NOSTALASIA

These past two weeks passed by so quickly and I just had the most amazing time. For me, there is no place like East and Southeast Asia. 

I love the heavy, extremely sweet smell which is lingering in the air. I would always recognize this very special Southeast Asia odor which is hard to describe but never to forget. It's the heavenly combination of exotic flowers, emission and rain with a slight touch of durian, sweat and street food. 

I love the friendliness, the random smiles you'd get for no reason by people you don't even know, making you realize that you don't need to have a particular reason to smile because there is so much to be happy about. 

I even love the heat and the humidity which sort of lets you melt in together with your environment. I love the damp and steamy air, which is so thick that it carries you throughout the day, giving you the same protected feeling you had as a child when being covered by your baby blanket. 

And I love the chaotic bustle in the big cities where everyone is constantly honking at each other even though it's absolutely useless to honk and where you'd see a whole family including a dog riding a single motorbike. 

I'm pretty sure that all this does not even sound delicious but oh, it is so very delicious and breathtakingly beautiful. Southeast Asia is not only a smell and a taste but a feeling and it's the same feeling whenever I'm back. For me, it's the comforting and lovely feeling of being home.