I get on the plane in Hong Kong International Airport and 15 hours later, I find myself in a strange land called the United States of America. Specifically, I have landed in New Jersey. I deplane and my ears are assaulted from every direction.
"Final boarding call for Flight 759 to Chicago, O'Hare."
"MOMMMYYYYYY!!!!!!! Timmy took my teddy bear!"
"Hurry up, we're going to miss our flight!"
"...If you are not at the boarding gate in the next 5 minutes, your seat will be given away to our stand-by passengers."
I cup my hands around my ears. My eardrums have been operating on a 30 decibel level for the past 6 months and I feel like I've stepped into a Metallica concert.
As we walk towards customs, I notice that I am in the company of giants. Everywhere around me, tall lumbering men and women pass me in 2 giant strides while I walk the equivalent distance in 5 mini-steps. Some giants are also wider than normal, waddling past me, sweating and cursing profusely at how far the terminal is from baggage claim. I see some of these wide giants passing me on golf carts, the beeping noise gets closer as they pass me, then fades away as the cacophony of the airport noise drones on. I am amazed as this walk from the terminal is the length of my morning commute to the MTR station.
"Final boarding call for Flight 759 to Chicago, O'Hare."
"MOMMMYYYYYY!!!!!!! Timmy took my teddy bear!"
"Hurry up, we're going to miss our flight!"
"...If you are not at the boarding gate in the next 5 minutes, your seat will be given away to our stand-by passengers."
I cup my hands around my ears. My eardrums have been operating on a 30 decibel level for the past 6 months and I feel like I've stepped into a Metallica concert.
As we walk towards customs, I notice that I am in the company of giants. Everywhere around me, tall lumbering men and women pass me in 2 giant strides while I walk the equivalent distance in 5 mini-steps. Some giants are also wider than normal, waddling past me, sweating and cursing profusely at how far the terminal is from baggage claim. I see some of these wide giants passing me on golf carts, the beeping noise gets closer as they pass me, then fades away as the cacophony of the airport noise drones on. I am amazed as this walk from the terminal is the length of my morning commute to the MTR station.
I had heard that America is a melting pot and now I can see why. There are tall people, fat people, blond people, dark skinned people, there are people speaking English and Spanish and some variation of English and Spanish that I can't classify. I am so far from Hong Kong, the land of homogeny with its short, skinny, dark-haired, fair-skinned Asians who barely raise their voices above a whisper and are always respectful.
We make it through customs quickly as we are holding American passports and I see a large American flag looming from the ceiling with the words "Welcome to the United States of America" underneath. I almost cry at the familiarity and strangeness of seeing my native country's flag and realizing that although I have called Hong Kong my residence for the past 6 months, I am now home.
A smile spreads on my face as I soak up these strange and wonderful people. Even the large African American woman at the security screening who shouts to no one in particular "PEOPLE! Take your laptops OUT OF YOUR bags and put them in the bin. Haven't you ever flown before?" makes me laugh out loud. Only in America.
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