things have changed for me

i can honestly say up until now, i've never had to worry about translating webpages from german to english or worrying about ordering lunch at a restaurant because the server might not understand me. it's been a while since i've had to start over and move into a new place. it's been a while since i've lived in a room and not had my walls covered in posters, drumsticks, and concert tickets. it's also been a while since i've been thankful for itunes radio, the truly kind people in the world, and the fact that my parents are open to new ideas and situations.

until tonight, i've never sat in a room with a group of students and been the only one who speaks "native" english. when was the last time you sat with people your age and not a single one of them knew who brand new, taking back sunday, death cab for cutie or lil wayne was? but at the same time, when was the last time you sat next to someone who knows dj tiesto because they're both dutch and come from such a small place? ...and when was the last time youtube didn't let you watch a video because "it contains content from _________, who has blocked it from your country on copyright grounds?" :/

tonight's my first night staying in my dorm (finally!) and it's strange because my dad's still here, about a 20 minute car ride away, but i'm still starting to finally feel the "study abroad" independence, although i did take full advantage of the fact that my dad's friends forced their son to run errands with me today. trust me when i say he was 100% my translator when i got my public transit pass, bank account, cell phone, and country registration. also trust me when i say i actually did very little to understand what anyone was actually saying to me because he was there to save the day.

marijuana cards don't exist here. food is ridiculously expensive. most people don't own more than one or two really warm winter jackets. i have nothing to put on my walls or in my shelves. the subway system here is absolutely amazing. mcdonalds serves sour cream sauce with chicken mcnuggets. there's an amazing music store just steps outside of my dorm (think guitar center, mac, and best buy rolled into one). i couldn't unlock my door tonight. my electric toothbrush doesn't charge here, even with an adapter and a converter. i visited hard rock cafe in prague, and i can say i've become one of those weird obsessed-with-visiting-hard-rocks-all-over-the-world people. breakfasts here are absolutely amazing. i finally visited my school, and it's such a nice change from HPU. 

although i think i stick out like a sore thumb (where did that saying even come from?), i'm happy i'm here with the people i'm here with right now, because we're all here to try something new, experience different cultures, and learn a little bit more about ourselves in the process. i don't have any expectations because it's impossible for me to have any right now, and i think that's what makes it so beautiful. i have lived my day one day at a time up until now and i don't plan to stop. i mean obviously i want to travel, and i have certain cities i want to see while i'm here, but i think they'll all fall into my schedule accordingly. amsterdam, ireland, paris...we're coming for you, prepare yourself.

"all journeys have secret destinations of which the travel is unaware." -martin buber