Finding My Place

I'm now back in San Antonio and through the first two weeks of classes (although neither was a full week). It's been an interesting process readjusting back to life in the States. I've been abroad before, including a summer in Spain, and knew that culture shock is sometimes worse when coming back to the States than it is when going abroad; however, I never expected it to be as difficult as it has been. Being in Texas and seeing friends and family has helped a lot, and still is helping. I also keep reminding myself that even if I was to go back (which I plan on doing at sometime in my life) it will never be exactly the same. Part of the culture shock was coming back to the Christmas season. It never really felt like Christmas to me. I think it was because my body was getting used to it being summer and I never went through the time of it gradually getting cooler.

On another note, Sydney, New Zealand, and Fiji were all great. It was great to see my parents in Sydney and share a little bit of Australia with them. We got to visit the zoo, aquarium, National Maritime Museum, the Opera House, and the Royal Botanic Gardens among other things. New Zealand was absolutely beautiful. You understand why they filmed Lord of the Rings there-it looks like another world. It is just so green and like nothing else. We visited Waitomo with the glowworm caves, Tongariro National Park with three volcanos, one with a ski area and one of which is Mount Doom. We then visited Rotorua, which is known for its geothermal activity. We then headed up to Auckland for a bit so I could fly out to Fiji. I met up with Jeremy in Fiji. The first night we hung out and booked a stay-put to Kuata. The first day was nice and sunny and we got to go snorkeling with sharks. The next day and a half were windy and rainy, but still nice.

While I am still surprised at how often everyday things throughout the day remind me of different experiences I had in Australia, I am glad to be back home. I had an absolutely amazing time. I took so many pictures, I'm still trying to go through them all, but when I get through them I'll try to post some.