'Mericuh.

Disclaimer: Heavy on media; low on content. 

"There's no place like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz

I keep finding small bits of the States in Hungary. I'm not sure if it's because I'm unintentionally looking for similarities or because I've been asked to make a presentation on objects that remind of the US and objects drastically different from the US. 

The Basics.
I can turn just about anything I see into an object that is either very American, or not so American. If I can't find a way to turn this off, I'll be looking at Hungary through an American-lens for the rest of my stay. However, I keep discovering "America" in the strangest of places. 

The Details.
I'm not quite sure when my compare/contrast attitude began exactly, but it's like watching reality tv. You know it's not helping you. You're not really learning anything new, but you just can't stop. One of the most sentimental things that I've seen thus far was as simple as a truck. A UPS truck. I can't help but smile looking at this picture, even now, because it reminds me of my mommy. She works at UPS--she doesn't drive trucks though--, and she's the reason I'm even in this country right now (sorry Dad). She's always let me have the world, usually figuratively, and she is easily my number one supporter in the world. I can feel myself getting emotional, so I'm gonna move on now. 

I've already touched on my penchant for buying Sprite and Cheetos because of their familiarity, so I'll just gloss over that, and get to the one that will surprise you the least. McDonalds and Burger King...but let's be real, mostly McDonalds. Not a day goes by that I don't walk past McDonald's on my way to work, on my way home, on my way to the McDonalds line. And if it weren't for the foreigner letters, that seems to make words, lining the menu, I could almost convince myself that I'm back in Athen buying Caitlyn a sweet tea (except without the option of buying sweet tea). I had to give in at least once. I was doing very important research on the cultural differences on an American restaurant in a foreign country. I'm still in the data collection phase, but I'll let you read the paper if you'd like. 

The strangest of all, I think, was last night when the other trainees and I decided to go out for a beer. There, in the front of the bar, hanging in all it's glory was an American flag. I don't know if it was a political statement of some kind or just a random piece of decoration that they liked. Whatever, I enjoyed getting my drink on in the presence of the flag. 'Mericuh.