Oh America.

My direct flight from London to Seattle was a success. It was a little cramped, the food was mysterious, and I think I was seated in the elderly section... but I watched three new movies, so I was perfectly content.

Upon arrival in Seattle, I thought about the "How to deal with reverse culture shock" email that we received a few weeks before our program was finished in Spain. The email contained suggestions for dealing wiht th ereverse culture shock that most people experience more when returning to the states after study abroad. I decided that like my study abroad experience, I needed to come back to the states with an open mind.

As I waited for the hotel shuttle bus to come pick me up, I noticed something immediately. There was a typical American family of seven who were staying the night in Seattle before leaving for a cruise in the morning. Each of the seven members of the family had 2 LARGE suitcases each. I stared down at my 1 piece of luggage that had been more than sufficient for 5 months, made some rude comments in my head, and then remembered that there was a time in my life when I took the same suitcase on a week-long spring break.