We left Alameda, CA, in May of 2012. The kids and I have returned almost 5 years later in April 2017. My feelings towards the San Francisco Bay Area are completely different than they were when we left.
2012: I was so sick of this little island of Alameda. I was tired of liberalism. I had been exposed to it and believed in it for nearly two decades. I had lived in California all my life. Political Correctedness was all I knew. California folk were all I knew and I was bored. I wanted to explore the other parts of the country.
Although I lived in metropolitan cities most of my life, I felt like a naive country bumpkin. I didn't know diversity in that everyone in Northern California had the same ideals. I remember in 2008, walking through a street festival, two old white ladies sat at a humble table with a banner that promoted the Republican Party. I thought to myself, "The balls on these two!" For them to quietly, but overtly show their conservative support amazed me. I felt like the pussy, never venturing out of a comfort zone.
Michael got orders to go to a new duty station in Tampa, Florida, and I was so excited to leave the West Coast. I was finally going to see conservatives on their turf and see what it was like to be a true minority. Yes, I'm a Pacific Islander and considered a minority in America. A Filipino in California, however, is in the majority. I couldn't wait to see rednecks and observe how they act. I was braving uncharted-to-me territories. I was really traveling.
2014: I was sick of Florida. What I had not accounted for in seeing Conservative lands is the lack of excitement for new things. The selection of organic produce and products is scarce. Their museums did not have controversial exhibits nor were they interactive enough for children.
The Latin cuisine was uneventful. I had heard about Cuban sandwiches and loved the Cuban restaurant Versailles in Los Angeles. Their specialty was a roasted garlic chicken. I thought that being closer to Cuban culture would wow me and give me the thrill of experiencing exotic cultures. It felt anything but exotic. A Cuban sandwich feels like any other toasted deli meat-filled sandwich. One exciting discovery, however, was their version of empanadas. With a thinner and fried crust, it surpasses the baked, doughful ones from the Filipino American bakeries.
I also was sick of being bitten by mosquitos and no-see-ums.
The allure of observing Republicans in the wild lost its lustre in the first half-year. You pretty much get the idea when they open their mouths and spew thoughts. They're not dumb; just different but not complexly so. And the same could be said of liberals - they're not complexly different than the conservatives.
Michael now got orders to Washington, D.C. and the promise of quality museums sat on the horizon. There was bound to be more diversity and maybe a different kind of conservative to observe. There might even be pockets of liberals that I could identify with.
2017: I finally came to terms with the fact that I'm a Hippie at Heart. There's no denying it. I love organic products, recycling, podcasts, and unplugged children. I also do not appreciate frigid temperatures. Virginia, Maryland, and DC, have the terrible combination of cold winters and humid summers with mosquitoes. April and September are the only two months in which the weather is perfect. The other ten months are as miserable as being sick with a fever during a 3-hour architectural history final in an air-conditioned auditorium.
The museums were alright. The only one that we frequented regularly was the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum. The American Indian Museum was cool also, but its highlight was their cafeteria. There were living history museums / farms, but the kids were not interested in visiting every one because they were so similar to one another. Places and parks were also faaaar away from one another. When I think of DC, I think of lots of driving. Poor Michael thinks of lots of driving in traffic.
Michael's recent orders sent us back to Alameda. And I am basking in the temperate weather and the plethora of things to do and learn here. It has only been 3-1/2 weeks since we arrived and we may be bathing in the honeymoon phase. We see how long our enthusiasm lasts. I have a feeling it might last a while.
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