A few years ago, I was sitting quietly in my room in Bangkinang, staring at my laptop screen, and asking myself:

“If I stay here, what will I become?”

Bangkinang is where I was born and raised. It’s where I grew up. Everything felt safe, structured, and familiar. But at some point, it all started to feel too calm. The days blended into one another, and I began to wonder:

“Is this really enough?”

I didn’t have a clear answer back then. All I knew was—I needed space to grow. I needed a challenge. I needed change. And for some reason, Jakarta kept echoing in my mind.

A Strange Beginning

I remember the day I left. My bag was full, but my mind was blank. I wasn’t 100% sure of anything, but I also didn’t feel like backing out. I just had this quiet feeling: it’s time.

I didn’t have a grand plan—just a simple intention to see how far I could go in a city people say is "tough."

Arriving in Jakarta, everything felt unfamiliar. The public transport, the work culture, the way people talked. But that’s where the learning began. I learned to ask without feeling embarrassed, to read directions on Google Maps, to hop on and off TransJakarta, and to face the harsh truth that living in Jakarta is expensive.

A City That Shifted My Mindset

And it made me ask myself:

“What can I do outside my daily routine?”

That’s when I started learning new things—not to follow others, but because I realized: in this city, if you don’t move, you’ll get left behind.

Do I Miss Home? Of Course.

Moving to Jakarta wasn’t an easy decision, but for me, it was the right one. Because through that move, I’ve learned things I never would have discovered in my hometown.

So, Was It Worth It?

Jakarta, 9 November 2018