Pictures from Mumbai

Okay, here are some pictures from Mumbai - this is why I titled this post, "Pictures from Mumbai." However, I should have titled it, "Pictures from Mumbai with Some Additional Pictures from Japan of My Niece and Nephews in the FabIndia Clothes I Bought Them." But if I wanted to do that, I would have erased and renamed it, so I must not have wanted to to it. Well, here the pictures are in all their glory complete with with real half hearted attempts at commentary:

This is a building in Mumbai (see? I don't even remember what I was taking pictures of):

I think this is the Central Train Station in Mumbai (I think...):

Here's one building I know (because I still have the brochure sitting on my desk). It's the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalya (a.k.a. Prince of Wales Museum of Western India):

Ditto...

Here is the Gateway to India in the Harbor:

This is a building in Mumbai - wait a minute, no it's not! It's the harbor:

Okay, here is the building - the Taj Hotel:

This is what life in Mumbai looks like from under a tarp on the street during the rainy season:

Here are a couple more detail pics of the gateway:


This is Haji Ali's Mosque out in the Arabian Sea - there is a long path leading out there but at high tide the mosque is cut off from the mainland.


Here's a couple shots of the coast.


Here's the mosque again.

Here's a shot of one of the buildings at Bombay University.

This is a nice Portuguese style (I think) cathedral in Mumbai - it had quite a Latin feel to it, especially inside.

Here's a shot of my afternoon tea at the Tea Centre on a very rainy afternoon.

At the Oval Maidan, which is a large field in front of Bombay University, you can watch kids playing soccer and cricket. As it was rainy, it was a huge mud pile. I would have loved to have played soccer in that mud - it looked like they were having a blast.

Another shot of the cathedral.

This is one of the cool art deco apartment buildings that are across the street from the university.

Oval Maidan (yes, it's spelled with an 'a').

Some kids playing cricket - a game which fascinates me, but which I have little understanding of.

A cool tower at the University.

Another shot of the deco apartment.

The clock tower again (note: the court house was right slap up against the university so I may be calling one the other - my apologies to both buildings). I do think this is the university, tho'. At least I think I think it is...

I LOVE this spiral staircase at the university (Why didn't they build something like this in dear old Armstrong Hall?).

One of my favorite shots I took - I couldn't have done better if I had asked them to pose for this. The combination of their shirt colors is amazing.

Another spiral staircase shot.

Here's a typical street in Mumbai - I love the way the trees have roots hanging down from the branches themselves.

This is Bombay University:

This very well could be the court house. Hats off to the bird who decided to alight on the statue just at the moment when I was taking the picture.

Here's another shot of what could be the court house.

A fountain (I should really write for Lonely Planet).

Uh, the university. No! No! I'm sure this MUST be the court house cuz I think I decided the court house would be cool if it was all sepia.

Here's the cool library where LP said I could sit.

Liz and Chad - I thought of you two while I was here. I think we'd have all had fun looking around this library.


Court house.

I really was surprised at how much art deco their was in Mumbai - here's a great example.

This is the porch LP misinformed me about.


This is the night view from my hotel room - Residency Hotel is a very nice, inexpensive place to stay in Mumbai.

I will save the Goa pictures for my next blog entry. But I would love to show you the Indian style clothes I bought for my nephews and niece in Tokyo. I got their togs at FabIndia.




I'll leave these up a few days before I post the last group - and there you will be able to see what Indias second class night trains look like.

