Back in America

I made it back to America safely yesterday. I've already enjoyed a few good American meals, and things taste about the same as I remember them. Here are a few other things that I've noticed since getting back:

• The computer I'm using seems pretty fast (it's actually about 6 years old). The internet (dial up) feels as fast if not faster than most of the connections I used in India. The monitor can support a resolution above 800x600. I'd forgotten how much more that lets you fit on a single screen.
• The tap water is safe to drink again! I got to use tap water instead of bottled water to brush my teeth last night. I even drank a little bit of it without any fear of diarrhea.
• I'm back to using western style toilets and American toilet paper. I'm sure I'll get used to it again, but right now it seems weird. I can honestly say that I like the Indian system better. The combination of squatty potties and Indian "toilet paper" leaves me feeling a lot cleaner than the way we do it over here.
• I can control the temperature of my water again. In India, it was rare to have taps with more than a single knob. If the weather was hot and sunny, then you got hot or warm water. If it was cold, then so was the water. Our hotel in Darjeeling was supposed to have hot water, but it didn't work most of the time. After taking cold showers in Darjeeling, taking a hot shower on a cool morning has never felt so good.