Illustration/Uday Mohite

So I'm in New York. Attempting to buy a ticket to see a musical called Hamilton. This is -3°C New York. Cold is an understatement. This is a body-altering experience. Especially, dear reader, if you're from a humid, muggy city like Mumbai, Manhattan in the winter is like Antarctica without the polar bears. Of course, our neighbours from the North — the rugged, rough and tough peeps referred to as Dilli-ites — will show off and say, "Those softy Mumbaikars can't handle the cold, ya… sachmuch tagda nahin." (Well, here's my thing, maybe we can't handle the cold, but at least we can see each other. Best of luck with the smog, guys.) But, yeah, for Mumbaites, landing up in a New York winter unarmed with woolies is like showing up in Goa with no swimming suit.