I was thinking about Thailand recently (or, if I'm being honest with myself, everyday) and realized that I never wrote anything after I returned home. I doubt anyone is still checking this, but here's an update on the crazy roller coaster of returning home if you are!
After landing in Chiang Mai from a week of adventuring, I grabbed my extra luggage from the apartments and then was picked up by my host family for one last afternoon together. My flight didn't leave until midnight and they graciously offered to take me to the airport later that evening. We spent the afternoon together, looked at pictures from the semester, exchanged gifts, and toured their new home that seemed to make more progress each time I returned to visit. My host mom and I also cooked one last meal together- only fitting, I think, that she had me cook "American" pasta one last time! Later that evening my host parents drove me to the airport and dropped me at the check-in counter after a somewhat-tearful good-bye. It was very surreal. I think somehow I felt I would be back, but the distance is far and the good-bye felt very final.
I made the trip home alone: Chiang Mai to Seoul to Atlanta to Columbus. Over 20 hours in the air, 12 hours time difference, several movies watched, countless airplane meals eaten, and many hours slept. And eventually I arrived home in Columbus, happy to finally see my family again but so extremely exhausted and not even sure what day or time it was.
I don't know what it is about travel, but I swear coming back is always worse, and the next few days were a complete fog. I've heard it takes a day for every hour's time difference when you switch time zones, and I think that is extremely accurate. The first week back was filled with Smith family christmas (which I went to straight from the airport!), multiple gatherings with friends, and a trip to Chicago to visit with the Jacksons. I'm not sure how I appeared to everyone else, but I felt like I was viewing the world through a screen as I fought to stay awake when I was supposed to be sleeping on Thailand time.
I had one interrupted week at home and then I found myself back at school, once again inundated with new & familiar faces, places, and food. It's great to see everyone, but it has been an adjustment. It's difficult sitting in a chair all day after spending four months exerting myself each and every day. It's frustrating to feel like all I do is read all day, every day, when learning used to come from talking with people. It's overwhelming to all of a sudden be thrown back in the mix of clubs and commitments and responsibilities, and I have to remind myself that it's ok to have these feelings, because only last week did it mark one month of being home in the states. That's a lot of change for one month, but I'm slowly settling in to the routine and beginning to plan my return to Thailand.
I'll leave you with this last bit, a post I started in the airport before I left but never got the chance to actually post.....
As I think back on the semester and attempt to process everything, there are so many memories and experiences that thinking about one time just leads into a whole series of events. When we would talk about the semester with all the students, we always had to do favorites in categories, because naming favorites otherwise would just be unfair! So before I forget them myself, here are some favorites and highlights in no particular order:
Favorite host family:
Huay Tong Kaw in Mae Hong Son, where I stayed in the medicine man's house. But that's not why I loved it so much; I just loved talking around the fire, the wonderful food, and the sense of belonging. Obviously this is also in exclusion to our Chiang Mai homestays, which probably stand above the rest just because they were so long and in-depth.
Favorite food on course:
For seafood, the massive fish fry we had on Lipe, especially the calamari. For other food, either the nom prik in Mae Hong Son or all the pumpkin dishes in Mae Ta. Or the omelets in Mae Mae, red beans and veggies in Mae Hong Son, and cassava cakes.....clearly I could go on and on!
Favorite course:
Oceans, because I felt like it best incorporated both the science and the people, and it was the expedition I was most unfamiliar with. And snorkeling still stands at one of the most incredible activities we did! However, backpacking was a ton of fun and our group for Agro was still the best!
Favorite Thai dish:
Some favorites include som tam (papaya salad) and grilled chicken; Pad Thai (especially the 15B pad thai at the student market); omelettes and grilled vegetables. Also, the freshly-cut fruit and fruit smoothies. Or the Indian food at walking street and any of the dishes at the South Gate market.
Unusual things I ate:
Crickets, bamboo worms, octopus, squid, still-sandy snails
After landing in Chiang Mai from a week of adventuring, I grabbed my extra luggage from the apartments and then was picked up by my host family for one last afternoon together. My flight didn't leave until midnight and they graciously offered to take me to the airport later that evening. We spent the afternoon together, looked at pictures from the semester, exchanged gifts, and toured their new home that seemed to make more progress each time I returned to visit. My host mom and I also cooked one last meal together- only fitting, I think, that she had me cook "American" pasta one last time! Later that evening my host parents drove me to the airport and dropped me at the check-in counter after a somewhat-tearful good-bye. It was very surreal. I think somehow I felt I would be back, but the distance is far and the good-bye felt very final.
I made the trip home alone: Chiang Mai to Seoul to Atlanta to Columbus. Over 20 hours in the air, 12 hours time difference, several movies watched, countless airplane meals eaten, and many hours slept. And eventually I arrived home in Columbus, happy to finally see my family again but so extremely exhausted and not even sure what day or time it was.
I don't know what it is about travel, but I swear coming back is always worse, and the next few days were a complete fog. I've heard it takes a day for every hour's time difference when you switch time zones, and I think that is extremely accurate. The first week back was filled with Smith family christmas (which I went to straight from the airport!), multiple gatherings with friends, and a trip to Chicago to visit with the Jacksons. I'm not sure how I appeared to everyone else, but I felt like I was viewing the world through a screen as I fought to stay awake when I was supposed to be sleeping on Thailand time.
I had one interrupted week at home and then I found myself back at school, once again inundated with new & familiar faces, places, and food. It's great to see everyone, but it has been an adjustment. It's difficult sitting in a chair all day after spending four months exerting myself each and every day. It's frustrating to feel like all I do is read all day, every day, when learning used to come from talking with people. It's overwhelming to all of a sudden be thrown back in the mix of clubs and commitments and responsibilities, and I have to remind myself that it's ok to have these feelings, because only last week did it mark one month of being home in the states. That's a lot of change for one month, but I'm slowly settling in to the routine and beginning to plan my return to Thailand.
I'll leave you with this last bit, a post I started in the airport before I left but never got the chance to actually post.....
As I think back on the semester and attempt to process everything, there are so many memories and experiences that thinking about one time just leads into a whole series of events. When we would talk about the semester with all the students, we always had to do favorites in categories, because naming favorites otherwise would just be unfair! So before I forget them myself, here are some favorites and highlights in no particular order:
Favorite host family:
Huay Tong Kaw in Mae Hong Son, where I stayed in the medicine man's house. But that's not why I loved it so much; I just loved talking around the fire, the wonderful food, and the sense of belonging. Obviously this is also in exclusion to our Chiang Mai homestays, which probably stand above the rest just because they were so long and in-depth.
Favorite food on course:
For seafood, the massive fish fry we had on Lipe, especially the calamari. For other food, either the nom prik in Mae Hong Son or all the pumpkin dishes in Mae Ta. Or the omelets in Mae Mae, red beans and veggies in Mae Hong Son, and cassava cakes.....clearly I could go on and on!
Favorite course:
Oceans, because I felt like it best incorporated both the science and the people, and it was the expedition I was most unfamiliar with. And snorkeling still stands at one of the most incredible activities we did! However, backpacking was a ton of fun and our group for Agro was still the best!
Favorite Thai dish:
Some favorites include som tam (papaya salad) and grilled chicken; Pad Thai (especially the 15B pad thai at the student market); omelettes and grilled vegetables. Also, the freshly-cut fruit and fruit smoothies. Or the Indian food at walking street and any of the dishes at the South Gate market.
Unusual things I ate:
Crickets, bamboo worms, octopus, squid, still-sandy snails
