared for in my Capri pants in t-shirt.  It was around 1am and it was COLD!  A cold I hadn’t experienced in over a year it was not pleasant.

Now since I have been gone there have been a lot of changes, my parents sold their house and my Dad was not renting an apartment in the city during the week and my Mom living in Delmar.  So it was really weird to not go “home”, and instead we went to my Dad’s studio apartment were we all slept in the same room.  But it has a pretty cool view of the capital!  The next day my Mom and I took off to Delmar in her new convertible.  For her the weather was “nice” so we drove with the top down.  For me it was COLD, and I was happy her car had seat warmers which I usually frequently throughout my trip.  Along the drive home we were able to do 2 of my favorite things, we stopped at star bucks, which was exciting because I was home in time for all their holiday flavors, and then she let me drive.  I have been dreaming about driving.  I have wanted to do that since the day I left, I can truly say it’s one of my most favorite things to do! 

When we got to my house it was so nice to be there, even though it is new place for my parents to be living, it was all mine the years before I left for the peace corps and I had really missed it. My parents had taken over my  room and just had transplanted my bedroom and an upstairs room.  It was so nice to see my bed!!  After laying in that for a few minutes I took off to the storage room where boxes and boxes of my clothes were and I tore through them!  It was like Christmas but with my old clothes.  When I packed to go to Peru originally I packed as you would think a peace corps volunteer should pack, with boring practical clothes, and for all types of weather since I did not know where I was going to be living.  However this time I was going through the boxes to determine which of my cute clothes I was going to be taking back, many of which I hadn’t worn in years but since I had lost weight I was able to wear them again.  I was literally able to bring a whole new wardrobe back to Peru. 

The rest of the day my Mom and I were on a mission getting my dress fixed and other necessary items for the next few days where I would go back to Washington with my brother and be the maid of honor in my friend’s wedding.  So the first few days of my trip were a whirlwind.  However, it was really fun being able to be apart of my friends big  day, someone thing I had known about and talked about since before I left.  It was also a really good time to catch up with my brother.  Alex is always good for a good time and the wedding was fun and there were a few other friends from high school there and it was really nice to catch up.

After the days of the wedding I headed back to Delmar to spend the holidays with my family.  It was so nice to sleep in my bed and take hot showers anytime I wanted to!  I washed so much clothes.  I am used to wearing my clothes more then once in Peru and then taking a trip down to the creek to wash them.  So it was so nice to just be able to take everything off and put it in the washing e . 

The food!  I cannot tell you how much food I ate during this trip!  It was so exciting to have everything I wished for right there!  Even better was having a refrigerator to go to and get what I wanted.  None of my breakfasts at home consisted of rice and eggs or maybe chicken and rice, or potatoes and rice.  Instead my Mom made me pancakes, and toaster strudels and scrambled eggs and bacon, I was in heaven!  Then at night my Dad always had cheesecake for me!  It was really hard to say no to any of it.  I think the best part was being able to make a sandwich for lunch.  This is not a concept well practiced in Peru, almost non-existent in Chipillico.

The absolute best part was absolutely being with my family.  I know it might sound a little cheesy.  But my time in Peru has strengthened an already pretty strong relationship with my parents.  But there is nothing like just being there with them.  My Mom and I went for walks, because fortunately the weather was a little more mild then normal for December.  And my Dad and I went on our early morning drive to star bucks for coffee and then out to “walk the lot”. These are the very little things that I have missed so much.

I was able to get together with some friends too.  I guess the hardest part of that was that I felt kind of disconnected.  Sometimes it can be hard to go do something that was once so normal and fun after not being  a part of it in a really long time.  These people were always such a part of my life, they knew everything, I knew everything, we did everything together.  And in the time that I have been in Peru we do our best to exchange emails occasionally but there are really so many part of both of our lives that gets left out.  So I had a really strange feeling being with them. 

Then Christmas came, which was a day I would see my WHOLE family.  I had actually been really nervous about this for a long time.  When I thought about being in a room with everyone it made my stomach have butterflies.  I don’t really know why.  However, when the time came it wasn’t as hard as I thought, and the day when really fast and there wasn’t enough time to talk to everyone but it was great to see everyone.  Something I probably wouldn’t have been able to do any other time of year if I had come home.

The shortly after Christmas the trip came to an end.  I had imagined that this would come with really mixed feelings.  But I believe the whole time I was home I had this feeling like I belonged somewhere else.  Not that I didn’t enjoy my vacation, but I felt a very strong pull to get back to Chipillico.  I think the problem is that I feel a very strong responsibility to the people of Chipillico.  Although there were so many things I enjoyed and missed about being home, I felt like I had to get back to work.  Also, I can say that my last year has contributed to this feeling.  Peace corps states that our job is 24/7.  I absolutely feel that way, I am 100% of the time ON in Peru.  I don’t have hours, people stop by my home whenever they need something or whenever I am walking around the community.  All hours of the day I am working on something or planning something out.  So even though I was so far away from Chipillico for 2 weeks and able to enjoy some relaxation, I still felt a strong pull that I needed to get back, especially since the next large milestone of my service is the end, and its approaching quickly!  So after a few tears and goodbyes  and 2 ridiculously large heavy bags full of clothes and chocolate for my host family I hopped on a plane and am now back in Peru for another 10 months!