Yesterday we flew from Rhodes and returned to Athens, our home away from home. It was a strange feeling landing in a city in a foreign country and yet feeling as if I somehow belonged here. However, as we walked through the streets, confident and sure of our selves, we were still treated like the American tourists who had just arrived. I found myself getting annoyed by the catcalls and the "Welcome!" shouts. It was a far cry from the quiet life of the islands in the winter.
Right now, I'm sitting in an airport in Athens with just a little time to spare before our flight leaves for Amsterdam. I can't quite decide how to feel. On one hand I am excited to return home to see family and friends, to deliver gifts from Greece, and to tell stories of all of my adventures. On the other hand, returning home after spending so long in a foreign country seems strange. Tacoma seems so far away from here, not just in that it is thousands of miles away, but the mentality of America seems so far removed from that of Greece. I'm not just going back home, I'm going back to an entirely different culture after assimilating myself somewhat into the Greek culture. It will be a process to decide what parts of Kelsey the Greek I want to maintain back in the US and what aspects will have to just remain in Greece.
Overall, I am so thankful for the experiences I have had in this beautiful country. While at the beginning of the trip I was suffereing both from homesickness and jetlag, I powered through it and pushed my boundaries. I know I will be coming back to the US a more cultured, worldly individual and I am thankful for that.
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