And then it happens. You stop keeping track of each new day that was initially bursting with new sights, experiences, and moments. Each day starts to unfold into the next with less of a ‘bang’ — you wake up to a world that feels a lot more predictable: there’s less untapped wonder about the unknown, less of that sharp exhilaration of discovering new poles of sensations simply from stepping outside and realizing that you’re now part of a whole new landscape.

The growing sense of stability is comforting after living abroad for longer than a minute: step by step, you are more aware of what to expect at every turn, you go about everyday life without pausing to figure out every single thing, you navigate the streets effortlessly (rather than with crisp alertness to the newness), and you feel steadier even while you are enveloped by a whirl of foreign…