Things I Miss About Himalaya:

1. My friends there. Duh.
2. Buses. With garlands and music and conductors conducting amazing feats of memory to tell you when to get off and gods with blinking lights.
3. Trucks. American truck drivers: more tassels, please. And more painted-up tigers leaping off the back, and eyes with flirty eyelashes on the front, and horns that full-on play music instead of just honking.
4. Non-ironic use of the terms “ladies” and “gents.”
5. Watching thunderstorms from the front porch.
6. “Hair saloons.”
7. I never thought I’d say this, but: the trumpets blaring off-octaves at any hour. And I mean, any hour. And I mean, the octaves. So close and yet so far.

Things I’m Glad to Get Back To:

1. My friends here. Duh.
2. My spinning wheel.
3. Potlucks.
4. Sarcasm.
5. Sipping dark-and-stormies on the back porch.
6. Dark chocolate.
7. Bougie pizza (although, see #2 below).

Things I’m Having a Hard Time Getting Used To Again:

1. American accents. World, I am so sorry.
2. Prices.
3. Vast, empty streets.
4. Sarcasm.
5. Flatness.
6. Eating with a fork.
7. It’s. So. Quiet.