Stripping your house clean of all your belongings and moving to an entirely new place is not something one would look forward to. Not everyone likes change, but it is an important part of our life.

Sidhivi Sharma (it took me a thousand years to get her name right) tells us her tale of moving from India to Britain.

Sit tight, folks. Sidhivi likes to joke. A LOT. Most of them are puns but anyway.

She narrates that a part of her misses the desi-ness that India is made up of. She misses the blinding sun, spicy and oily delicacies, and the vibrant heritage of Jaipur.

She had to move to London for family reasons. She tells us that London is hues of grey and black, the food has barely any seasoning, and the way the British hoot at the mere sight of the sun is amusing to watch.

“People there are different, they mind their own business. They never huddle in groups to witness an ongoing drama.”

She continues by telling us that not only moving but also waking up at 5:00 AM is a big struggle.

Oh yes, we can understand.

She goes on to tell us that she misses her friends, and Indians in general because they project an aura of home.

“Sure, the public transport was better, food had more variety, footpaths existed, everything was fancy but then again, there’s no country like your own. No eager relatives who hold their breaths over your ‘result’ or your marital status (isn’t really a problem right now for me, but I know this country well).”

Her innermost thoughts convey that maybe people are so adamant on earning money there, that they have become oblivious to their child-like tendencies.

Her nostalgic talks are making us love Jaipur a lot more.

She also tells us that just as a coin has two sides so does living in London. Thus, there is a strange comfort in treading the footpath and wearing shorts and not being ogled at.

Sidhivi also had to enroll in a new school because some wise dummy said that education is important, she recounts that at first it was just ‘meh’ but she started getting accustomed to the fancy British realm. She also had to overhear detailed conversations about contouring and funny videos on Instgaram.

I could never learn how to contour. It would be a miracle if I did.

She concluded by saying that school was very hard to get used to, but she does manage to enjoy the school even if it is on some occasions. And sometimes, her inner nerd has to be subverted.

Oh, she is a Marvel Fan. The horror of not having to discuss that.

When we asked if there was racism we should be worried about, she tells us that if there was any racism, it was towards the whites (what a plot twist) because her school is dominated by Gujaratis and Muslims. Nevertheless, it was breathtaking to see so many religions colliding and yet flourishing.

“Racism was nothing more than a topic to joke about, but then again, I’m a tiny person, it’s a whole new world down here, a quite fascinating one at that.”

When we got a little philosophical, we ended up asking her about what she thinks is more important – the journey or the destination, and her very predictable reply (I kind of know her well) was that what matters is FOOD.

You remember what I told you about her cracking jokes??

In all seriousness, she tells us that what is more important to her is the journey because the thought of a destination you are destined to be at is simply boring.

Well said, ma’am, well said.

We can learn so many endearing things from anyone we meet. And Sidhivi teaches us that even when the situation you find yourself in is the toughest you could think of, the only solution to adjust and adapt quickly is to accept the way it is.