Coming back.

Hello there.

It has been a few months since I am back in Austria. Since I came back my life in Austria has changed a lot, even though it seemed like time had not passed at all while I was gone. Coming back was hard for me. Even though I had heard a lot that it will feel as if nothing had ever changed, I was surprised when I came home and it was excatly like everyone had told me, the same. But the "same" was very hard to adapt to. Living just like I have lived before made it hard to believe that I had even been gone. Korea was merely a beautiful dream that I have been missing almost daily. The months of summer break with nothing to do and no koreaness around me were hard. On some days I missed the life I had in Korea to an extent that I'd rather taken a plane back there than to accept that life goes on.
With moving to Vienna and starting my Korean studies at university things got better. Firstly, I think it was due to the change in my daily life, and finally I had a reason to leave my house again. Secondly, Korea became a part of my life again. Due to my studies, I have met koreans and non-koreans, who are just as interested in Korea as I am. I speak korean again, not on a daily basis, but it is getting close. I hear about things that I have expiericened first hand. I would lie if I say I do not miss Korea, my friends, the food and so on any more. Even saying I miss it less would not be the truth, but having it back in my life makes it easier to wait for the day when I can go back.
After being in a foreing country for this long will leave it's traces on you and for me those traces are there to stay. I do not want to wash them off. I do not want to forget and I will not ignore my desire to go back again. A part of me belongs to Korea and the other to Austria, which one is the stronger is for the future to find out. For now I am home, but, to me, home is not just one place, neither in Austria nor in Korea.

Thank you for following my journy, and who knows when "Maria goes to Korea" will be true once again.
Maria