One year and ten or so days later we return to our homeland.  Not for good, but just long enough to readjust to the time zone and the gravitational pull in the Northern Hemisphere before having to zoom back again.  I’m curious as to how much culture shock I might experience on the flip side of the planet.  One may think it only happens when you come to a new place, and indeed many people have said that Sydney must have been such a contrast to New York.  It is, but it took a long time for all the subtle differences as well as the sames to become apparent.  That’s because when you come to a new country everything is exactly that, new.

Now, I’m going back to two different places that I’ve called home for most of my life and I wonder if all the commonplace everyday things that I once took for granted are going to stick out like the peaks of the Opera House.  Will the LA traffic finally seem as ridiculous as I know it really is?  (although Sydney has its fair share of congested arteries as well.)  Will NY actually seem like the densely, jam-packed pickle of an island I had once been so accustomed to?  Will I experience a sense of relief at finally no longer being the one with the accent?  At least no one will think I’m Canadian.

I’ll report my findings upon my return to the land of Oz.  Until then, I’ll be enjoying a literal change of season. Cheers!