That familiar feeling... of being displaced

Kodya, Yogyakarta - With the whirlwind of places to go, people to see, things to hand in, I haven't had the time to write down my thoughts of coming back to Jogja after being in Petungkriyono for some 4 plus weeks or so. Some have asked is it over? I'm at a loss to say "sadly no" or "happily no". After having lived amongst friends and the family that I am lodged with for the past month, deep in a mountainous region, the sensation of coming back to a city is very odd indeed. A sensation that is akin to non-belonging. Of being displaced, once again. On the descent, already I could feel the body struggling to adapt to the hot and humid weather in the lower altitudes, sweating copious amounts. Once back in the room, even the soft bed felt alien and mildly uncomfortable after having made the bench my personal space to rest my tired body each night. And perhaps most importantly, its quite an acute sense of loneliness here. Most of my friends are either on the Social Action Internship Program somewhere, or back in their hometowns for the holidays. After being constantly surrounded by my sub-unit teammates and also the family members that I am lodged with, being alone again in my room was, though something usual in the past, was now quite a foreign feeling. I know now why B had said he missed the place and thought of going back the whole time he was on leave rotation. Perhaps there is a certain allure to living up there, insulated from the outside world. A natural paradise (though certainly not to everyone) buried away deep in the mountains.