“Welcome to Mumbai.” That was the greeting we received from the immigration officers as we presented our visas onboard the ship. With smiles on their faces and this warm greeting, we were delighted to reach India.
After debarking the ship, I was hit by the warmth of the city. The women wearing their colorful saris were a welcome relief from the black burqas of the Middle East. The people I found friendly and accepting. I had done my homework and researched private guides in Mumbai. On Trip Advisor, I found a Mumbai Expert who also happens to own a tour company. Deepa, owner of Mumbai Magic, was a great resource and sent a private guide and driver for us. Sandhya, our guide and Mr. Patel, our driver took excellent care of us while in their city. We had invited our friends, Ken & Shirley, to join us for our two day adventure in this wonderful city.
After getting settled in our car, we were off to hear a little history of the islands and a drive by the old dilapidated buildings. Upkeep is difficult in this city as it is extremely expensive to return these lovely Victorian buildings to their former state. Plus there is rent control in Mumbai and with the little rent money the building owners receive, there is little money to redo the outside of the buildings. Our first look at the real city was a drive through the Sassoon Docks. This is where the seafood and fish are first brought from the boats. Women in colorful saris, beautiful earrings and bare feet were peeling shrimp. They looked to have pride in their work and in themselves. Shrimp shell piles four feet high and taller surrounded corners along the road. Men were working on their nets and women drying fish. A Mumbai favorite is Bombay Duck, a lizardfish with very sharp teeth, given its name as a variation of the word dak referring to the mail train that the fish were transported during the British Raj. Since we were able to “pass the dock test” and did not get nauseated at the dock scenes, Sandhya thought we would able to walk through the local fishing village close by. There we were greeted with “hello” and “good morning” from smiling women doing their morning chores and the shy children. India had just celebrated Diwali, their three day New Year holiday. The front door areas were decorated with fine chalk designs denoting the celebration. Today was the first day after the celebration and a Friday, so not many people were working.
We then took a drive to the University of Mumbai and saw their beautiful Raj buildings and as luck would have it, the library. From there, we went to Mani Bhavan, Gandhi’s home for a few years after he returned from South Africa. It was a small three story home. The bottom floor housed his library, which I enjoyed seeing. Books stuffed on the shelves and tied in twine placed all over the room. His card catalog was even there.
On our way to lunch we passed by the train stop and were able to see the vast lunches in Indian-style tiffin boxes sitting on the sidewalk. Professionals and children can have nutritious lunches made at home, delivered to their work place or school each day by a delivery employees called dabbawala. (see photo above) Started under British rule, a simple color coding system doubles as an ID system for the destination and recipient. More than 200,000 lunches get moved every day by an estimated 5,000 dabbawalas, all with an extremely small nominal fee and with utmost accuracy. There has only been one mistake in every 6,000,000 deliveries reported. WOW, now that is remarkable.
We had lunch in a bookstore café. When I made mention that they didn’t have mango lasse’ on the menu, Sandhya became concerned. She took us to a “safe” restaurant, not one where locals eat. She promised us that tomorrow we would eat with the locals. After lunch, we shopped in the bookstore and I picked up the book, One Night in the Call Center, which I think is being made into a new comedy movie. I paid equivalent to $1.88 in rupees for the book. What a deal!
After lunch we walked to a store close by that Shirley wanted to visit. She had read about these necklaces with small carved beads. Along the way we did encounter beggars. We found them with one hand out and a small “please” in their voices… mothers, children and infants. Nothing like I would have thought for a city with so many poor. Just a quite begging.
Then we made a quick stop at the dhobi ghats laundry, where 250,000 pieces of clothing is washed daily by workers who come from all over India. For pennies, you can get 6 pieces of clothing washed, dried and pressed and returned to your home within a week. Like the dabbawala system, very few pieces of clothing is lost or misplaced. Mostly men stand in small cement tubs and hand wash clothes daily.
Afterwards up Malabar Hill to a Jain temple. The Jains are a religious group that are very philanthropic. They give a large amount of money to the poor. On the day we visited the temple, there was a long line of women waiting to receive a coupon for medicine. This temple was quite ornate with diamonds on the statues and bright colors all around. Occasionally we would hear a bell ring. On asking about the sound, our guide replied that it clears the air. It was quite a calming and refreshing place. With no organized services, the Jains seek to acquire mastery over their own selves. They worship 24 Jinas or Tirhankars as bridges for others to achieve liberation. They are strict vegetarians and even wear face masks as not to inhale insects. Our first day in Mumbai was over and Sandhya and Mr. Patel returned us to the ship. We gladly awaited our next day.