Final Installment of My India Trip

The train came at 5 or 6 pm - I can't remember which - and I quickly found my seat in my car. There were already lots of people in the car as I got on at the train's second stop. I sat down next to an older couple with another woman in her 40s and two children - a boy and girl. This ride back to Mumbai was less comfortable as I was pretty sunburned at this point and feeling exhausted. I was so drained I couldn't really concentrate on anything - food vendors came back and forth offering various items I didn't recognize the names of so I didn't get anything except some chai. The family in my area pulled out a large bag of food and an aunt kept coming over from another area with food for the kids. I wasn't very hungry, but thought I should eat something. Finally, the man and woman across from me must have noticed my confusion or lack of initiative in getting some food from the passing vendors (I was pretty pathetic at this point - sunburned, unshowered, wearing an old, dirty shirt and still shedding sand from my Tevas), and leaned forward and asked me if I liked spicy food. I said yes, I did, and before I knew what was happening, the woman next to me was tearing a piece of newspaper and setting it in my lap while the woman across from me handed me three chapatis. Then the woman next to me scooped some potato and onion curry on the top chapati and the woman across gave me some spicy meat dish. It was a humbling experience - I thanked them and sat with my left hand in my lap while I ate with my right - the food was amazing, spicy, and filling. After I finished, the woman gave me an Indian sweet. I then climbed to my upper berth and decided to get some shut-eye. Luckily, I didn't get sick on this ride and the trip went much quicker.

I slept off and on all night until about 5am. The weather was warm and rainy. By six, most of my travel companions had gotten off on the outskirts of Mumbai - it was just an old guy and I in my section. At this point a couple of men that I can only describe as Hindu transvestites came on board. They were obviously men, but were wearing saris and makeup and jewelry - they came from passenger to passenger holding out their hands for money. The old man next to me gave them a few coins. Then one of them came to me and started speaking in an Indian language. I kept saying I couldn't understand what he was saying - as he couldn't speak English, we just stared at each other. Then he said a few more words and put his hand on my head and left. I don't know if he was blessing or cursing me, but it was strange to say the least. I later read in my Lonely Planet guide that this group of people are called Hijras. According to LP, "they are a caste of transvestites and eunuchs who dress in women's clothing. Some are gay, some are hermaphrodites, and some were unfortunate enough to be kidnapped and castrated...They work mainly as uninvited entertainers at weddings and celebrations of the birth of male children, and as prostitutes." As I consider this strange turn of events now, I think he was giving some sort of blessing, because the tone of his voice had more of an "I'm blessing you" sort of sound rather than a "Curséd be the day of your birth, you miserable tourist" sort of sound.

Well, by 6:30 I arrived at Mumbai's central train station. I was glad to be back, but kind of bummed too because check-in at my hotel wasn't until noon. So I went over there anyway to drop off my luggage and then find a coffee shop or some place to eat some breakfast. When I got to the hotel, I talked to the clerk about arranging transportation to the airport on Tuesday morning - it would be Independence Day in India on the day I flew out and I knew security would be high in all the major cities. Also, after what had happened in the UK, I thought it would be better to give myself some extra time. The man secured an airport taxi for me and even let me check into my room early. I dragged my stuff up to the second floor, took a shower, and crashed. When I woke up, I was pretty hungry so I ate breakfast down in the hotel restaurant and watched a bunch of wet-headed French tourists sip their tea, read the paper and wake up.

After my breakfast, I wandered about a bit - these last couple of days in Mumbai were structureless and relaxed. I looked at some bookstores, had a great lunch of these grilled chicken kebobs, and had some gelato (pear, I think). I looked around at some great street markets in Colaba (I think - I'm continuing this entry from my brother's apartment in Tokyo and don't have the LP handy).

On Monday, I was planning to take a ferry out to Elephanta Island - an island which has all sorts of statues and monuments - to Ganesh, I think - but it was closed on Mondays so I had to scrap that idea. Instead, I took a walking tour that was suggested in LP. It took you past many of the nicer historic buildings in the Fort and Colaba areas. At one point I ducked into a library that LP said had a great balcony where you could sit on a comfy chair and relax. I tried this, LP writers, and I got kicked out for not being a patron. This was the only time LP's information let me down. Later, I walked by the large field outside of the university and watched kids playing soccer and cricket. It had been raining in the morning, so all the players were covered from head to toe in mud - I got some great pictures I will share from watching this. Then I stopped by a tea shop and bought a couple types of spiced green teas - very nice. Then I went to the Bombay Store to get some gifts for co-workers and such. That night I ate dosas at the small restaurant across from my hotel and then ducked into an Internet cafe where I Skyped my folks to see how they were. Apparently, I sounded pretty drained - my mom and dad both commented on it. Yeah, travelling through India is not a relaxing trip.

