a letter.

Dear Russia:

If I may be frank, I’m not going to miss you at all. I didn’t like getting yelled at everyday, and I downright hated your “EXACT CHANGE ONLY!” policy. But I’ll admit it’s not all your fault; you’ve been through a lot. And there are a few things that I will miss:
* an awesome public transportation system. I love the metro <3
* my own room. The futon was crap, but the privacy was well worth it.
* the nicest and most accommodating host family I could have asked for.
* some of the cutest kids I will ever have the opportunity to teach.

And that’s about it.

You gave me four of the toughest months of my life, but I learned a lot about myself and I’m grateful for the opportunity you gave me to see a bit of the world that I probably never would have explored otherwise. I loved being a teacher, I loved living with a host family, I loved collecting free Spice Girl themed Russian nesting dolls.

But I’m going to be honest: I like America a lot better than you. I think the US has a lot more to offer than you do, sorry. Peanut butter, free ice water, wi-fi hotspots everywhere. Marked parking stalls, non-smoking sections, clean public restrooms. WALMART. I don’t need to go on. I don’t mean to make you feel bad. It is what it is.

I didn’t leave much of a mark on you, but you definitely made an impact on me. I think these last four months, however difficult they may have been, were worth it.

That being said, I never want to see you again.

Happy New Year,
Michaela