Reverse Culture Shock?

Hello Blogosphere,
I have officially been back in America for a little over two months now, and as I write this I cannot believe that it is true. It seems just like yesterday I could walk down the Arany Janos Utca and buy some beer at the Match and enjoy it at Godor, before hitting up Morrison's! Oh my gosh. If anything, my time abroad feels like I entered into some sort of time space continuum. I honestly feel that it cannot be real life, I did not go to Hungary for a semester, it was literally too good to be true. I would believe it if someone told me that I had fallen into a coma for 5 months and then woke up and started my life in San Francisco again, having dreamt the whole thing up. Well all of this being said, here are some of my experiences that shocked me upon my arrival to the US.

1. Customer Service?!-- I had essentially grown accustom to pretending that this phenomenon did not exist. In Hungary you had to bag your own groceries, beg for the check, and pay for water (grrr), now that I'm back in America I can't believe that people act as if they want me to be their customer! It's pretty awesome.

2. Free water-- So when I first got back to the US, one of the first places I went was to Gig Harbor's best (in my opinion) Mexican Restaurant (which might not be saying a lot), Puerto Vallarta. Here I was given, not only free water, but free chips and salsa! Can you believe it! Things are for free because they want to provide good service! Amazing!

3. Being Carded-- Turing 21 abroad made the whole novelty of being "legal" fairly non-existent. I showed my ID maybe once in Hungary, and even then it did not really prove much since my Washington State ID probably did not make sense to the Hungarian's at the grocery store. Now that I'm back in the US, I have begun to realize what a huge deal Americans make of this drinking business. Anytime I try to buy something alcoholic (which, don't worry mom, is not too often), I feel as if I'm trying to do something very, very bad and that the person selling to me is helping me get away with some evil bidding...which kind of makes me like it. Maybe that's why we have such a problem with drinking, while the European's seem to just accept it, somewhat more responsibly.

4. Military Time-- In Hungary I switched all of my clocks to military time (mostly because when I first got there, I tried to go to the grocery store and I couldn't figure out when they opened for a while, since the signs were posted in Military time and my mental math skills are subpar). While abroad it was everywhere, so I got use to it and learned to use it. Now that I'm back in the US, on Mod12 time, my clocks do not make sense to me! I feel like I have to struggle to figure out what time it is when I look at my clocks, it's so bizarre!

5. English Everywhere!-- So while most young Hungarians do speak English, typically when on the street, what you hear is Hungarian. This became very normal to me, and I kind of liked not being able to understand all the side conversations...nonsensical jibber jabber served as my soundtrack for the city. Now that I'm back I've found myself actually shocked that I can understand what everyone is saying and have even thought to myself, oh wow, other Americans!, before I remember that I'm actually back in America. Also, I tend to think that all background chatter is in another language (and while sometimes it is, it is usually English!).

6. Same but Not-- The biggest shock of all was how things here in SF had not changed...but they had so much. I think overall my outlook was what changed the most. Going abroad gave me a much wider sense of humankind, and while it sounds cliche, it did make me more of a global citizen. I was able to realize, to a certain extent, how we are shaped by our environments, and how much of an impact that has on ones life. Furthermore, I became very grateful of the fact that I was lucky enough to be born in the US and raised here. A lot of people on the trip left Europe saddened by the fact that they had to go back to the US, but honestly, I was very excited! Don't get me wrong, I loved every minute of my time in Hungary, but America will always be my home. While there is so much to be valued abroad, it made me appreciate what the US has to offer, and how HUGE the US is. If there are so many different cultures in little, baby sized countries, then what does that say for a country the size of the US? If anything my time abroad made me want to experience the US more and explore what my motherland has to offer!

Overall, I am very pleased to have been able to go abroad for a semester. Thanks in large part to the support of my family (particularly in getting me home, due to mt. aoeiheouihaeoiaeoihahjkjjkje blowing up every other day and the British Airline strikes), and for supporting my desire to live life to the fullest! I am very lucky to live the life I live and I can't wait for what's next. Thanks all of you for reading this blog and being there for me! I love you all!!

Signing Off,
Kailey