Thank you Asia

As my first year teaching overseas comes to a close I can't help but be struck by how quickly the time has gone.  Before making the great jump over the seas to China I recall my family and friends saying, "but you'll be gone for so long, won't you be homesick?  What if you don't like it?  It's such a long time.  There's so many people.  You don't even like being in a crowded store."  I chuckle at the thought of that now in retrospect.  

Never in a million years had I ever envisioned myself traveling to Asia, much less living here.  It was a place I knew little of and had no draw to.  I figured that at least I could get my foot in the door for teaching internationally and then move to wherever my heart desired:  Switzerland, Italy, Russia.  Now I find myself completely in love with a place that I knew so little about.  The culture.  The history.  The people.  The food.  The habits of locals that seem weird and rude to me, but normal and non-issues to them.

In such a short amount of time I've been able to experience so much more then the small bubble I was previously living in.  During my first year in Asia I have made my way through the pitch dark Cu Chi Tunnels in Vietnam that the soldiers used for warfare.  I stood among the vast pictures capturing the horrors of war and was exposed to another vantage point of  history.  While in Siem Reap, Cambodia I toured many ancient temples and hiked to the top of a mountain to watch the sun set over the beautiful landscape all while listening to the jumble of different languages being spoken all around me.  In Phnom Penh I had the sobering experience of witnessing the Killing Fields and the S21 Detention Camp Prison.  Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia was a quiet and beautiful place to relax and watch the ocean surf while listening to the haunting voices sing the call to prayer.  My heart lead the way to Hainan off the southern tip of China.  There, I held a starfish in my hands plucked right from the ocean and ate seaweed on the beach while listening to the waves crash.

Not only has the last year filled up my passport book, but it has also given me some of the most amazing friendships imaginable.  Meeting people from around the globe that have sick senses of humor just like I do, gives me hope that every continent and country will harbor such crazy people and no matter where I live, I will be at home.  Moving somewhere alone to a place so foreign could have been a scary and lonely path.  I was fortunate enough to meet and bond with some amazing people to make it an easier transition.

The time has come now to bring this first chapter to a close.  The school year is done.  Now is the time to relax and revel in it all.  In a years time I wasn't homesick.  I missed people of course, but in the grand scheme of things, there was not one single moment when I regretted my decision to move my life to Shanghai.  This has been the most amazing adventure of places, people, and of myself.  I only look forward to what else lies on the horizon.  Thank you Asia for one beautiful year.