Many people, including me (though I have fewer now I hope), have misconceptions about American Immigration. They might assume that it is quite easy to get American citizenship, or that once you marry an American you are a citizen. People conflate Green Cards (legal residency) with citizenship. Perhaps they assume there is a streamlined system.... Continue Reading →
Last weekend I visited Minneapolis to see a friend who'd moved there last spring (using the Medtronic 10 Miler race as an excuse to travel). I was born there, but it was my first time back (in my memory) since my parents moved us away from the Twin Cities to Austin, Texas when I was... Continue Reading →
On not feeling foreign all the time, but continuing to feel like an immigrant.
Lining up, waiting in line, queuing, is vastly different across the globe. The most extreme form of orderly queuing in my personal experience is in Hong Kong. If there is a line, many people will join it just because they assume they should be in the line. At bus stops and taxi stands, there is... Continue Reading →
The scale of distance changes drastically from city to city and town to town in America. We spent the last week in Texas, San Antonio and Houston, and we rented a car for the second time this year. Even though we were going to be in urban centers, we needed an automobile to get around.... Continue Reading →
Lack of challenge and urgency takes away some of the seduction of exploration.
Every day I've had Turkish class for the past two weeks, a Good Humor ice cream truck has been playing ditties on the adjacent street. This ice cream truck is not targeting children or high school students, but University of Chicago students. One classmate finds them creepy, one friend was surprised they were real, having... Continue Reading →
Shocking fact about America: vacations usually are planned more than 2 weeks in advance. While living in Hong Kong, we would watch our emails for “Cathay Fanfares” in the hopes of snagging a flight to the Philippines, or Siem Reap, or Bali, or Kyoto, or Taipei for the weekend for a mere 100USD. Once a... Continue Reading →
I can talk to everyone, or it feels like I can talk to everyone. It can get overwhelming sometimes, distracting even. When you live in a country and you don’t know the language beyond 25 words/phrases (food items, numbers, sports cheers, elementary greetings) you cannot talk to everyone. The extent of my interaction with a... Continue Reading →
I had a 7 hour layover in Vancouver, so I went downtown to sit outside and write, then ambled to a brewery pub for dinner. It was August, and I ate outside. I had a good meal and a nice beer. The waitress was fairly slow; I sat at my table with a menu, by... Continue Reading →
A repatriated American, living in Chicago for the first time, occasionally writing about it.
jamielynnwaters 