I think I might be missing ´home´ but I´m not sure. I´m not even sure what home is these days, but that´s not the point.
The point is that as far as I know, I have never been homesick so I don´t know what I should be feeling or what feelings I should be looking for. ´Homesick´ doesn´t really cover it because it is nothing like the desperate breakdowns and crying fits my sleepovers sometimes suffered from. It is more a general feeling that maybe it would be nice to see my family again, catch up with friends during endless wine-sipping sessions and eat copious amounts of cheese.
The last time I was home, over a year ago, sucked because my mum went through chemo and I was totally broke so I guess I’m also looking for a bit more carefree experience and a different kind of family bonding.
So, I booked a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam in October and I’m all kinds of excited about it. By then it will be almost exactly one year and seven months since I left The Netherlands.
Even though I’m sure I will miss Asia, diving, the sun and jungle as soon as I set foot on European soil, there are a few thing that I really look forward to, apart from catching up with family and friends of course. People often ask me about the things I miss from home, so here they are, in random order.
Hot Baths
After a year of cold showers (which here frequently consist of throwing a few buckets of cold water over myself) I really, really look forward to having a scalding hot bath. Soak in your own filth for an hour until you’re all dozy and sleepy before going to bed. Yes.
Fruit
This one is a bit silly, since I have the most delicious tropical fruits at my disposal, but sometimes I just want to eat berries. And apples. And oranges. Too bad I’m going home in winter, but even frozen berries will do.
The library
Last time I was home I used the library as some kind of refuge (because it was really awkward for everyone involved to suddenly live with your parents again) but nothing beats browsing through endless rows of books and reading ALL the newspapers with a cup of fresh coffee. Not even the Kindle with 10GB of books that I have now.
Riding my bike
I don’t think actually have a bike, but there’s always one around. Someone left a bike here and I tried riding it, but the hills here are too steep to really get anywhere and driving up and down the same road gets a bit, old, you know?
Last time I rode my bike from my hometown to Amsterdam, about 30km, in the freezing cold and it was awesome. The daily struggle to plough through snow on the way to a crappy job was not, however, but even that seems like kind of fun now.
Cheese.
This needs no explanation.
Dressing up
I love my dresses, even though I sold most of them before I left. It is fun to go full on dress+high heels+makeup sometimes, but on this island you’re already overdressed if you comb your hair properly. Besides, potholes don’t really go that well with heels.
What do you miss from home when you’re away for a while? Have you ever been homesick? What does it feel like?