Readjusting to the same old life..

After being away from home for 317 days you'd think things to change a little. But they never do.

The house is still the same, the weather cold and the prices of groceries still ridiculously high. My sister has the same boyfriend and my cat is still fat. There's a new cafe in the town, but theres still the same old fish and chip shop, IGA and movie cinema.

But there are still a lot of things I have had to get used to. Flushing toilet paper is now a novelty ( in Latin America you cannot flush toilet paper anywhere), drinking tap water thats tasty and clean is a privledge and not being exposed to Spanish in the streets, trains and shops is upsetting.

I really miss the vivid colours I got used to in Mexico and Colombia. The nylon outfits, the roadside food stalls and the local buses brought colour and vividness to Latin American cities. A stroll down the street was never boring.

I miss unhealthy snacks cooked in makeshift fryers and grills on trolleys, buckets or boxes.

I miss a one hour bus ride costing 50c and a five course meal just $3.

I miss the front pages of the newspapers showing a mass grave, a brutal murder, a government corruption scandal or a natural disaster. As shocking as these stories are, they actually deserve front page news. Here front page news is the PM might be getting married, a Dutch backpacker returns to Australia or Warnie has a new girlfriend. Dribble that we should not be reading about first thing in the morning when there is so much else going on in the world that is worth it.

I miss friends from around the world and their funny accents.

I miss ancient cultures, beautiful natural landscapes and ugly ones too.

I miss salsa, reggaeton, rumba and vallenato resonating out of car windows, shops and buses so loud that it rattles your body and gets your feet moving that bit quicker.

I miss walking everywhere.

I miss exploring, learning and understanding everything about a new city, county and culture.

While I am enjoying walking the streets at night in safety, the possibility to earn more money in a week than I could have in a month in Latin America and eating delicious lamb, I can't wait to return to the vibrant, raw land of Latin America.