On Tuesday, I woke up early, ate at the hotel, and tried to figure out the best way to fit everything into my backpack and uh, other bag ***Kristin, what do I call it if I can't call it a fanny pack?*** Big thanks to Stacy again for supplying me with two great travel bags. I was a little sad to be leaving India - the trip was too short and I knew that teaching would seem a bit samey after all of my adventures. At 10:00 my taxi came and the last images I saw of India from the car were children weaving in and out of the traffic selling Indian flags to drivers.

India - The Third Installment

Well, I typed and typed and lost it all when I accidentally navigated away from this page. Then I realized that about 50% of it was probably too boring to publish anyway so then I didn't feel so bad. But then I was just getting to a good part so I did feel bad again - and my fingers are tired.

So, anyway, I started by talking about this cool garden I'd forgotten to mention when I was writing about Delhi - I went there on the day after I went to Agra and it was called Lodi Garden. It is very cool and contains some 15th and 16th century ruins of tombs. The setting of the ruins in the park is great - nice contrasts between the crumbling structures and the wild growth of trees and bushes. You'll see what I mean when I post pictures.

Ok, so day two of Mumbai was a wandering sort of day through the Colaba district of the city - this is where the Gateway to India is. There were a few ships in the harbor and lots of people milling around. Then I got my first taste of monsoon weather. I was looking at street vendors' wares and was dry and five seconds later there was a downpour and I was soaked - the rain felt great, but getting soaked while wearing jeans did not. I ducked into a coffee shop to dry off and then went to a cd shop where I bought a $6.00 copy of "Crash" which I imagine is supposed to be in color, but not in my pirated version.

I was also biding my time a bit because I was waiting to hear about my train ticket to Goa. I found out that to take the night train, you really should book the ticket two days in advance. So I got Agnelo, the hotel clerk to take care of it for me. He told me I needed to give him a few extra rupies so he could bribe the ticket guy. I'm not sure if he actually did this, or said it so that he could make a few rupies, but I gave him the money because it sounded shady and cool. I'd already checked out of the hotel but was keeping my luggage there until I had to catch my train at 11pm. I ate at a really good restaurant called Samrat and ate far too much butter naan and rich desserts than was good for me. Later in the day I picked up my ticket from Agnelo for a second class reserved sleeping berth on the night train to Goa. After spending the day walking around the area between the train station and my hotel, I got used to being approached by vendors right and left and got pretty good at ignoring people who were just wanting to sell me things or get me to take their taxis.

I headed over to the train station at 10pm so I could get an idea of the platform I had to leave from and make sure where everything was. The train arrived by 10:30 and I walked and walked until I found my car. When I got on I was a bit nervous - I had heard that the trains could be a bit dodgy and that you had to watch your luggage closely. Luckily I got a lower berth across from an older gentleman named Narayan - he was a semi-retired postal worker heading down to Goa and - as luck would have it - to the same stop that I was getting off at. Soon we were joined by some 40-something guys traveling together. Second class carriages in India are nothing like any train I have ever been on before. you sit six in an area and then there is an upper, middle and lower berth on each side. There are fans on the ceiling to keep you cool at night, but the trains are in poor shape and offer little comfort. I bundled up my backpack for a pillow, tied a handkerchief around my head, put in my headphones - mostly to keep small bugs from getting in my ears (they may have been cockroaches). I was pretty tired and slept well until I woke up in the middle of the night with a bit of a stomach cramp - I remembered then that the iced coffee I'd drunk earlier may not have had clean ice in it. I took some medicine, but still needed to head to the bathroom - i.e. hole in the floor with treads on either side (glad to have had toilet paper with me - and Purell).

