Epilogue

I have now been back in America for almost two months. While I don't have anything truly out of the ordinary to report (since I'm living a pretty typical college-age summer life) I thought it might be interesting to do one last update to this blog.

My flight back to the states was uneventful; I took some Tylenol PM and was able to sleep fairly peacefully on the Trans-Atlantic journey. There weren't any crying babies or obnoxious aisle partners to disturb me, so I was fairly alert for my first American experience in 5 months. I had a lay-over in O'Hare, and so as I entered the long hallway leading to all the gates, I can say with complete honesty that I was terrified. I felt like the walls were screaming "BUY SOMETHING! SPEND MONEY!" There were too many people all speaking too loudly, congregated near one of the 5 McDonalds within sight, or buying glossy magazines and large flavored coffees. However, I must admit that I went to an overpriced book and bagel shop and bought a huge Diet Coke, which I guzzled as I sat in a puddle of insecurity at gate 57.

I don't really remember entering the Minneapolis airport. It's like my senses were so overloaded that I didn't have any room to make new memories. I do remember seeing my parents. That was so cool. It was like nothing had changed, and they were just picking me up from college (only they were really excited). Riding home was an adventure. I was not used to riding in automobiles, and so the luxury of having my own space was really unsettling. I was very used to cramming in the Metro or in Trams and Trolleys, making sure that all my belongings were held in such a way as to make theft less of a possibility. The idea that I could place my purse on the seat next to me and look out the window was luxurious. I was also surprised at how HUGE the cars were! In Eastern Europe everyone drove tiny little manual cars and many people all sqeezed in cars together, which was a huge contrast to the gas-guzzling SUV's and pick-up trucks that seated one person. It was really sickening: testosterone-filled males feel that they can purchase giant trucks, not to be used to carry heavy objects in the cargo area, but for the sole purpose of fufilling a Freudian masculinity requirement.

The first thing I had to eat was a HUGE hamburger. I never had a love for ground beef until I couldn't find it. It was better than the gormet meals of Hungary. I used an inappropriate amount of ketchup, glorying in the fact that it wasn't the sweet and viscous European "ketchup."

I slept like the dead that night, although the silence of my rural home was, for a time, positively deafening. I was so used to sleeping through the drunken songs of young Hungarians that the normal chirping of birds and singing of frogs practically kept me awake.

Although I'm starting to get over it, I still have a bit of trouble with the constant consumerism of the United States. I never noticed how vibrant everything is, and by that I mean that every bit of, well, everything is pondered! I never knew I was capable of writing such an un-informative sentence as that previous one. It was like I was living in a world of commercials; everyone and everything was trying to penetrate me in an attempt to sell me something that I "needed."

When I think back to my experience abroad, there are some parts of it that are constantly prominant in my memory. Here's a list of them:

*Krakow: Oscar Schindler's factory, Auswitz, and Birkenau. I have never had such a life changing experience. I am a very changed person regarding my views of the Holocaust. I watched Schinder's List the other day, and it was a terrifically difficult experience for me.

*Statue Park: That eerie music playing in the lonely, expansive courtyard containing huge remants of such an oppresive era.

*Turkey: I took a day off and did my homework in a park situated directly in between the Haggia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, and adjacent to the Topkapi Palace. I drank freshly squeezed orange juice and ate Turkish sweet bread and did math. It was wonderful.

*Meeting the Muslim people: I have never met such a friendly, genuine group before. It's hard for me to hear the government and the public critiscizing the Muslims in general, when it is such a tiny group of them committing evils to the United States. I want to scream to some people, "I spent afternoons sitting in the sun and drinking orange juice with these people, talking about the merits of being close to your family! One of the most wonderful people I met was named Ocean, the translation of the name Genghis. He would drop anything to make my day better, and he was always ready to laugh, a trait that is diminishing in Americans."

*Figuring out how to shop without a Target: To get soap you needed a drug store, to get towels you needed a linen store, for food you needed a grocery store, for paper you needed a stationary store. I feel that we're lazy and pampered having everything we need owned by the same corporation.

*The Croatian night-life: sitting in open bars and pubs located right next to the Aegean sea. Usually there were park swings instead of chairs. How wonderful.

*The stores were always organized by color. It was so easy for me... I just found the pink section and was happy.

*Meeting my mom and sister in Prague: I hated Prague, but I loved hanging out with my family.

*Public Transportation: I have sooo many memories of taking public transportation.

"Speaking Hungarian: I still can't toast drinks in English.

That's about all I have to say in my Epilogue. I'm happy to be back, but I'm terribly homesick for Budapest. I really came into myself in that city. I feel like I can do anything after my 5 months spent over there. Enjoy America, but travel a lot!!!!