Adjusting

I had top-ramen soup for breakfast this morning. My host mom prepared the whole bag plus toasted bread and fruit and juice. Yesterday I had a ham and grilled cheese sandwich and cookies. She always seems surprised when I don’t eat everything I am given, but when I finish something that means that I must want more. They say that portion sized are huge in the US but I can’t believe how much my family eats here. It is incredible. Plus the concept of healthy is so different here. I would die for fresh raw vegetables, or a mixed green salad. Oh yumm. I’m going to be dreaming about my raw carrots. One night for dinner I had pasta, mashed potatoes and bread, oh and rice, rice goes with everything.

I am finally feeling comfortable here. There are still a couple cultural things that I have a hard time getting over. One, the concept of first come first serve, or wait you turn does no exist here. If you think you are in line people will just walk right in front of you. You have to be aggressive to get anything done. That does not work for me. Emily, pushing people out of the way to get to a bathroom stall? I so content to patiently wait my turn, but here I will not get a turn unless I’m aggressive about it. Watch out when I come back, if I actually get adjusted to this one over the next 3 months.

Another is that no one is on time for anything. School is one thing but everything else in this country runs without a hurry. If a program is suppose to start at 7:00 and you show up at 6:59 you will be the only one there. Likely the speaker won’t even be there yet and people will still be setting up the stage for the next 10-15 min. Say my family is going over to someone’s house for dinner. My host mom might tell me we are leaving about 6:30 ‘más o menos.’ So I get home at 6, change and am ready to go. I don’t like being rushed and hate the feeling when other people are waiting for me. So around 7, someone says ok let’s go, let’s go. No one moves from in front of the TV. We won’t get out of the house until after 8. Ahh take it all with a sense of humor : )
Adjusting has been longer and harder than I had thought, but I finally believe that I am in the right place. As hard as it is at times I don’t think that I would want to be anywhere else right now. Funny how sometimes you need a change from everything you know. I’m not sure what I would do if I was at LC this semester. This is going to be a growing experience many more ways than one. And has already been, just having more time really by myself to get some thoughts and feelings organized. It sounds so cliché but I’m learning but in ways that I didn’t expect to. My eyes have open to things that my life and heart have been missing the last several months. Not easy but I have been happier here than I have been in a long time.