1.14.09 0214

It has now been one month since I disembarked from the MV Explorer. I keep expecting some epiphany to hit me about how different the US is from other areas of the world and how difficult it is to be back. Yes, it has been a hard transition, but not because I find it hard to slip back into the American culture. More because if the people I left. Now that I am back in their lives, they don’t know what to do with me and vice versa. I would like to think that they can now boast about their super amazing friend, but I find that most people just don’t care, which I find to be unfortunate.

The hardest part about being home is being far away from those I was in such close quarters with for the past 4 months. I miss not being able to walk down the hall and see all of my friends. Its like living in a dorm – except with a majority of people whom you are good friends with and you get to sail around the world. Now we are all spread throughout the country and have to try and coordinate skype dates. On the plus side, we all now have access to these hand inventions called cell phones and the ease of texting.

I feel like after having been around the world and seeing everything that I was able to, that I should have some deep, profound thing to say, but in all honesty I am just confused and still trying to process. One thing I have noticed is that people in the US seem to fall into 2 categories – those who care and those who don’t. Those who care generally seem to be people who have traveled outside the US – especially to developing countries. They really want to understand other cultures and experience what the world has to offer. If that means a sleeper train in India or a fish massage in Cambodia – they are always up for the adventure. The second category is FAR more common. Category 2 people generally have not traveled (when I say travel, I mean more than going to Cancun on Spring Break or the Bahamas, but I guess it is a start). They are perfectly content in their little American bubble. Yes, they know about world events and how there is no clean water in Africa. They take a moment out of their day and say, “That’s terrible,” and then proceed to guzzle down a designer bottle of water while loading their 2.5 kids into the back of the SUV and head back to the house that could house an entire village. Don’t get me wrong – I am all for the “American Dream” but we as a cultural go WAY overboard. I had never realized the excess in the States. I had always heard people talk about it, but it didn’t really sink in. The food portions, the size of our homes and cars, the way we spend money. The whole thing is ridiculous.

Traveling has made me have a love/hate relationship with my own culture. I love the ease of the US. Shashank was telling me how easy everything was in the US compared to India. I just said it was because we are lazy. With this he countered by saying that it is easy to be lazy in the US because almost everything can be solved with a phone call or over the internet. In India everything must be done in person, which is frustrating because transportation there is about ridiculous.

On the other hand, I really hate how it seems most people are content within our own little US bubble. When I told people about SAS, either people were really excited to hear about it or they looked at me like I had 2 heads. This can also somewhat be blamed on the media. They villainize religions (like Islam) and scare people. I mean come on, I survived an entire Islamic country and was worried more about a snake charmer or being running over by a donkey than a terrorist. We have got to be the most paranoid people ever, Mom ranking at the top of that list.

I heard an analogy about the US and how it is in its teenage years. The US thinks it knows everything and can do whatever it wants and then whines when it doesn’t get its way. Older countries, like the UK, India and China, who I guess you could say are in their Parent stage, realize that the US is just throwing temper tantrums and they gave into for a while, but now they are realizing that they don’t have to listen. I think this is a pretty accurate analogy.

One final point, once you travel you never stop. You realize what the world has to offer and you don’t want to miss anything. I realized that I have been to 22 countries in 22 years. I think a good goal in life would be to visit one country for every year that I am alive. I don’t really think this will be hard. I might not make it to a different country every year, but eventually I will get there. So now that SAS is over, I have gained perspective and life long friends and I can’t wait for my next adventure. I have my sights set on Italy with mom.