After an amazing and dizzying 19 days in the states, I have made it safely back to Jamaica. Being home was fantastic – I saw almost all of the friends and family that I wanted to see, made it across 5 states, ate more food than I thought was possible and was colder than I had been in 10 months.
Being home was, strangely, not too strange at all. I expected a lot more in terms of reverse culture shock, but didn't experience much after the first few days. Though I must say that the one thing that I wasn't ever able to get over was supermarkets. There are pretty modern supermarkets in Negril, but the scope of American supermarkets is just astounding. And the idea that you can get fresh strawberries, pineapple, bananas, and any other fruit you want in New York in the middle of winter just floored me. In Jamaica, there is plenty of diversity in the fruits that are available, but once they are out of season, they are out of season, period. You have to wait a whole nother year before they are back. But in America, you can pretty much get anything you want any time you want. The convenience of American life may have it's issues (is it really worth flying bananas in from South America just so I can satisfy a craving?), but overall it is pretty fantastic. I had gotten used to a much simpler lifestyle here, and I knew that I would be returning to it, but for a few weeks it was wonderful to over indulge in American culture. (read: mostly American food).
As much as I enjoyed being home, being back has been, for the most part, wonderful. I won't ever be able to see Jamaica as home, but I really do like it here. It took me a long time to feel comfortable here, but after a while, something about this island just kind of grabs you. I have just about 16 months left of my Peace Corps service, and I am very much looking forward to it. There is so much I still want to do, professionally and personally that I am just hoping 16 months will be enough time. If the past 10 months have been any indication, the next 16 are going to fly by at record speed. I still can't believe I've been here almost a year already...it has been, without a doubt, the quickest 10 months of my life.
One of the things I missed most about Jamaica while I was home was the vibrancy of the place. There's a feeling here – in the music, in the food, in the language and the laughter – that somehow feels more alive, more real. I didn't realize how dependent I had gotten on that feeling, and it feels fulfilling to be back around that sort of energy. I can see why Jamaicans always end up coming home, even after 10, 20 or 30 years spent abroad, and why they are always so content when they do.
Before I go, I want to share two things with you all (all 4 of you...). First, is NEPT's brand new website (full disclosure – I had nothing to do with the making of this site): www.nept.wordpress.com. Keep up to date with what we are up to and check out our newest newsletter! (Which I did have a whole lot to do with).
And lastly, a picture from a recent concert. There's an annual reggae concert here called Rebel Salute that's an all night affair – about 20 artists preforming from 9pm Saturday until about 9 am on Sunday. A whole bunch of us went, and it was a great night. The artists were great, the crowd was enthusiastic but respectful of each other, and the whole event was really well put together and well ran. One of my favorite artists, Tarrus Riley (check him out, seriously – he's awesome) preformed at sun up and it was an unreal way to spend sunrise. We were all exhausted, but it was more than worth it. I'm already excited to go back next year and do it all again - hopefully with Alicia! But here's a picture of the crowd and the stage an the sun coming up behind the mountains that I took from the back of the venue:
