Despite my last post, of course not everything in America
was confusing and awkward. Here’s
a short list of what I loved in America, besides my family, friends and Nathan.
1.
Free refills. You don’t think about it too often, I’m sure, but free
refills are awesome! And you
should take full advantage when you can.
At most restaurants, I was drinking at least six Diet Cokes, to my mom’s
dismay. One restaurant was slow at
bringing my drinks, so I requested two glasses at a time. Obviously, Uganda sells their soda in
bottles. If you feel the urge for
another one, you have to pay for it!
Unfortunately, I think I was constantly overdosed on caffeine.
2.
Grocery stores- with a car. Kampala has some pretty big grocery
stores, so the sheer size of our grocery stores didn’t overwhelm me. What did- I actually wanted everything
in the store. And, I wasn’t
limited! I could buy a whole
grocery cart and put it in the car to take home. Holy cow. When
I realized that, I couldn’t make any decisions. When I got used to it though, I was so happy to go to the
grocery store. And you have a
refrigerator so your food doesn’t go bad in two days!
3.
Food!
Greek yogurt, frozen yogurt, ice cream, cinnamon rolls, bacon, steak,
bread, sandwiches, salads, broccoli, soup, strawberries, blackberries, pie,
In-N-Out, Chipotle, chips, salsa, pancakes, whipped cream, Starbucks, garlic
bread, crème brulee… ah such good food!
But by the end of the three weeks, I felt like I had eaten too much. I was ready for a break! (The first question PCVs asked me when
I came home- what did you eat?!
Then they hate me for listing all the amazing food I ate).
4.
Running.
No one bothered me. No one
was following me. No one was
yelling at me. I didn’t have to
worry about getting hit by a motorcycle, car or cow. I think I looked paranoid because I kept looking behind me,
expecting to see little kids trailing behind me. It was actually a little boring because I wasn’t sure what I
was supposed to be doing if I wasn’t waving at everyone, looking for oncoming
disasters and dodging goats. My
runs became peaceful and unrestrained by the sunset- it’s pretty safe to run at
night!
5.
The washing machine. I washed my clothes at least every other day. I honestly can’t believe that I used to
dread doing laundry. It involves
almost no effort. I was so happy
to have clean, warm clothes out of the dryer. On that same note: a dishwasher. Sometimes I just reuse dishes in Uganda to avoid doing
dishes… Currently, I have a whole
basin full of used dishes!
6.
Water.
Showering. Washing
vegetables under running water, instead of soaking them in a bowl. Drinking water from the tap. Never
worrying about fetching water, how much water I have in my house, being able to
get clean water, etc. However, I
did get anxious one night when it was raining, and I had no basins to put out.
7.
Credit cards. Although I think I want to use cash more often than I did
pre-Post Corps, it was great to charge something! You never had to worry about how much cash you had on
you. I had a hard time using cash
anyway. All the bills are
green! How do you tell them apart
in your wallet?
8.
Netflix.
Streaming TV shows is awesome!
9.
Fast internet. Not just fast internet. Not having to plug in a modem, wait for it set up, then log
on. Internet is just up and
running once your computer is. So
fast that I could use my normal gmail account without worrying about running
over my internet time (some of you might not even know that you can load gmail
on a basic html!)
10. Cars. I never actually drove when I was
home. Newport streets are either
really narrow or four lanes wide! I
was too scared to drive my mom’s big SUV, my brother’s pick up truck and I
can’t even drive Nathan’s manual car.
Thanks for everyone chauffeuring me around! It was nice knowing that when you got in the car, it was
going where you wanted it to go. You could leave things in it!
11. The
radio. When you listen to the
radio in Uganda, and an American song comes on, you have to get into it! It’s YOUR jam, even if it’s Vanessa
Williams. In America, I was
excited about all the music!
12. Being
invisible. Not actually, of
course. But it’s so rude to stare
at anyone in America; whereas in Uganda, people easily can stare at me for five
straight minutes. Even when I was
dancing in the grocery store, I didn’t get a single look!
13. Dogs. As my mom says, I’m not the biggest dog
person in the world. Barking tends
to drive me crazy. But, I had
really missed all the dogs in my life.
Shout out to Kosmo, Henri, Riley and Shasta. It was so nice to snuggle up with them, especially because
they kept me warm.
14. Carpet. Yes, this partially has to do with my
cold feet, but carpet is just nice on your feet in the morning. Basically all Ugandan houses have a
cement floor. Unless you’re
meticulous and clean the floor often- like Ugandans do- you wake up in the
morning feeling grit and dirt under your feet.
15. Well-stocked
restaurants. Not once when I was
home did I have to ask, “Are avocados there?” At most Ugandan restaurants, you’re better off asking them
what’s on the menu today.
16. Facials! Yup, I got a facial when I was
home. It felt so good to have two
years worth of dirt scrubbed off my face.
Looking forward to one more when I get home.
17. Google
it! Whenever people have a
question about something, they just google it on their iPhones right away. When PCVs are talking, they try to make
a list of things they want to look up when they are near internet again. And it’s the most frustrating feeling
when you’re sitting in front of the computer, and you know there is something else you wanted to know.
18. Good
drinks- with safe ice. I had a fun
microbrew, a mojito, a margarita, champagne, wine… well now I sound like I have
a problem! But it was really nice
to some choices. No Nile Specials
(one of Uganda’s top beers)!
19. Contacts. So nice to wear contacts again! I am really tired of glasses. Can’t wait to be back full time to
contacts.
20. People
who listened to me even if my stories were weird, crazy and didn’t make any
sense. I am so grateful for my
family, friends and boyfriend that have been supportive of my service and my
crazy adventure home. Watch out
guys! I’m coming home sooooo
soon! Love you all.
Well, I feel like my list could go on and on. As you can tell, I have missed home a
lot. I have a lot to look forward
to when I come home too. Here are
some things I didn’t have a chance to do then, but I can’t wait to do when I
come home for good!
1.
Hanging out on my mom’s couch
2.
Going to the dog beach with Nathan
3.
Meeting Grant’s new dog (we chose the name Cami)
4.
Seeing John-Paul’s new glass shop
5.
Going shopping with Bridgette
6.
Watching more Shark Tank
7.
Brownie ice cream sundae
8.
Going to Basil Leaf Café with my mom
9.
Hiking with my dad
10. Going
to the gym- especially a gym class!
11. Pedicure
12. Sushi
13. Driving
14. Home
made tacos
Here are some things that learned about America, but still
don’t really understand.
1.
Instagram
2.
Pinterest
3.
“Checking in” on Facebook
4.
Gangnam style dancing- we did finally do this at
our COS conference, but only Audrey knew it very well. The rest of us just pranced around.
5.
My favorite restaurant in Newport no longer has
mud pie- C’mon guys!
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