Pennsylvania for the Holidays

The United States is an interesting place. What was the first thing I did when I arrived in the western world? Well I paid about $10 for a french vanilla soy latte in the Brussels airport. I really needed a good coffee and I only had dollars on me, the shop accepted dollars but used euros, so I gave them a $20 and got 8 euro back. Was it worth it? yes it was!

So on that note people ask what I have missed most and I respond by listing a few foods: mostly cheese, good coffee, and the ability to order things like pizza and have it delivered to your door. Bagels is another big one, although I have made my fair share of bagels in Cameroon because I just couldn’t wait any more. Besides food I have missed friends and family. I have missed some milestones in people’s lives while I have been away and there is no way to go through that experience with them again. I have also missed the idea of efficiency and society valuing multitasking.

Now that I have been back for a few weeks and I am preparing my return to Cameroon I have realized that there are a lot of things I miss about Cameroon too. I miss people selling food on their heads anytime you seem to want it, especially on the road. I miss the warmth and the ability to walk everywhere I could possibly need to go. I also miss the slower paced appreciation for life. Everyone seems to be in such a rush and I feel like I am getting lost in the aftermath.

All in all I have had an amazing time seeing my friends and family for the holidays and I am so grateful that people have made time to see me. I have overindulged in cheese, coffee, and bagels. It has been great while it has lasted, but I know that I could not continue the kind of life I have been living for the past three weeks. So for that reason I am happy to be going back to Cameroon for a third year. I think this will be a great transition year because I will be living in a city and life will be a bit faster than the village life than I am used to, yet I think it will be more reasonable than the east coast pace of life in the US.

Cameroon here I come...again!