How My Friend Made Me Jealous on Our Road Trip

By falling asleep as quickly as a baby! Yes, my friend Shreya made me feel so jealous of her just by sleeping so promptly at every place possible. When we were making a plan for our trip to Spiti Valley, I had told her that this might be the most inconvenient trip of her life as she would have to manage without many resources on the hills. She had not-so-confidently replied that she will be fine and that she will try her best not to complain. To my utter surprise, she never whined about anything, but it was I, who was always complaining about the mosquitoes in the mountains.

The beginning

When we began planning the trip, I went to Shreya’s home. We live in Ahmedabad in a peaceful society, so we meet often. In her room, where I went for the first time, I found quite a mess there. I did not mind as it was none of my concern to tell her to clean her room. Anyway, as I sat there with her to discuss the itinerary, she said that she was feeling sleepy and wanted to take a nap. I was okay with it as I sat with her Mom and she slept for half an hour in her room. However, it was just a beginning of what I would call pure jealousy, maybe not negative in literal sense.

As we began our trip by going ahead towards the airport, she fell asleep in the cab. It was again fine as people often sleep when tired, and it was already 11 pm. I have seen her sleeping at the airport, in the airplane, in the cab, on the rocks, on the ground, and at every impossible place. Once Shreya is asleep, it does not matter to her whether she is in a theater, at the railway station, or among the terrorists playing with their guns! She would keep snoring so loud to put even the bravest men on shame.

As soon as we sat in our Car Rental Ahmedabad, she was excited to drive, but I was anxious about her sleeping while driving. I raised my concerns to her, but she assured me that I could take rest peacefully and sleep for a while as she drives. She promised that she would drive carefully without falling asleep. I must mention that her slumbering problem had become the butt of our jokes by then!

What makes me jealous?

I hate to admit that I need quite a few, or many comforts to fall asleep properly. I need my two pillows with perfect size, a perfect place, and perfectly matching with each other to begin my sleeping process. Even when the entire world is conspiring to make me dead to the world, I have to wake up one last time to pee! And when I finally sleep after struggling for like an entire lifetime, I see weird dreams throughout the night! What on earth do I need to sleep as beautifully as Shreya does? No, she does not snore; I was kidding, but I am jealous for sure.

It is not that I don’t get tired enough to fall asleep soon. Despite feeling exhausted after a long day, I don’t feel like sleeping so soon. And here is my friend who dies for the world for eight hours every night. I don't know when I will figure out the mystery behind such a quick and sound sleep. Till then, let me be green-eyed, probably for the rest of my life!

Life in Ahmedabad for an Outsider

Not for the sake of over-hyping it, but I am stating in genuinely that Ahmedabad is a city that can spoil you for life. After living there once, even after being born in North India, I always miss my time in the city of Gujjus. The city has had such an effect on me that now I don’t feel like I did in Ahmedabad during my stint of five years of job.

The Sabarmati riverfront

Since I lived close to the Sabarmati River, my day often began and ended with a session of hang out at the riverfront. The best part about this place is that it is clean and well-maintained unlike other rivers and beaches in India. Initially, I would go for cycling and boating, but I quit these activities later and opted to just sit there either alone or with friends. Being there at the Sabarmati River is pure bliss, which you can understand only when you spend leisurely time in Ahmedabad.

Safety for everyone

I had only heard that Gujrat is the safest state for women in India, but I never believed it unless I saw it myself. In my initial days, I would not step out of my house after 10 pm, but I always saw families and individuals going out alone at midnight without any prohibitions. I went out one day at 1 am to buy ice-cream with my friends, and I did not sense any danger for even a second! This was exceptionally unbelievable for someone who comes from the unsafe environment of Delhi.

Unlimited power supply

Since I come from that part of Delhi, where an hour of power supply cut off was normal and I had no problem with it. However, water was scarce in my locality even in the capital of India. However, after coming to Ahmedabad, I used to get unlimited supply of power and water, which has spoiled me for life. Now, I miss that luxury in Hyderabad a lot, but I know I cannot do anything about it.

Friendly people

Whenever you ask a Gujarati person about his wellbeing, he or she will always answer, ‘Majja maa’, which means they keep hale and hearty. Even if they have a dozen problems in their life, they would never show it on their face or vent out their personal frustration in the social life.

Open-minded

The Gujratis are very open-hearted by nature and accepting in nature for modern things. I have seen them accepting the urban trends quickly without much fuss. Maybe that is why; they have maximum number of businesses in India. When I started working for Car Rental Ahmedabad, I had doubts about the success of this business in the city. However, this place proved me wrong as the Gujjus are the most accommodating people in their conduct. They wholeheartedly accepted this concept and I could put myself in better shoes at office just because of the Gujjus unlike other cities where I worked.

Awareness

Being alert about the social issues and raising a voice against them is not very common in India as people usually tend to be busy in their daily lives. Especially in North India, or perhaps the entire country, people just survive and blame the system of India rather than acting on issues themselves. However in Ahmedabad, I have seen people being proactive rather than being a passive spectator.

I miss my time spent in Ahmedabad so much that given a chance to choose a city to live in India, I would definitely go for the city of the Gujjus.