Home at Last

It's over. After five and a half months abroad I'm home. My time in Asia has been filled with unforgettable memories, forever friendships (Hattie & Haley adventures all day every day), and a lot of crossing off of the bucket list.

My emotions were all over the place once I got home. Partly from pure exhaustion (Asia jet lag really isn't fun) and partly because it is finally starting to hit me that I will never get to experience another semester quite like the one I had at City U. Senior year is creeping closer, I'll experience "Big Girl World" this summer in Chicago, and I'm finally starting to realize that the end of college really does mean i'm growing up!

Fun fact- reverse culture shock is a real thing. You would have thought that with all of my travel experience and living in different continents multiple times during my life would lessen the effects- NOT TRUE!

First things I noticed once landing in Chicago...

1. Americans really are fat- Everyone I saw was scoffing McDonalds (I can't really talk after all of the McDonalds delivery purchased in HK, but seriously compared to the tiny Hong Kongers everyone looked ginormous!)  
2. Tipping is a huge inconvenience on my wallet. Having not tipped in over 5 months writing and calculating a gratuity for my first American meal was a bit of a downer. 
3. Service in the U.S. is phenomenal. Not only did my food arrive promptly, but I was also checked on multiple times throughout my meal, water was consistently refilled, and the entire restaurant was spotless. To be honest all of the questions ("how does it taste?", "can I get you anything else?", "more water?") got a little obnoxious seeing as I'm not used to that anymore. 
4. My data plan finally works again and I can talk to everyone at a normal hour without calculating the time difference! 

It feels great to be home, but I'm definitely nostalgic thinking about how long it will be before I get to return to magical Asia land and explore more parts of the world that I have never experienced. Lots was checked off of the bucket list this semester, I return home with a Hong Kong battle wound (7 stitches on the left ankle), and one of the best friends any girl could ask for.

When I look back to my spontaneous decision to study abroad in Hong Kong and how "on the fence" I was about even going I have to laugh a little. I wouldn't change my semester abroad for anything.