Returning Home and Culture Shock

I finished up my last few days of the language sprint in survival mode. I was over the heat, over language, over the incessant going, over not having time to myself. I was feeling a little homesick too. Finally one night, I went for a walk down to the nearby lake to decompress and process the previous days. I talked to God about how I was feeling and in turn His nearness was my good. 

We finished up my last day of class. On the following day, we said goodbye to P by treating her to her favorite food, Burger King. She then took us to try “Banana Milk.” Rebecca doesn’t like milk and I try to stay away from it so it doesn’t mess with my sinuses. P couldn’t really get a grasp on this so we humored her and tried the banana milk. It was basically a banana milkshake but seems to be all the rage there.

We had dinner that evening with they guy who had organized the language sprint and his family. We were the first to do this  program so he wanted feedback on ways it could be improved. Since P had another couple coming a few days later, we spent our last night with him and his family. It was nice to be in a mostly air conditioned home with other Americans who come from my same culture. 

The following day, they took me to the airport. Coming to that city, I was able to fly out of the airport in my city. My city's airport is so small there are only certain days that have flights in and out. I was unable to fly back into my city so instead I flew to a bigger city and then intended to bus back from there. 

All smiles heading back home!

Midway through my flight, the guy sitting beside me realized that I could speak his language. He was so shocked that he talked my head off for the duration of the flight. He gave advice on how to take the metro from the airport to the bus station. I had made that trip before and knew there was a city bus that I could take. I thanked him for his help but intended to follow my own way.

After I grabbed my checked bag, I headed outside the terminal. I found another type of bus that was a little more expensive but took a more direct route to the bus station. I was disappointed when the driver said he was not going to the bus station. He said I could take the city bus. I could see it in the distance but I didn’t have a bus card and remembered that the driver gave me a hard time when I tried to pay with coins. The smallest bill I had on me was a 20 so I went to get it changed in hopes the driver would give me grace and let me pay with coins. While doing this, I missed the bus and discovered another one would come an hour later. Bummer. I was so ready to be home. 

I wasn’t sure what to do but decided to sit hoping by some strange chance another city bus would come soon. I noticed my airplane friend and hoped he wouldn’t see me. He had seemed flirty and I didn’t want to encourage him. He spotted me anyway and asked if I was lost and why I hadn’t taken his advice. He told me again how to get to the metro and what to do. Then he told me that his friend was picking him and his business partner up and they could give me a lift. He was nice but not nice enough for me to get in a car with him and 2 other guys and ride for half an hour. I was trying to figure out how to say, thanks but no thanks, when he said there was no room for me. Shew. I got out of that one.

I did take his advice and checked on the Metro. The ticketing lady said it was too difficult and I should take a bus. She sold me a 2-trip bus card for the day. I went back across the street and waited on a bus. I saw another of the transfer buses and asked again if they were going to the bus station. The stress was starting to wear on me and tears were just below the surface. He told me he wasn’t going there but went to check to see where I could find one that was. He came back and told me that I could catch one at the International Terminal. There, I verified that the bus was going to the bus station. I hopped on and waited. It wasn't scheduled to depart for another 20 minutes. While sitting there, I saw the city bus pass by. Ugh. I wasn’t even convinced that this bus was going to the correct bus station since this company travels to several bus stations. I put my sunglasses on and let the tears fall. I opened up a Snickers bar and let the American candy bar take a stab at the culture shock. After a few minutes, the driver took my money and I verified that we were indeed going to the correct bus station. I don’t know why it had to be so hard but the day only deepened my current dislike for this culture. 

I made it to the bus station and got a ticket for a bus heading to my city 20 minutes later. The ticket agent had told me where to get on the bus but I needed to stop by the bathroom first. I didn't realize he went to the bus to make sure I had arrived. He called me as I was walking toward the bus and then scolded me for not answering. 

The bus ride was nice and quiet and I rode beside sunset beauty. I somehow accidentally used a different bus company than the one I usually use. As such we took an unexpected bathroom/meal break about an hour outside of my city. This meant it took even longer to get home. I did find this awesome toilet paper tree in the bathroom at the rest stop. 

I was ever so grateful to see my city’s university, a beacon on the hill for me. The bus didn't stop at the bus station but rather dropped me off on the main road in front of it. Life here is full of the unexpected. I was grateful though to be back home, in cooler temperatures, at my house, and with friends who feel like family. 

All smiles back at home

The next morning, I left my apartment to pick up a few things from the store. My security guard, the weird single one, stopped me. He told me that I had failed to pay my building fee for two months. I told him I thought I had paid and I would look to make sure. He argued with me and said I obviously hadn't paid it because his paper showed that I had not. I told him that I would bring him the money. He then told me he had called me and I didn't answer. He told me he had gone through a lot of trouble for me and he thought I owed him to sit down and have tea with him. Ugh! I was liking my current home less and less. I decided that the next day I was staying in for a whole day to take a break from this place. It was a good choice. I even ended the day by playing a long distance game of Yahtzee with my bff. It was enough of a break to help me get back out to visit friends the following day.