Moving to a big city....
First of all, let me just say this. I think women adapt to change so much better than men. Moving cities being no exception.
Now that I'm done with that grand statement, moving to a big city is an interesting experience to explore as an author. Helps you interpret your characters so much better - how they react to unfamiliar surroundings and new acquaintances.
Its been 14 years since I moved cities myself. What struck me then was:
1) The anonymity (v good)
2) The crowds (not so good)
3) The smells (this is Mumbai we're talking about)
4) The traffic (I'm still petrified when I cross a busy street)
And the nameless people who were so extraordinarily kind even when I was doing the dumbest, country bumpkin-ish things. Like stopping a well-dressed lady in Malabar Hill to ask her where I could find the 'garden with the old lady's shoe' that I'd seen when I was twelve - it actually exists, btw, a concrete shoe the size of a two-story house, and the lady was so nice about it, giving me detailed directions to find it!. And leaving my hand bag behind on a bus - I got it back, which is a miracle in itself.
Now that I'm done with that grand statement, moving to a big city is an interesting experience to explore as an author. Helps you interpret your characters so much better - how they react to unfamiliar surroundings and new acquaintances.
Its been 14 years since I moved cities myself. What struck me then was:
1) The anonymity (v good)
2) The crowds (not so good)
3) The smells (this is Mumbai we're talking about)
4) The traffic (I'm still petrified when I cross a busy street)
And the nameless people who were so extraordinarily kind even when I was doing the dumbest, country bumpkin-ish things. Like stopping a well-dressed lady in Malabar Hill to ask her where I could find the 'garden with the old lady's shoe' that I'd seen when I was twelve - it actually exists, btw, a concrete shoe the size of a two-story house, and the lady was so nice about it, giving me detailed directions to find it!. And leaving my hand bag behind on a bus - I got it back, which is a miracle in itself.
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Adite
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May 17, 2013 03:18AM
Nice post, Shoma! Reminded me of the time I moved cities -- for me it was from Bombay (yes, it was still called Bombay then) to Delhi. Having grown up in "wonderful cosmopolitan" Bombay, I fell 'in hate' with Delhi, the glorified village! LOL. What I hated most about Delhi was the absence of a season called monsoon. What I loved most were the wide, tree-lined avenues. The love-hate relationship continues to this date! :)
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