Ode to Shillong

Shillong....a place that I cannot begin to describe and if I dare venture describing, then I cannot imagine ending that description, for it is a place that has given me countless memories, innumerable life lessons, lifelong friends, excellent education, precious teachers and a million reasons to keep going back to it every time I feel a burden in my heart and weakness in my knees!

I first came across the idea of writing love letters to cities when I used the hashtag #loveletterstoacity on Instagram and discovered that what I hoped was my innovation has already been an established practice on the web! I guess, that's the demerit of being born in our day and age - no idea remains unexplored!

As per Google, I am a Gen Z kid, but I'd argue that there are traces of a millennial in me and whether or not that is true, I leave it for you to decide. But as I begin exploring the 'Add Page' option in Blogger, I cannot help but try my hand at writing love letters to the cities I've been to, and the places I've seen. This list of places that I hope will remain inexhaustive over the years, has to begin with the first city I called 'home' after I left home. My first love letter has to be to the Scotland of the East, the land where clouds kiss the sky on any given day, where pines and cherry blossoms fill the air, where steaming momos satiate one's evening appetite and Jadoh quenches one's hunger, the land I fell in love with...SHILLONG.

Since I've initiated the debate of me being a Gen Z with millennial traits, it's only fair that my love letter to Shillong is filled not only with anecdotes of my time there but also a lot of pictures taken there. A modern-day digital love letter is incomplete without images, so here begins my excavation through my hard disk in hopes of reigniting emotions felt during the three years of graduation from 2017-2020. It's already been three years since I left the city and naturally, life has gotten hectic and complicated thereon - it's not every day that I can go back in time and relive my cherished days at Shillong, so bear with me, dear reader, this love letter will be written in parts, perhaps never to be complete, perhaps with hopes of never having to end it or say goodbye! Khublei Shibun for embarking on this journey with me! Happy reading!