5 Things I Miss About the US

It’s been a while and a lot has happened since I last wrote! I’ve officially been out of the US for almost 2 months! How crazy is that?! Quick update: I am an Au Pair (“live-in” nanny) with a family in Paris, France and after traveling this summer, I flew to my new home! I’ve been slowly but surely settling into my cozy little Parisian apartment, walking casually past the Eiffel Tower at least once a day, and trying my hardest not to eat an entire baguette every day. While all of this is an absolute dream, with fall coming up, I’m starting to miss home in all of its pumpkin spice glory. Here are the top 5 things I miss about being in the US (besides the obvious family and friends)!

TARGET– Of course this is the number one thing on my list. My love, my heart, the place I go to when all else fails me… Target (cue alternate pronunciation…/tar-zhay/). Think about all the times you need something for the house, maybe a cute notepad to write your grocery or to-do lists, perhaps a shower caddy, tampons, mascara, pumpkin decorations for spooky season, shrimp for that salad you’re going to make later… Where do you go? Target, most likely. Target was my go-to place for anything and everything. There aren’t places like that in Paris. *sobs in American*

GROCERY STORES– There are grocery stores on every corner in Paris. Like, every single one. I literally pass 5 grocery stores on my 10-minute walk home from work every day. But they are SO. SMALL. Most of the time, you can find your basics, (with the exception of the one behind my apartment… I have walked out of there with nothing 4 times. They suck, bad.). But if you’re looking for something specific, something you wouldn’t need every day but possibly for a new diet or recipe, like Brazil nuts for example, forget it. You’ll walk in and out of every single Franprix or Monoprix with no nuts and no idea where to find them. HEB or Publix would have my nuts, I just know they would. :,(

WALT DISNEY WORLD– Okay this one probably isn’t applicable to everyone, but my Disney people know! I miss WDW like crazy! Disneyland Paris is beautiful and gives me just the dose of Disney I need to get by, but I think its about a fourth of the size of WDW in Florida. I miss the space! Disney Springs! Florida humidity! The culture is completely different, and way less intense here. Walt Disney World was my home for a bit, and nothing compares. I miss it and I need it.

HAVING A CAR– Wow wow wow. I knew I would miss this one, but I didn’t know it would hit so hard! The freedom of having a car is really a luxury. There have already been times where I think of something to buy, like small pieces of furniture for my apartment, or decorations for the wall, but I can’t go buy them because I think, “how the heck am I supposed to transport this?!” You can’t exactly carry a small dresser on the metro, then proceed to carry it through the city from the metro stop to the apartment. Groceries, too! If you buy more than one bag of food, it’s over for you! And forget buying water (because the tap water here in Paris can cause those calcified white spots on teeth…) in bulk, it’s way too heavy, and if you’re carrying groceries too… well, good luck Charlie.

SMILING FACES– I don’t know if it’s the cold, grey skies that make people not want to give you the time of day, or if it’s something in the water, but no one seems to want to smile here! Walking on the street, it’s like survival of the fittest. People don’t make room for others on the sidewalks and if you make eye contact they either look away, or continue to stare without cracking even the slightest of smirks. You start to think, “is there something on my face that’s offending everyone so much…?” This obviously isn’t true for every single person I encounter, but it’s a lot more than I experience in the US! Maybe it’s the big-city life, or because I’m an apparent expat, but I miss the over-friendliness of Americans, their smiles, and their “opes” and “sorry’s.”

So there you have it! I have shared the top 5 things I miss about the US. I hope by shedding some light on just how awesome some of the stuff at home is, that you appreciate it and feel a little gratitude to your car or local Target. Thanks for reading, and if you like this post, please share it or leave a little comment or both!

bisous,

K A I T I E