Sometimes it's hard to get back into the swing of things after a holiday--especially a busy, busy holiday. I have so many things to say and to talk about after my Scandinavian adventure but it's hard to know where to start.

So I'll start with the mundane. I got back yesterday and did all of things that one does after a trip. This included unpacking, a couple of loads of laundry, grocery shopping, thinking about downloading my photos, calling my mom, reading the internet, thinking about writing a blog post, reading some more of <em>The Help</em> and going to dinner with A.

Today I went to the dentist. This was pretty uneventful. Thank goodness. But on my way home I got into an OK taxi and had quite a conversation in Bulgarian with the taxi driver. And by conversation, I really mean lecture about life.

First he thought I was Russian. Once we got that straightened out, he started asking me questions about how I like Sofia, how long I've lived in Bulgaria, where I work, how long I will live here and if my husband and children are here or in the States and the like. Pretty standard questions.

Except, um, I don't have a husband or kids yet. This answer was particularly troubling for my late-twenty-something taxi driver.

At this point, he started telling me that it's better to get married and have kids when you are younger. That way you'll have more time and energy for them and as he pontificates, I found myself nodding along and a couple of times I laughed uncomfortably. He told me: it's no laughing matter--it's really important. Then at a stop light he showed me pictures of his family.

From here he started asking me if I live by myself or with friends. I told him alone but that I have plenty of friends in my building and at work. This is apparently not good enough and he then proceeded to tell me how important is to have someone in your life that you can talk to and share your problems with. To make sure that I was following along he kept asking me in Bulgarian: do you understand? I answered: yes, I understand. This didn't seem to make things much better but the taxi driver seemed more or less satisfied with my answers but as I climbed out of the taxi I caught him shaking his head at me. Me the poor American girl living alone without either a husband or children.

The thing is that I don't feel too bad about my life. I just got back from two weeks in Scandinavia and I'll be heading home to the States at the beginning of August. I've got a great circle of friends and I relish having my own space, my own apartment. It's good to be back in Sofia.