Going "Home"

Go to any airport, bus or train station. Upon finally arriving at your destination—when your most likely swollen feet finally touch the ground—here’s what you’ll see:

Eager, scanning eyes of parents anxiously awaiting the arrival of their wanderlust-filled daughter.

Jittery hands and swinging arms—some gripping handcrafted “welcome” signs that still smell of pungent permanent marker, other poised to wrap their long, lost friend into a giant bear hug.

Feet shifting back and forth ready to break into a run—no, a sprint—upon the first sight of their other half.

Lips parted, ready to call out at the first sight of that familiar highlighted ponytail or bright red purse.

Can you picture it? Okay, now that you’ve got all that, keep walking—past the signs, past the clusters of waiting people, past the gate marked ``arrivals.”

At this point, you may be in full focus mode, zoning in on the signs marked taxis, baggage claim, metro station. But, if you are like me, you might pause for just a minute too long or glance back at the onslaught of reunions already in progress and you’ll be inundated by a wave of confusing emotions:
nostalgia, envy, anxiety.

And then, if you’re really like me, you’ll chide yourself: Why is it that I feel like this? I am about to embark on yet another adventure-of-a-lifetime. I shouldn’t be the one to envy others right now.

Don’t get me wrong, I love to travel—I live to travel—but despite what my Facebook and Instagram feeds might suggest, travel isn’t always sunshine and roses.

Between the getting lost, missing baggage, culture shock, and delays, sometimes travel can make you feel just a teensy bit lonely and overwhelmed.

But don’t worry, soon enough, you’ll be one of the lucky ones who has arrived at a place that you can call home. For me, this was my trip to Alicante.

I had people waiting for me. Gone were the nerves, the jealously, the homesick pit in my stomach. I was going home.