Chapter 2: Strangers Who Felt Like Home

I thought I would travel alone.

But the road had other plans.

On the bus, a dadi shared her tiffin with me.
Aloo paratha and achar.
"Beta, kha lo. Ghar ki yaad aa rahi hogi."

At the chai stall, a uncle told me which hotel was safe and which one to avoid.
He even called the owner and said, "Apni beti jaisi hai."

In the bookshop, a girl my age helped me find a Hindi novel.
We sat on the floor for 2 hours and talked about nothing and everything.

No one asked my surname.
No one asked my marks.
No one asked what my father does.

They just asked, "Chai piyogi?"
"Photo kheechu tumhari?"
"Raat ko dar to nahi lagega na?"

Chapter two taught me: Home is not always a place.
Sometimes it’s people.

Strangers became directions.
Strangers became meals.
Strangers became the reason I felt safe in a city where I knew no one.

The world told me, "Don’t talk to strangers."
But travel taught me, "Some strangers are angels with no wings."

I came to find myself.
Instead, I found pieces of myself in everyone I met.

So if you travel, talk to people.
The best souvenirs are not from shops.
They are stories.

🖇️🧿 Question 1st
Travel me sabse achha khana kis anjaan ne khilaya tha tumhe?
Dadi ka tiffin ya uncle ki chai? ☕

🖇️🧿 Question 2nd
Tumhari zindagi me kaunsa stranger tumhare liye "home" ban gaya tha?
Comment me uski 1 line wali story batao 🥺