Not quite, but I understand the term now. It's really great being back home, I didn't even realize how much I missed the comforts of my house. I have only experienced a little bit of reverse culture shock so far. Reverse culture shock is culture shock for someone who goes back to their home culture after living abroad. I went to Chicago with my mom the other day and it was weird to see everyone rushing around. Also, to be considered average height again. Seeing Asian faces and just a mix of faces (a.k.a. diversity) was refreshing too. My program director told us that after Ecuador we'll be more relaxed and laid back, at least for a bit. It's true. The stressed culture in the big city is very different than taking an afternoon walk in Lumbisi.
I talked to my host family again after my last post. It feels like they are so far away mentally and physically. I miss them already, I want to make it a goal to call them at least once a month. Juan Carlos has an email address so that's good. When I asked them for a mailing address they said they've never received mail before... and especially not from someone from outside of the country. So, if I do mail anything to them I will mail it to Juan Carlos' school.
I meant to post this sooner, but I guess it's good I didn't because yesterday I met up with two girls from my program in Ecuador in downtown Chicago! Lizzie came up from Kentucky and Jill from a suburb. It was almost strange seeing these two not in Ecuador. But we talked about our "reverse culture shock" and reminisced about Ecuador.
Anyway, here's the link to the last bunch of photos: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150596369710413.672673.774675412&l=c1683c7066
Thanks again for reading! If you're interested in continuing to follow my adventures and musings, my new blog can be found here: http://oneofthejoys.blogspot.com/
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