A family Away From Family

Bombay is a city, Mumbai is an emotion. This one liner got its fame on all social media platforms, display pictures, status messages, hash tags and may even be seen as a tattoo. Mumbai is more than a city to the many who come here with just a heavy luggage of dreams. It is said that anybody can find a place to stay in Mumbai. So yes, I too was among the many who decided to be on my own and stay in a city like Mumbai. The only thing that pinches the most is the limited funds in the pocket, when you begin. To add to all this, there is the difficulty in finding a genuine place to stay when you are a girl. I am sure most of you would agree with me. This is the time when a place like Sarita Working Women Hostel invited me with wide open arms. It's run by the Good Shepherd Convent Sisters. The hostel is a heritage structure located at Four Bungalows in Andheri west, Mumbai.

The entrance to the hostel building is a muddy road with trees and greenery on both sides of the pathway. It leads you to the sisters convent building where you can cannot enter without ringing the doorbell even though the gate is open. Just when you are at the convent's entrance a left turn leads you to the main hostel building while a right turn leads you to the outhouse cottages. To share an insider's secret the girls staying in the outhouse cottages have a bunch of liberties that come with their own set of drawbacks. Even after those small drawbacks, this place feels like home. You find a family member in your roommate. There is give and take of information related to everything under the sun. Bollywood gossip, politics, hair, make-up, shoes, clothes, food (especially cravings for home cooked food), etc. are the common topics behind every door of the hostel's rooms. The hostel has a common dinning hall where most of the revolutions in the hostel take place.

There is so much to learn in this hostel life. You have to speak up if there is no water in the tap or a bulb in your bathroom is not working. It was really difficult to get used to all these things initially but today it has become a way of life. Living in a hostel is a lifetime experience. It is just like a family that eats together, prays together and lives together. If you are someone who is planning to move out of your comfort zone and parents' care, the city welcomes you with all your dreams and gives you shelter to nurture them.