I think, I thunk

  You know what's funny? While I sit here in my cozy German apartment, watching perfect snowflakes fall (or more likely, rain), my husband is staring at the sky. Not for the weather forecast, but because it's Sankranti, and his hands are itching to fly kites. The German skies are painfully empty of the colorful paper warriors that would be dotting every inch of Indian skies right now. Let's talk about festivals first - because nothing screams 'culture shock' quite like trying to explain to the orderly German system why adults want to climb up terraces to fly kites or why there are upwards of 400 million people wanting to bathe in Ganges. Back home, the morning would be alive with shouts echoing through neighborhoods. Here, if you scream from a terrace, someone's probably calling the Polizei. The sweet aroma of ladoos and sakkinalu has been replaced by the scent of Glühwein - not complaining, but it's just not the same, you know? And don't even get me ...

Hello, nice to meet you virtually! I am used to saying this like a million times at my workplace now. I am Shireesha Venkata Raman (did not change my surname after marriage, though I love my husband a lot!). I am a Tamilian, born and raised in Hyderabad, India. By virtue of marriage (like most girls in our part of the world), I moved to Frankfurt, Germany, where I currently live. I speak 4 languages - Hindi, Telugu, Tamil (my mother tongue), and English, and I'm trying to learn German (oh! it is so difficult and easy at the same time). My husband and I are happily living (so far!) in a quaint town near Frankfurt. The town has all the things I wanted from my childhood: a park, its own train station, a cute little cafe, and even a lake (Yet, I figured I need a therapist to help me with my thoughts). I always imagined I would read a book on a bench facing the lake while sipping my coffee - an almond milk latte (corporate life, weekend cleaning chores, and winters laughed at my face!)....