culture shocked in america.

Eight days and counting. Until I say goodbye to reading outside the Capitol building, eating red velvet cupcakes in Georgetown and having picnics on the National Mall. Washington D.C. has turned out to be such a different study abroad experience. I came here dreading what I "thought" Washington D.C. was all about: politics, power and white men in polished business suits. Yes, D.C. has its fair share of those three but there is more beyond the White House. Honest.

There's the Washingtonians, the locals who call D.C. their permanent home and care about cultivating community beyond the disconnect of outsiders. There's U Street, a crazy hipster area where the usual garb is dreads and torn jeans. There's the churches, that pray for the people in this city and the leaders who reside just blocks away. There's the person giving up a seat for the old man on the bus and the policymaker volunteering at the homeless shelter.

I thought that studying abroad in "America" would be a missed opportunity. I considered all my friends who would post Facebook photos of them bungee jumping in South Africa or standing outside Big Ben. But you know what? I've experienced culture shock here in ways I couldn't initially comprehend. I couldn't understand how people could be starving a block away from the World Bank or how others slept on the street underneath a sign pointing to the direction of the White House. Within minutes of the power and politics and white men in business suits, you find HIV rates comparing to Africa. How is this possible? What could I do?

I have one week left and I still feel like I haven't figured out this odd city. The citizens here do not have voting rights yet they pay taxes. When you meet people on the street, the first question out of their mouth is "where are you from?" Washington D.C. is a novelty for sure.

Eight days and counting. It's going to be culture shock going back.