In December I went to Portland, Oregon, and Juneau, Alaska, for a total of three weeks visiting friends and family. Before departing, I had anxieties about the culture shock I would have upon encountering masses of people, rushed crowds in airports, highways and overpasses and grocery stores with thousands of choices rather than just a couple hundred. Well, the anxiety was perhaps excessive. There were certainly things that stood out to me more but overall, I did just fine being back in the US and enjoyed myself immensely. I didn't have time to be shocked in the airports on my way to the states because of my multiple connections and short times in between. I was one of the rushed individuals, jumping onto moving walkways and gripping my bags as I hurried along, hoping to make my connecting flight. The first grocery trip happened a day after arriving and I went to Whole Foods with a smile on my face. We spent a good 30 minutes in the produce aisle, where I kept exclaiming, perhaps to the amusement of others, "Those oranges are so orange!" (Oranges aren't really orange in Belize. All the pretty ones go to the states or elsewhere.) "Those onions are so big!" or "Look, there's a papaya from Belize!" (..at 5 times the cost of buying one here locally too.) Boy, was I happy when we got home with the groceries though - wheels of brie, blue cheese, goat cheese, smoked cheddar cheese, Kettle's potato chips, local micro beers, apples, pears, butternut squash soup, walnuts, dried cranberries, fresh salad greens, and a whole slew of other items that taste even more amazing after not having them for over a year. This trip was definitely one of consumption. My motto was that I was perpetually hungry and only once did I turn down an item to eat - I really just got that full. Many spoiled me rotten and happy with meals out, dining on sushi, cocktails, thai food, burgers, and lots lots more. I am one very fortunate and very grateful individual.
Another shock to my system was the cold. When I landed in Portland, I went out of the airport wearing just a tee shirt and some open toed shoes. I really wanted to feel the cold on my skin and brr... it was a balmy 50 degrees maybe with rainy gusts of wind and it felt fantastic... for a minute. Then I had to dig out another layer - extra layers stayed on me generally for the duration of my trip. Within a few days the temp dropped to 40 and then we were off to Alaska, welcomed by a bitter, biting 30 something degrees. On day 2 in Alaska, Eric and I drove to the Mendenhall Glacier and got out of the car for a minute. The reading in the car said it was 3 degrees outside and holy man is that a cold experience after being comfortably above 60 and usually above 80 degrees for so long. I took a few pictures and we were off. We returned some days later more properly dressed, with 6+ layers on top and bottom, to walk out to the glacier face over the frozen lake. A favorite past time for most crazy cold-loving Alaskans. Most of the rest of our time in the AK were spent indoors, baking sweets, cooking delicious meals to share, drinking my dad's home made beer or mom's stash of red wine, snacking on smoked salmon, apples, cheeses and yummy sandwiches and watching the otters play in the snow outside while the snow continued to fall and icicles drip drip dripped. It was an enjoyable time with family, all tucked inside mostly staying warm. When it came time to leave, we almost didn't catch our flight out. It was delayed by several hours due to a winter whiteout storm but eventually, the pilots being amazing in this neck of the world, they landed our plane that would then take us out and we returned to Portland, enjoying warmer weather, though only slightly.
I left Portland way too early on the 4th and it was another challenge to say goodbye. This trip made it only more clear to me that I have an amazing life there and an abundance of wonderful friends, as well as the love of my life. But I'm determined to complete my service as a PCV here in Belize and so I caught the plane, and the next, and landed in Cancun, Mexico - smiling happily as I stepped outside to the 80 degree sun again. My sweaters came off and eventually my feet were again in flip flops, or slippers as they say here. Overall, it took me 36 hours from start to finish to get back to my house here and the readjustments have been continual. I went shopping and stocked my house with olive oil, cheese, and eventually I'll have some red wine in a glass to make myself feel more comfortable with just a few of the things that I miss and love. (Hmm.. mostly food items..) The cold shower is a shock to readjust to after weeks of hot showers and steaming baths. But its hot here, so I just get sweaty and jump in. Eventually we get used to it - like most things.
About 9 more months of this life and then I'll be back to Portland for a while, as I begin to create a life again there with my partner and my love. So in the mean time, I'll do what I can to keep on doing good things here, expanding friendships, eating my rice and beans, soaking up the sun and exploring Central America a bit more. While I'm here, I'll make the most of it.
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