The Wanderer's Return

The day I never thought would arrive is finally here: I, Lauren, have returned home.  I flew in on a Tuesday night, and will start work next Monday, which gives me a few much-needed days to settle in and prepare for my return to work. It's a bit surreal: it seems like nothing changed since I flew out. Boston is still freezing, though thankfully I missed the worst of the snowstorms; my friends and family faithfully rotate in their daily spheres; the Starbucks from which I write still serves bitter black coffee.

I'll skip the melodrama and not pretend that "everything has changed" for me, because it hasn't. I'm the same person, with a few new experiences under my belt - it's just odd to return after a whirlwind tour halfway across the world to find that Boston has remained beautifully unchanged. I've learned a lot these last two months, about myself and the world around me; because I am an engineer and fond of organizing, I shall put them in bullet points for my own sanity.

- Just because someone is from ten thousand miles away doesn't mean I can't relate to them. This should seem obvious, but I think I departed with the expectation that things would be so different, that everything would be foreign to me. In some sense, that was true - the trappings of the places were different (language, dress, culture, scenery, socioeconomic class), but people are people no matter where you go. Everyone has a story, from an AirBnB hostess who wept in front of us about her son tragically killed in a car accident, to new friends who still searched for their vocational passion and worried about their future. There's a lot that separates me from those I met, but a smile and a kind word go a long way.

- English isn't necessary. This wasn't too much of a surprise, as I've traveled to places with limited English before, but generally I can make out some words with my knowledge of Spanish and German. I didn't understand a darned thing anywhere I went, but gestures, Google Translate, and calculators for numbers were my saving grace.

- I think I could live in Asia someday.  A few years ago, my goal was to spend part of my life in Western Europe, but after spending time in Asia, I've expanded that list of future long-term home bases to include Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea, and Japan. (I'd live anywhere now, but when I become a real grown-up and have kids, the list necessarily needs to narrow.)

- I like to plan....a little too much!  I kind of exhausted myself; I planned things for every single day of my trip, and I could have used a day or two "off" to recharge in the middle. Next time I have a long trip, I'd like to travel with only a general idea of where I'm going, so I can be flexible and stay in places I like longer and hurry through places I don't love.

- Being a cheap person in general does not mean you will stay within your budget automatically...oops

- I have too many clothes and shoes. I survived on 3 pairs of shoes, 3 pairs of pants,  1 pair of shorts, 6 shirts, 1 skirt, and 2 dresses for 2 months. The size of my wardrobe practically paralyzed me this morning while dressing-- and this is after having sent 4 trash bags full of clothes to Goodwill.

-I never want to stop traveling. New goal: visit all 6 continents before I turn 30 (yes, yes, I know there's 7, but I don't have any particular desire to visit Antarctica - Boston in January is an adequate substitute). I have 4.3 years left!


Without further ado, I'll sign off....until the next adventure :-)