I awoke at the all too early hour of 5 am with nothing about a long travel day toward home ahead of me. It was cold enough that I didn't bother with a shower. I had also packed my headlamp at the bottom of my pack, and without the desire to repack the night before leaving, I had to execute my final hostel room departure in complete darkness. At least the taxi ride to the airport was faster without the business of rush hour traffic.
Once at the airport, I checked my backpack, leaving me with my two laptops, camera, and a few random items in a cheap bag I bought before leaving Medellin. I bought a last minute bottle of Medellin Anejo rum so I could enjoy the occasional rum on the rocks or with Sprite as I'd done so often the first half of 2009. Of course I was raped with a giant mark-up which made me wonder why the hell I didn't just bring a bottle from Medellin. You'd think I'd have learned to anticipate my own last-minute souvenir-buying tendencies by now, but nope!
The flight to Orlando, Florida was uneventful. I didn't get a window seat, but I did amuse myself with a funny movie called I Love You Man and some Jon Stewart from The Daily Show. Maybe there are some benefits to getting back to the USA after all. But in general, I'm going to try and refrain from watching TV once home. Aside from Lost, I didn't miss it at all while traveling.
Once we landed in Orlando, I passed through immigrations and customs with ease. I was officially back in the USA, and it was weird. I boarded a light rail to the main terminal, and was suddenly surrounded by Americans.
My first impressions made me realize how accustomed I had become to living amongst Colombians for the prior 6 months. On average, Americans were heavier, paler (yes, I know I'm one of them), and dressed more casually. Not to say that the Colombian default of jeans and t-shirts is formal, but shorts are fairly uncommon, let alone flip flops. Not only was I seeing a lot of white people, I was seeing their white legs and feet as well! It was almost too much for me to handle. On the plus side, I was also struck by the racial diversity. Of course I was at an airport for tourists, but even as I write this a few days later, I'm more aware of how truly diverse we are in this country.
My five hour layover turned to six hours as my connecting plane was late, but I simply camped out at a bar table near an outlet, overlooking the tarmac, and prepared a few blog posts on Medellin Living about my final days in Colombia.
And then I was on my last flight for the foreseeable future, heading back to Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia. I had a window seat this time, and tried to capture a few sunset photos to mark the end of my journey.
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Jeff says
July 21, 2009 at 2:01 amDave! Man, congrats on making it home safely. Can’t wait to hear about your thoughts about being stateside again.
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Karl (from Dewey) says
July 21, 2009 at 10:13 amWelcome home dude! What’s next?
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Karl (from Dewey) says
July 21, 2009 at 5:13 amWelcome home dude! What’s next?
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Jeff says
July 21, 2009 at 7:01 amDave! Man, congrats on making it home safely. Can’t wait to hear about your thoughts about being stateside again.
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Anil says
July 21, 2009 at 12:09 pmNice sunset pic, from the plane that’s pretty good. They can be tough to get right.
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Anil says
July 21, 2009 at 7:09 amNice sunset pic, from the plane that’s pretty good. They can be tough to get right.
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Erica says
July 21, 2009 at 1:15 pmWhat an amazing journey, David! Thank you for sharing it with us!
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Erica says
July 21, 2009 at 8:15 amWhat an amazing journey, David! Thank you for sharing it with us!
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Leo says
July 21, 2009 at 2:13 pmWelcome back Dave! your observations in Orlando were killing me! :-) It’s also good that you pointed out the diversity we do have here in the US as you really don’t see that in other countries.
Hit me up soon.
Leo
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Leo says
July 21, 2009 at 9:13 amWelcome back Dave! your observations in Orlando were killing me! :-) It’s also good that you pointed out the diversity we do have here in the US as you really don’t see that in other countries.
Hit me up soon.
Leo
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Derek Webb says
July 21, 2009 at 9:51 amCongrats. You made it. Very nice blog, m8. Especially your financial breakdown – helps those of us who are about to go to those places a better idea of what we’ll be spending.
I’ll predict it isn’t long before the travel bug itches at you some more. Usually 2-4 months for me. =)
Derek
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 5:57 pmHey Karl – yep, I made it full circle! Already saw Phil and Laura over the weekend. Next up, I’m trying to figure out the cheapest cell phone/plan to buy. :)
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 12:57 pmHey Karl – yep, I made it full circle! Already saw Phil and Laura over the weekend. Next up, I’m trying to figure out the cheapest cell phone/plan to buy. :)
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 5:59 pmHey Leo, I’ll catch up with you soon.
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 12:59 pmHey Leo, I’ll catch up with you soon.
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 6:01 pmThanks for the feedback Derek. I know it won’t be long either, but first I have to get my finances in the position to be proactive. My detour in Medellin was worth it, but it means my next trip is that much farther off.
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Dave says
July 21, 2009 at 1:01 pmThanks for the feedback Derek. I know it won’t be long either, but first I have to get my finances in the position to be proactive. My detour in Medellin was worth it, but it means my next trip is that much farther off.
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Derek Webb says
July 21, 2009 at 2:51 pmCongrats. You made it. Very nice blog, m8. Especially your financial breakdown – helps those of us who are about to go to those places a better idea of what we’ll be spending.
I’ll predict it isn’t long before the travel bug itches at you some more. Usually 2-4 months for me. =)
Derek
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Event Reisen says
July 22, 2009 at 10:48 amYour post is very well crafted. Great photos, nicely taken. You enjoyed each and everything in this journey. Am I rite? Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience. Really I enjoyed this article.
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Event Reisen says
July 22, 2009 at 5:48 amYour post is very well crafted. Great photos, nicely taken. You enjoyed each and everything in this journey. Am I rite? Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience. Really I enjoyed this article.
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Brock says
July 23, 2009 at 1:45 amDave,
All I can say is congratulations on making it happen. Really! You should be so proud of yourself.
Heck I haven’t met you (yet) and I am darn proud of you.
Even this posts increases my excitement for my own adventure!
Cheers,
Brock
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Brock says
July 22, 2009 at 8:45 pmDave,
All I can say is congratulations on making it happen. Really! You should be so proud of yourself.
Heck I haven’t met you (yet) and I am darn proud of you.
Even this posts increases my excitement for my own adventure!
Cheers,
Brock
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Dave says
July 24, 2009 at 4:34 pmThanks Brock, I’ve definitely lost perspective on how big a deal it is. I mean before my trip, I’d only met a few people who’d been gone so long, but once I was traveling, I met a lot of people on 6-12+ month RTW trips. But more so than that, I met a lot of people doing regional circuits like Australia/SE Asia, India, Latin America, etc.
If you can hit 5 of the 7 continents outside your own on a trip, you’re in a small percentage. In all that time, I didn’t meet a person who’d made it to Antarctica.
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Dave says
July 24, 2009 at 11:34 amThanks Brock, I’ve definitely lost perspective on how big a deal it is. I mean before my trip, I’d only met a few people who’d been gone so long, but once I was traveling, I met a lot of people on 6-12+ month RTW trips. But more so than that, I met a lot of people doing regional circuits like Australia/SE Asia, India, Latin America, etc.
If you can hit 5 of the 7 continents outside your own on a trip, you’re in a small percentage. In all that time, I didn’t meet a person who’d made it to Antarctica.