On Not Being a Tourist

I am not a tourist.

People often think that I am.

This cannot be helped, and it is nothing personal.

But… the way that tourists interact with a place (with the attitude that they will be leaving) and the way people who live somewhere interact with a place (with a sense of home) is really different. It feels like people who plan to be tourists, only make limited versions of a place available. They are not trying to take everything on. Time is limited. They did not decide to move there (here). Tourism isn´t bad. But it isn´t real life. In fact, it seems like an “highlights version” of a place. It is not the grit, the weirdness, and the normalcy of regular human life.

Doing real work, having a real job, and creating a home in a new place is a different thing all together. It means that outside being from another country, I don´t feel I have much in common with people merely passing through.