Reverse Culture Shock!!!

I definitely didn't realize how long I had been outside the United States until I returned. I thought that I would end up with pockets full of coins while I was in Europe, but i found out after a few trips to the drug store in Chicago that Americans have way more change than Europeans. You see, Europeans charge one euro or two euro for things, but Americans like when things aren't quite a dollar. Now answer honestly - Would you buy the candy bar that was 79 cents or one dollar? EXACTLY! I hate American money. I have found myself converting Dollars to Euros here - bad. I do appreciate that Americans know how to form a line - a skill that Italians seem to lack. Skyscrapers sort of scared me the first few times I walked through the Loop, and the ivy covered brick buildings of Chicago were actually a little disappointing compared to the Roman ruins I was so used to seeing on a regular basis. Possibly their weirdest part was being able to listen in on peoples' conversations and understand them! I was excited to realize all the gossip I would learn from just sitting on the train, something I was sorry to have missed from my adventures in Italy.

Usually when I come back to the United States from a trip to Europe I feel slightly ashamed by the lack of infrastructure in our nation and by the common wasteful practices most of us don't give a second thought to, but this time was different. I did feel mildly let-down by my country, but I was also very proud of my country. I had learned about the Italian government and how corrupt it is. I was amazed when I finally understood just how many liberties we have that we take for granted. Though I do not like what many of our biggest news stations have to say, I find comfort in the fact that they are not all owned by our government or president. I think it is terrible that most Americans can only speak English while most Europeans can speak more than one language, sometimes having to speak 3 or 4 just to get by in their own countries. Also, why do we have to pay boat loads of money to go to college when Germans can go for free? But we have things that no one else does. We have the Grand Canyon and National Forests in nearly every state. We have a huge variety of cultures, each bringing something new and different to the table. I don't know if I would have seen our country this way if I hadn't spent five months away from it. I'm glad to be back, but I want nothing more than to explore the world even more!