When I'm oceans away from home, and absolutely nothing is familiar to me, there are some things I miss more than others. Here's the list I've compiled:
1. My pup, Harley.
She's like a daughter to me. She's as sweet as honey. I've had her as a puppy, and she'll be 10 next month! Are you wondering who takes care of her while I'm on these international escapades? The only people I would trust with the job, my parents. She has a good life while I'm gone at their home in Minnesota. But she's not really a dog, you see, she's more like a human. I love her more than I've ever loved a human. And that's the truth :)
2. My family.
My adorable niece and nephew are growing up quickly and I wish I was more present in their lives. We do see each other on Skype though. What a brilliant program. Also, both my grandmas are having health issues and I wish I was by their sides in their last years/months/days.
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| cutie patooties |
I grew up in a small town in SW Minnesota. Population 4,500. Lots of farm land and lots of cows. I loved it. I always knew I'd travel the world someday. One day, something snapped inside of me, and I decided it was time to make this dream a reality. I got a taste of the world.... and the rest is history! Thankfully, I still have strong bonds with the friends I grew up with.
I chose an entirely different life path than they did. They live the conventional life with husbands and kids. My life is, well, unconventional. To each their own. We get along just the same. No matter where I am in this great big world, these girls will always be close to me.
4. My Vitamix.
In the states, hardly a day went by in my house when you didn't hear the deafening loud grind coming from my smoothie maker. In my opinion, this is one of the most spectacular man-made machines ever made. My usual was a delicious mixture of avocado, blueberries, strawberries, mangos, raspberries, flax seeds and almond milk. Thank you, Vitamix, for enhancing my life. I can't wait to bring you to Hawaii with me.
5. Almond butter.
Seriously! Have you tried this stuff? It's soooo good! This is my staple back home. My body must be confused from the abrupt cut-off from it. Sadly, I can't find it anywhere in these third world countries that I'm traipsing through. I guess the rest of the world hasn't caught on to this dreamy spread yet. In their defense, it is a little spendy.
6. Access to healthy food.
When I get back to the US, I'll convert back to my extremely healthy eating habits. No more fried and processed food for this diva. For now, I must eat what is available. It's called survival!
I'm also putting "lack of a regular workout routine" in this category.
6. Good ol' American customer service. *sigh*
Other countries don't quite grasp this concept. We take it for granted as Americans. It can be very frustrating to come across this utter lack of customer service in foreign countries. The conversation with the boyfriend on the phone is usually more important than helping customers. Oh, and sleeping on the job is ok, too. "The customer is always right" doesn't fly here. Quite frequently, I find myself thinking "This would never happen in the US!"
What I miss the most is the smoking ban in the US. As I type this, the bus driver is passionately puffing away on his cancer stick as he drives, with all the windows closed. This is the same driver that has refused to pull over for the last 5 hours to give his customers a bathroom break. It's NOT OK to deprive someone of such an important bodily function, and it's NOT OK to smoke on the bus! (cough, cough!) The more I travel, the more I realize just how easy it is to live in the US. It could be A LOT worse. So quit your complaining!
Safety standards also fall into this category. Sometimes it gets sketchy, and downright dangerous.
7. Driving a vehicle.
There's something about the freedom of the open road. These days I get around by bus, train, plane, boat, bicycle, tuk-tuk, moped, camel.....
8. Using my cell phone.
Being able to use the internet freely, without having to search for a wi-fi hotspot. I miss googling random things on my phone. It makes me feel smarter. Smarter than I already am. Ah hem!
9. Getting a good night's sleep in my own bed.
I long for my down comforter and fluffy mattress pad, along with my little doggie snuggling next to me. Simple creature comforts. I rarely get a good nights sleep when I travel. Many factors contribute to this. You wouldn't believe the places I've slept in during my journeys around the world. Airports, train stations, filthy hotel rooms infested with cockroaches, park benches, and local homes with large uninvited rats.
I've slept on beds that were soley a piece of plywood with a sheet on top, bumpy buses and creaky trains with fussy babies, bed-bug-biting hostel beds in eastern Europe, seedy hotels requiring a chair wedged against the doorknob in Egypt, shivering cold in a dark, dingy room in Tibet, scrunched up on planes for 17 hours straight, hotels in Bangkok with wall-shaking loud music all night, attempted 1am break-in by a drunk in Phnom Penh, a 3am funeral procession with a full-on brass band outside my window in Vietnam.... oh boy, the list goes on. My goodness, now that I think about it, it's a miracle I'm still alive!
My quiet, fluffy bed at home will feel like a 5 star luxury!
Words of advice: always have ear plugs handy while traveling!
10. Using big words and talking fast.
In most of the countries that I travel to, English is not the first language. Even if I'm talking to a local that does speaks English, I still have to talk slower than normal and use simpler words. Frankly, I just miss being around fluent English speakers. Skyping with my family and friends back home, I find myself speaking a lot slower and finding ways to say things more simply. I catch myself and realize I can talk really fast and use more complicated words with them. Yippee!
Maybe you've noticed from my blog, but my vocabulary is slowly slipping. But I'm just not exposed to people that use big words. Most of them only know basic English. So please forgive me for my kindergarten talk :)
So there you have it, the top 10 things I miss while I'm roaming the world. What's on your list?
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