I'm Home

My last day was really good but really sad.  I said goodbye to Shefa'a and some of Tamara's family (most were in another town for family reasons).  I gave the gifts I made and got some gifts in return.  Motaz and I made the manager of my building give me the 50JD insurance money they promised and weren't going to give me.  That night I was able to suppress my crying and even it out on the plane ride.

Speaking of the plane ride, my one bag was overweight by like 10 pounds and it cost $150 to ship it to PA.  $150?!  I tried bargaining that price.. I said "100 shouldn't be a problem."  "It's 150."  "I'll give you 100."  "One, five, oh."   "Ok fine."   They promised me a good seat on the plane.

and YEAH I got a good seat, they moved me to 1st class!  It was like a whole world I've never discovered.  Reading lights in between the seats.. heavy comforter and pillow.. the chair moves in like 10 different ways, including sleep mode so it's like a bed.  "Will you be having the tender beef or the grilled shrimp for dinner?"  Appetizer, dinner, dessert, breakfast.  Personal TVs.  Socks, toothbrush/toothpaste, chapstick, sleeping mask, tissues.  Totally worth it, especially since it was 12.5 hours long.

Last day, learning how to wear this as a scarf

Mosab (one of Tamara's cousins) and me

Coming home is just so weird.  It's nice because you get to rediscover your culture all over again, but it's weird because you have to learn to get used to it. 

The traffic is so boring and so organized, hardly anyone is on the road. 

The air smells very nice and plant-like, and all of our houses have triangular roofs.

Everything is SO GREEN. 

Dollar bills look soooo short and long.... soooo weird.  I don't know them anymore.

People smile, including the news anchors. 

I danced in the parking lot because I can.  

I also stretched in public because I can.

I forgot how to use my phone, I had so much difficulty texting on it.  

Soooo much variety in food.  

Restaurants are just big chains.  

Clouds and rain!

Not everyone is brown and Arab.

Cliques.  

Country music.

Less interaction.  

SOOO many pet commercials!  Why do we have so many?!  It's now weird to me to treat dogs like humans.. I mean yeah they should be loved but don't overdo it.   

Ice cold drinks in HUGE cups.  

People act fake-happy here to seem friendly.  In Jordan they're just matter-of-fact.  

Ah.  So many things.  I move in to school tomorrow and I'm not ready.  I haven't caught up on my sleep yet and I'm not ready to go back to American interaction.   I miss Arabic coffee.  

That's all for this post I guess, if there are any more cultural tidbits that I notice, I might post again.