The next morning, we were waiting early for our guide as our objective was to visit Elephanta Island. Arriving before 9:00am, we took an hour ferry ride from the Gateway of India arch with the locals. After we arrived, we took a short train ride to begin our long 130 step walk up to the top. Shirley opted for the chair ride which was a chair attached to long poles with two men carrying you to the top. Crystal and I huffed and puffed and finally made it to the top. The steps up where at least 15 inches high in places. Once there we saw monkeys taking laundry down off the clothes lines. That would be nice if you could train them to fold and place the dry clothes in the baskets, too. Then we walked up towards the caves. Carved in about the 7th century all the walls were covered with images of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god. Most of the carvings have been partially destroyed, but still wonderful. After our walk around while Sandhya gave us a description of all the carvings, we rested with a cool drink, then made our decent through the vendor area. It was now noon and people were walking up to the caves, some huffing and puffing. I can only imagine how I looked coming up just a few hours before. As we waited for the train ride to the ferries, we enjoyed watching the local women in their beautiful saris and jewelry selling roasted corn on the cob and other delicacies. Our ferry ride back to Mumbai was fun as we watched the families interact, laugh and eat and moms lightly tapping the baby’s forehead while they slept. I likened this to patting on the back to rest the baby.
Then it was lunch time. After walking around the market area, we finally rode to Samrat Restaurant. This was a wonderful experience of Jain-friendly vegetarian food served in the Thale (pronounced ta-LEE) style. Each of us received a large metal tray with 6 small cups. The waiter came by and placed different spices, chutneys, and sauces on the tray. Our cups were filled with wonderful pickles and vegetables. Along with the naan, we feasted on a delightful lunch. Crystal and I also got a lasse’, a yoghurt drink, though mango wasn’t in season, it was delicious and cooling to our now spicy tongues.
Our two days in Mumbai were almost over. I sincerely wish to thank our wonderful guide, Sandhya and Deepa from Mumbai Magic for making our days in Mumbai truly inspiring and magical. I do want to return to enjoy more in this part of the world.
After debarking the ship, I was hit by the warmth of the city. The women wearing their colorful saris were a welcome relief from the black burqas of the Middle East. The people I found friendly and accepting. I had done my homework and researched private guides in Mumbai. On Trip Advisor, I found a Mumbai Expert who also happens to own a tour company. Deepa, owner of Mumbai Magic, was a great resource and sent a private guide and driver for us. Sandhya, our guide and Mr. Patel, our driver took excellent care of us while in their city. We had invited our friends, Ken & Shirley, to join us for our two day adventure in this wonderful city.
After getting settled in our car, we were off to hear a little history of the islands and a drive by the old dilapidated buildings. Upkeep is difficult in this city as it is extremely expensive to return these lovely Victorian buildings to their former state. Plus there is rent control in Mumbai and with the little rent money the building owners receive, there is little money to redo the outside of the buildings. Our first look at the real city was a drive through the Sassoon Docks. This is where the seafood and fish are first brought from the boats. Women in colorful saris, beautiful earrings and bare feet were peeling shrimp. They looked to have pride in their work and in themselves. Shrimp shell piles four feet high and taller surrounded corners along the road. Men were working on their nets and women drying fish. A Mumbai favorite is Bombay Duck, a lizardfish with very sharp teeth, given its name as a variation of the word dak referring to the mail train that the fish were transported during the British Raj. Since we were able to “pass the dock test” and did not get nauseated at the dock scenes, Sandhya thought we would able to walk through the local fishing village close by. There we were greeted with “hello” and “good morning” from smiling women doing their morning chores and the shy children. India had just celebrated Diwali, their three day New Year holiday. The front door areas were decorated with fine chalk designs denoting the celebration. Today was the first day after the celebration and a Friday, so not many people were working.
We then took a drive to the University of Mumbai and saw their beautiful Raj buildings and as luck would have it, the library. From there, we went to Mani Bhavan, Gandhi’s home for a few years after he returned from South Africa. It was a small three story home. The bottom floor housed his library, which I enjoyed seeing. Books stuffed on the shelves and tied in twine placed all over the room. His card catalog was even there.
On our way to lunch we passed by the train stop and were able to see the vast lunches in Indian-style tiffin boxes sitting on the sidewalk. Professionals and children can have nutritious lunches made at home, delivered to their work place or school each day by a delivery employees called dabbawala. (see photo above) Started under British rule, a simple color coding system doubles as an ID system for the destination and recipient. More than 200,000 lunches get moved every day by an estimated 5,000 dabbawalas, all with an extremely small nominal fee and with utmost accuracy. There has only been one mistake in every 6,000,000 deliveries reported. WOW, now that is remarkable.
