You know you feel at home when things don't smell weird anymore.

When I first walked into my apartment one roller coaster of a month ago, it smelled odd. Not odd in a bad way, just odd in a different way. The air in the city smelled different. Everything was different. I remember our first day running around the city with our half-awake, jetlagged brains concentrating so hard on finding a place to buy sheets because we didn't want to sleep on something that smelled so...different. I now find it funny how the smell was the first thing I picked up on.


But I woke up this morning and realized that nothing smelled different anymore. It smelled normal. It smelled like home. Over the course of the month, Paris had finally become a home to me.


This, however, was not an easy process. I'll be completely honest, the first two weeks, I was not overly happy about being abroad. The cultural differences were smacking me across the face left and right. How making eye contact with someone on the metro automatically gets you a dirty stare. A smile equals a death sentence. How servers at restaurants couldn't care less about giving you top notch customer service and attention. Things that were once so easily at my disposal back in America were almost impossible to find. A 24 hour convenience store that had everything I needed. A metro that stayed open until 3am. A 30 case of Coors Light. These all sound like trivial things, and looking back on it, they do seem idiotic, but it made me realize how much I took for granted back home. 


It also forced me to go out and search for a new sense of normalcy. A new bar that would become a classic hangout. A new grocery store where I could find the things I need. A new group of friends that I could enjoy. Finding new things challenges you. For the first two weeks, I was incredibly homesick and would've given anything to be back at GW to just have a beer at Froggy, work out at HelWell, hang out in the Pi Kapp house. Places and activities that signify home to me.


Over the past month, however, I've come to find new places and activities that signify home to me. Hanging out between classes in Amex, our school bar and grill. Eating a baguette, cheese, and red wine for dinner at least twice a week. Exploring every corner of Paris we can before we get too cold to move. Slowly, new things have become normal. It's interesting how that works. So here's to 4 more months of new things becoming normal. And appreciating the normal I left behind.


Now if you'll excuse me, I have to wait another 9 hours for the Super Bowl to start at 12:30 am. I may be all about new things, but old habits die hard.