5Being back II The blinding sun, the familiar skyline, the streets I've walked countless times and the sea; a reliable refuge. It feels like the rest of Home, their combination causes a soothing sense - strong, intoxicating, it numbs all my fears and anxieties leaving only thoughts of comfort and pleasure. -It can be like this every day. But the trembling of the half closed eyes and the feeling of the burning skin can't last forever. The memories that linger in the corners of this city have started to lose their grip on me.

4Being back Because it is all coming back. My favorite bar is just around the corner and the open sea down the road. Because I can feel the heart of this noisy city, my city. Because it looks grande at night and I have spent so many of them with friends, at our favorite bar, talking and drinking and laughing and dreaming. Because it is the place I go first when I am here for holidays and because this Christmas, like every other Christmas, it is warm and sunny. And I hate it. Like every other Christmas.

3Memories By the time the heavy snowflake on the bus window had melted, I had ‘seen’ every Christmas I’ve had back Home, every scruffy end of the fake tree branches and every single decoration we’ve been using for years and years. I could feel the thick carpet under my feet and the smells from the kitchen if i'd try hard enough. The sound of the bell brought me back, reminding me of all the preparations for tomorrow. Friends would come over to celebrate. We would have a lovely dinner. We would exchange presents. And drink wine. And have Merry Christmas. At my own home.

2Homesick I never understood If the everyday and the routine is the same thing, or of it is the one that causes the other. They usually do not sound good when put together, but for a split second, I miss it. I envy it. The tranquility of an everyday afternoon. The comfort of the domestic habits. The feeling of security that spreads above you like a safety net.

1. Arrival I feel like I am welcomed in this new city, which feels oddly familiar. Maybe because I have seen it so many times: the arrival after a long hour flight, the crammed taxi with almost everything you own, driving to the new home for the next few years. I instinctively look outside the window as I approach the center of the city. I am tired and afraid and excited. I can’t help but smile as I look out to a new world of opportunities and experiences. “This has got to work out”, I think. “It will work out, I have seen it so many times before”.