We had lunch in a bookstore café. When I made mention that they didn’t have mango lasse’ on the menu, Sandhya became concerned. She took us to a “safe” restaurant, not one where locals eat. She promised us that tomorrow we would eat with the locals. After lunch, we shopped in the bookstore and I picked up the book, One Night in the Call Center, which I think is being made into a new comedy movie. I paid equivalent to $1.88 in rupees for the book. What a deal!
After lunch we walked to a store close by that Shirley wanted to visit. She had read about these necklaces with small carved beads. Along the way we did encounter beggars. We found them with one hand out and a small “please” in their voices… mothers, children and infants. Nothing like I would have thought for a city with so many poor. Just a quite begging.
Then we made a quick stop at the dhobi ghats laundry, where 250,000 pieces of clothing is washed daily by workers who come from all over India. For pennies, you can get 6 pieces of clothing washed, dried and pressed and returned to your home within a week. Like the dabbawala system, very few pieces of clothing is lost or misplaced. Mostly men stand in small cement tubs and hand wash clothes daily.
Afterwards up Malabar Hill to a Jain temple. The Jains are a religious group that are very philanthropic. They give a large amount of money to the poor. On the day we visited the temple, there was a long line of women waiting to receive a coupon for medicine. This temple was quite ornate with diamonds on the statues and bright colors all around. Occasionally we would hear a bell ring. On asking about the sound, our guide replied that it clears the air. It was quite a calming and refreshing place. With no organized services, the Jains seek to acquire mastery over their own selves. They worship 24 Jinas or Tirhankars as bridges for others to achieve liberation. They are strict vegetarians and even wear face masks as not to inhale insects. Our first day in Mumbai was over and Sandhya and Mr. Patel returned us to the ship. We gladly awaited our next day.
The next morning, we were waiting early for our guide as our objective was to visit Elephanta Island. Arriving before 9:00am, we took an hour ferry ride from the Gateway of India arch with the locals. After we arrived, we took a short train ride to begin our long 130 step walk up to the top. Shirley opted for the chair ride which was a chair attached to long poles with two men carrying you to the top. Crystal and I huffed and puffed and finally made it to the top. The steps up where at least 15 inches high in places. Once there we saw monkeys taking laundry down off the clothes lines. That would be nice if you could train them to fold and place the dry clothes in the baskets, too. Then we walked up towards the caves. Carved in about the 7th century all the walls were covered with images of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god. Most of the carvings have been partially destroyed, but still wonderful. After our walk around while Sandhya gave us a description of all the carvings, we rested with a cool drink, then made our decent through the vendor area. It was now noon and people were walking up to the caves, some huffing and puffing. I can only imagine how I looked coming up just a few hours before. As we waited for the train ride to the ferries, we enjoyed watching the local women in their beautiful saris and jewelry selling roasted corn on the cob and other delicacies. Our ferry ride back to Mumbai was fun as we watched the families interact, laugh and eat and moms lightly tapping the baby’s forehead while they slept. I likened this to patting on the back to rest the baby.
Then it was lunch time. After walking around the market area, we finally rode to Samrat Restaurant. This was a wonderful experience of Jain-friendly vegetarian food served in the Thale (pronounced ta-LEE) style. Each of us received a large metal tray with 6 small cups. The waiter came by and placed different spices, chutneys, and sauces on the tray. Our cups were filled with wonderful pickles and vegetables. Along with the naan, we feasted on a delightful lunch. Crystal and I also got a lasse’, a yoghurt drink, though mango wasn’t in season, it was delicious and cooling to our now spicy tongues.
Our two days in Mumbai were almost over. I sincerely wish to thank our wonderful guide, Sandhya and Deepa from Mumbai Magic for making our days in Mumbai truly inspiring and magical. I do want to return to enjoy more in this part of the world.
Next stop the backwaters of Kerala, India.
1 comment:
Hi Beth, I wanted to let you know that I have just started reading of your trip and am so excited for you and Crystal. I found out about it through Debbie at the Tropic Travel Online forum. As I mentioned to Crystal in a comment ... I was so moved by your blogs that I had to force myself away and tell you how much I am enjoying reading about all of the fascinating and interesting places you are seeing. Thanks so much for sharing. Have you two ever considered writing a book after your trip?!! :>) I think you should seriously consider it! Take care. Nancy
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