It's starting to get cold in Los Angeles. The sun continues to shine, but it's a cruel lie: I step outside in the morning, burrow into the collar of my coat, and wonder why I left the warmth and comfort of my bed. I check the weather forecast on my phone, convinced the arctic temperature I'm experiencing is merely a passing ice age. The high for today? 57 F, which translates to 13 C. A quick comparison with Bologna reveals a high of 36 F (8 C). Guess it's time to reapply my sunscreen...
It has been almost four months since I left my home in Italy. I miss it every day. When I got back to the US, I experienced way less culture shock than I had anticipated. In fact, everything felt normal, right up until I walked into my house. I wandered around my room, pacing back and forth, and feeling that something was not right. It was bizarre to be back in the house where I grew up, even though it had been such a large part of my identity for the majority of my life. The feeling eventually dissipated, but the first shock of being back in Oakland made me question the meaning of "home."
I didn't write a closing post, partly because I was lazy, but also because I wasn't ready to accept that my one short year was already in the past. After my trip through Central and Eastern Europe, I came back to Bologna, where I made some new friends and discovered the city through different eyes. In late July, I visited Sicily with Trung and his sister. At the beginning of August, Ilaria and I went to Puglia, where we spent every day at the beach. I even spent two days in Accadia, where I met distant relatives. I took the train back to Bologna alone, and after a day of packing, it was time to say goodbye.
When I tell people I was away for a year, they excitedly ask me, "How was it?!" I respond with enthusiasm, saying things like "It was fantastic" and "The best year of my life." But it is so impossible in these short exchanges to convey the awe I had at first, the subsequent comfort, the eventual sense of belonging, and the inevitable nostalgia that I've had ever since. As soon as I settled into my apartment in LA, I put up a collage of photos spanning from September 2012 to August 2013. One thing remains consistent throughout: my smile. I didn't know it was possible to visually recognize the happiness I felt in each moment. The pictures allow me to revisit the places, friends, and experiences that combined to create a perfect year.
I am not sure if I will continue to write, now that I am back in California. I had forgotten how time-consuming the quarter system is, and in the winter I will be writing a sort of interdisciplinary thesis. Not exactly motivation for me to maintain my blog. But I shall leave you with this: study abroad. Leave your comfort zone. Travel. If you can, put your life on hold for a month or two. Sure, the cities and monuments aren't going anywhere (except maybe Venice), but travelling when you are young will give you such a different perspective on everything. If you aren't "young," and somehow missed the mark, do it anyway. I realize it isn't feasible for everyone to drop everything and book a plane ticket, but consider it. I promise it will have a huge impact on the way you continue to live your life.
