Of course the number one thing I miss is family and friends but here are a few others that I may not have expected. In no particular order:
-Mint white mochas
-Coffee shops at Christmas time
-Driving
-High speed internet and a reliable connection
-Phone plans
-The ability to easily call anyone anytime
-Cult fan movies and books
-Anonymity
-Hot showers
-Washer and drying machines
-Fast food
-Brown sugar (for baking)
-Lined notebook paper (only graphing paper here)
-Punctuality
-Clean drinking water straight from the tap
-Charging my computer at my house
-Electricity
-Any bed that is not lofted and larger than a twin mattress
Things I don't miss:
-Only half hour lunch breaks (it's 2 hours long here and many people nap including me)
-The amount of time I spent on the internet (though this depends on the day)
-'Hidden' ingredients in food (I enjoy an all natural, locally grown diet)
-Winter/ice/snow/cold
-Not enough sleep (I go to bed around 8pm and wake up around 6:30am)
-Inflexible schedules
-Alarm clocks
Things I thought I would miss but don't really:
-Running water
-Netflix and other TV
-Electricity (it depends on the day if I miss it or not)
-New clothes
-Straightening my hair
-Staying up late
I know a few items overlap (ex. I don't really miss running water but I do miss hot showers). And it's not that I don't miss running water at all-life would certainly be more convenient with it-it's more that I don't really notice not having it. Honestly I'm proud of the callouses on my fingers from fetching water from a well then carrying the full buckets back to my house.
One of the main things I miss about being in the United States is anonymity. I'm stared at constantly. Called out to constantly. Whispered about constantly. Most days it doesn't bother me. I can ignore it and consciously push my shoulders back and lift my chin to appear more confident. But some days I'm still caught off guard. One afternoon I was with another volunteer who was getting ready to manentana. While she and her AC were setting up, I was sitting in a house while roughly 20 kids were gawking at me. There were people sitting all around the room, coming on the doorway, and peering through the window hardly speaking at all. The other volunteer and I tried to ask questions to start a conversation. It didn't work. We told them it was rude to stare, and it made me sad and embarrassed. They didn't move. I eventually went into the other room to be out of view. More adults came and I introduced myself explaining that I didn't like being stared at. The kids ran off after that but I still felt incredibly uncomfortable. I know I didn't handle the situation very well. I didn't mentally prepare myself which I normally do before going out in the town.
Some days being so 'other' doesn't bother me very much and some days it takes a great effort to go out to the market. Some days I walked confidently saying hello to everyone I see thinking 'this must be how Harry Potter feels!' and some days I put on my hat and long sleeves to hide. This is my reality of being perhaps the first person with blonde hair and blue eyes that people in my village have seen. This has made me wonder what it feels like to be an immigrant, a refugee, an outsider in the United States. I try everyday to learn the language, the culture, fit into the community. Sometimes I feel I've succeeded and sometimes not. It's the reality of Peace Corps. My patience, humor, temperament depend on the hour. Sometimes I wish I could quick go home to the States. And sometimes just walking to the market or biking to a fokontany makes me so grateful to be in this country, glad for all the new people I've met, and appreciate the new things I've seen.
You know you're a PCV when:
-You start swearing like a sailor in public and no one can understand you
-You eat your entire care package in one sitting
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