Bombay- as I see it

A new city. New people, new places, new college, new home. A dazed, confused me.This sums up my initial response to the city of extremes that Bombay is.

In the beginning, I tried my level best to figure out the city and its people. The more I tried to understand it, the more complex it seemed. I missed home, I missed old friends, I missed graduation days. Basically, I missed everything Bombay was not. As the days passed by, I started to learn more about life in Bombay. After the initial confusion, I decided to stop trying to hard to figure out things. I decided to let myself be, to give in to the mystery Bombay was. That is when I fell in love with the city. And in that, I started loving Bombay for everything it was.

With my acceptance of the city, Bombay reciprocated my love with open arms. The lone, empty hours that used to haunt me became filled with love and excitement. I found my family in friends. Once I found 'my' people, I found a home away from home. Long hours in college, staying up the nights for assignments, heart-to-heart conversations with friends, travelling in local trains, finding 'our' spots, living an independent life- Bombay gave me all this and so much more. Cliched as it sounds, this truly was a dream come true.

However, with time, the fragility of my supposedly strong glass house gave away. Everything did not turn out to be as idyllic and hunky-dory as I had assumed, rather hoped, it would be. The first problem with the landlord, the first delayed assignment, the first friendship requestioned, the first expectation not met- when the problems started to crop up, they came aplenty. That is when I went back to what the city taught me- acceptance. I fought my own battles, I learnt to accept things for their worth. That's how you survive here. I do, my friends do, we all do. I am still learning new aspects about the city as well as myself with each passing day.

Bombay- the city of dreams, the city of extremes. Live the dream and see for yourself.