Hi everyone,
I’m finally back in the U.S.! It was a crazy trip home running through three different airports just to finally get home a full day later. From Paris, I arrived in Toronto and went through customs in Canada before arriving in Chicago, then finally to Knoxville, Tennessee! Customs was not as scary or as long as I thought it would be. This was my first time flying alone (other than the trip there) and at that, flying alone internationally. When I first got home it was early in the morning and the next day I wasn’t as tired as I thought I’d be, but on the second day, the jet lag hit me. My sleep cycle wasn’t as affected as I thought but I can tell it’s affecting me more than I think. My internal clock like my eating schedule hasn’t been very consistent since I’ve gotten back but it’s only been about 4 days.
The month I spent in France was amazing and unlike anything I’ve ever done before but by the last couple of days I was there, I was ready to come home. I missed my family and my home. One strange thing I didn’t realize I’d missed was Mexican and general Hispanic food. In France, there was a plethora of diverse cuisine, but the Hispanic influence was almost non-existent and this surprised me since France borders Spain so I thought Spanish food might have more of a presence. Food-wise, there is a lot of Italian influence, more than any other country.
On another note, one random thing that caught me off guard and is something I would suggest to anyone traveling to France in the summer is to invest in a small fan. Neither the hotel nor the host family I stayed with had air-conditioning and the temperature the last week got into the hundreds. Fans are allowed in carry-ons and fit easily into bags especially if they or small or if they fold. Although this may sound small and silly, having a fan made my stay a lot more comfortable! It is super important but when I was looking at the weather in Tours, France I thought the temperature would stay in the 80s and 90s, so if there was one thing I regretted it was being short-sighted when packing for the weather! Sorry to end with a random piece of advice! Thanks for reading!
