Today is November 29, 2014, and I have been home in the States for almost 8 months! My wonderful, creative, thoughtful mother wants to turn this blog into a coffee table book for me to treasure, so I am here to wrap this thing up. The whole Beijing experience feels so surreal, like a distant blur. I lived in China??
Let’s go back to Saturday, April 19, 2014.
My host family drove me to the Peking International airport (about 30 minutes from their home). Jack and I exchanged a quick “Goodbye!” and he stayed with the car, while Rose and Teddy brought me inside. When the moment came to say goodbye, Teddy didn’t seem to care at all, he barely acknowledged me. Rose got all teary-eyed and started to choke up a bit, which I found very sweet. She told me to call them if I ever come back to Beijing.
The flight from Beijing to Chicago was…..awful. AWFUL. This time, I wasn’t blessed with a First Class ticket, and flew Economy. I experienced levels of discomfort I didn’t know were possible in a healthy, 24-year-old body. Suddenly I had a new found respect for the senior citizen community. “Is this what it’s like when you’re old??” I’d be cranky as heck too if my body always hurt that much.
For the last 5 hours of the flight, every bone and muscle screamed at me. I was so sleepy, but couldn’t sleep because my body hurt too much. I couldn’t focus on TV or even listen to music. I constantly shifted around in my seat and stood up to stretch every chance I got. Then my head decided to join in on the fun and I developed a fever! Woo hoo!
Anyway, I survived. That was just an unexpected rough experience I’ll never forget. Completely worth it! It was so good to see my family, my friends, and my guy.
Things have been great since I’ve been back. In June I moved into an apartment with my best friend in the world, Kristin. We live in Uptown, Minneapolis in an adorable triplex. We have a blast together and often hang out with my boyfriend, Alex. Alex and I casually dated for a few months before I went to China. Even though I liked him a lot, I needed to stay true to myself and go abroad, as planned. It’s a decision I’m very proud of and wish more young people would have the courage to choose. Alex and I skyped all of the time and when I got back, it was like I had never left.
The job and career search haven’t really gone as planned, but I know I’ll figure it out when the time is right. It turns out it’s pretty hard to get a “real” job with just a psychology degree. Doing some heavy contemplation and research about graduate school right now. At this moment, my top choice is to become a school psychologist, which takes 2 more years of school, and 2 years of internships. After that, I could be making more than double$$ what I make now, and have summers/school holidays off. A traveler’s dream!
Starting in June I had a brief stint working at a market research facility, which was interesting and informative, but overall a terrible dead-end job. So I landed back into nannying to pay the bills while I figure things out. I care for a 2-year-old boy named Ollie, who lives 20 minutes away from me in Minneapolis. He’s adorable, fun, and I love him so much. It’s been so awesome! I can honestly say it’s the best nanny job I’ve ever had. I feel like this is my final thesis; every other nanny job and nights spent babysitting have led up to this job. Hoping to end on a high note and that this will truly be my last childcare job, as I move onto bigger things.
I miss the friends I made in China, and keep tabs on them through social media. I would love to visit, and go back abroad in general, but it doesn’t really seem to be in the cards for the near future. I’m officially a slave to the system, a slave to money. Womp womp.
At least I have two fantastic trips to look forward to: Jacksonville, Florida in December and our family cruise in March! Yay!
Well…. I think that’s about all I have to say. Take my words with a grain of salt, this is just my experience as told through my perspective. All jokes and criticisms aside, China truly is full of beauty, tradition, and many good values. I admire their dedication and hard work, especially the children working their butts off in school. I admire their collectivist culture and strong family values. I admire their introverted society that values thoughtfulness and intelligence over being loud and entertaining. And I was pleased to see that they are working with President Obama and other leaders to make serious changes to improve their air quality. Yeah China! I’d go back, as a tourist. I’d love to see some of the other parts.
I’m glad I have this blog and this future blog book to remind me of my experiences, good and bad. My brain quickly pushed those 6 months abroad into the back corners of my mind, but I don’t ever want to truly forget the things I learned and the things I experienced.
❤
Adventures in Beijing 