1.) Even though I'm in the U.S. and hear English spoken EVERYWHERE, my initial reaction is to try to speak to people in French.
2.) Being excited way beyond belief at seeing my first Starbucks in New York's John F. Kennedy Airport.
3.) Opting to walk/bike to Safeway even though I have three cars to choose from.
4.) Being surprised that you don't have to pay for grocery carts.
5.) Worrying when I got to the grocery store that I didn't have my own bags (which is related to...)
6.) Disbelief that someone would actually be willing to help me out/ask how my day's going/BAG GROCERIES FOR ME!
7.) Forgetting what currency is used here and accidentally trying to pay in Euros.
8.) Being bummed out that one-dollar units are bills and not coins.
9.) Watching WAY too much Travel Channel/Food Network because it's been about 5 months since I've last done so.
10.) Forgetting how keyboards on American computers work. (Well, I have my American laptop in France, but I've only ever used French desktop keyboards, so naturally my fingers wanted to find the French keys on the first desktop I used here.)
11.) Wanting to flush the toilet with the little pull lever on top, instead of just pushing down the handle to the side.
12.) Forgetting what fluffy, machine-dried towels feel like.
13.) Being amazed at the holding-capacity of my parents' dishwasher!
...and the best indicator that I've been in France for too long:
14.) When I came home last night, everything was new and exciting, kind of like a first-time vacation even though I've lived here for 22+ years. For example: seeing the Empire Building off in the horizon when landing in NYC was akin to a never-bef0re-experience. Driving past the Golden Gate Bridge was probably more exciting than any of the other times I've ever done it. Seeing billboards and commercials in English (and not just for perfume or Nespresso) got me excited about "practicing my English."
Yeah, being in the U.S. does feel like a vacation. Not my permanent residence because I've been out of it for so long. This is probably due to the mindset that when I return, it'll be for a little over three and a half more months.
5 comments:
I started to get worried when I hadn't gotten an email about you being back into town... what the heck woman?
Glad you're getting used to being a U.S. citizen again :P Can't wait to see you!
Hey I searched france blogs or w/e and it lead me to yours. I'm going to france this summer and I'm excited. I have so many questions!!! Tell me all about france and paris please.
i went to the grocery store the other day and because they were short on baggers, i naturally started putting my own groceries in the bags. my friends in line with me were horrified and the checker kind of did a, "oh, gosh, you don't have to do that..." thing.
ha. i love the usa.
I had to stop at number 2. Starbucks get me everytime. You must hurry back to Antibes -- the weather has been wonderful the past week or so. No more rain and wind, just 60-65 with lots of sun. I cycled down to Port Vauban from our house in Le Rouret yesterday at it was beautiful along the coast. Have a great time in the States.
This post made me sooo homesick (especially the GG bridge part)! I think I experienced the same things when I came back after studying in France in 2006... and I imagine it will be even more intense when I come back this time! At any rate, sounds like you enjoyed your time back in good ol California! :D
Post a Comment