I woke up super early and had some chai that a food service guy came by with - Rs.2 (this amount increased significantly on my train ride back to Mumbai two days later). The rest of the train ride was eternal but I finally reached Tivim(my stop)at around 12:30 and took a pre-paid taxi to Calangute where I was staying. My driver took me to Mira Resort, just a short five minute walk from the Arabian Sea.

To be continued...

India Part 2

First another note about Air Indian (which redeemed itself somewhat by being very prompt most of the trip home (yes, I'm back on Japanese soil)): Any guesses as to what the in flight movie was on my way to India - what recent, award-lauded Hollywood film (they did show some Hindi films) they showed?

Dr. Doolittle Three

Yes, three. My headphones were broken, but somehow the voices and bad acting still came through visually - I wasn't even aware there was a third film. After, they showed some post-Cheers second rate sit-com with Ted Danson and interspersed it with random bloopers and practical jokes.

Okay, on to Mumbai:
I got in in the middle of the night and took my pre-paid taxi into town (45 minute ride). This is actually a perfect time to drive in Mumbai as there is very little traffic and the incessant honking is reduced to a minimum. The Residency Hotel was eagerly awaiting my arrival and I was soon up in my marble-floored room which was clean nicely furnished and had A/C. After a great night's sleep, I got up and found a small restaurant across the street from the hotel for breakfast. The street was already a mass of people going to work, street vendors setting up their stands, taxis, auto-rickshaws, cars, stray dogs, cats, and the odd cow. I am not very adept at crossing the street even in the US, so in countries like Japan and India where the driving is done on the left side of the road, I'm even more confused. What I did in this case was to look for a person or group of people crossing and stay close to them - I figure they know the ropes better than I do, so I'll trust them. At the restaurant, I had some iidli (sp?) a kind of rice patty that you dip in a coconut chutney or small curried type soup. I also had some porridge with whole spices in it - it was very good. I also learned to eat as the Indians do - with my right hand, while my left hand sits on my lap. A few of the Indians I met - when they found I was living in Japan currently - would ask about using chopsticks and were amazed that I knew how to use them. I also always tried to be very careful about not using my left hand cuz that's your bathroom hand - which is good to know when you are in a bathroom and it's just you and a hole in the ground with treads on either side, a flush, and a hose with a spray nozzle on it for you to clean yourself with. Luckily I'd pinched a roll of toilet paper from my hotel to keep with me in emergency situations such as this.

I walked around the neighborhood by my hotel (Fort area) and just took in the scope of the city and decided that I really like Mumbai - it is entirely different in character to Delhi. It is vibrant and alive - yes it is dirty and smells like urine in spots and you have to dodge people sleeping on the pavement in front of you, but there is also a wonderful quality of community about the place - couples and even friends walk arm in arm around the streets talking and laughing and you get small bursts of wonderful smells - someone roasting peanuts on a street corner, a woman's perfume, sandalwood eminating from gift shops, and even just the smell of humanity. Even as I write this and remember in my mind the people and places I saw, I am a little reluctant to describe too much because I don't want it to sound wrong or even touristy or enlightened or something - like the great Westerner coming in and "getting" India. I don't get the country at all, but I am in awe of it.

I ended up at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (Prince of Wales Museum) which first opened in 1923 (Michel, aren't you impressed with my inclusion of more specific information - Thank goodness I have Lonely Planet: India handy). This museum has a wonderful collection of sculpture and paintings by Indian artists - mostly depicting figures from the Hindu religion - Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha, there is also a room with some nice Japanese art in it. One drawback - the cost for foreigners: If you are Indian, it's Rs10 and if you are a foreign visitor, it's Rs 300. So basically if you are local it only costs 21 cents but if you are a visitor the price is jacked up to about $6.50. Still, the building is quiet beautiful to look at and is surrounded by a lush garden with tall palm trees.

That reminds me - India may have more litter than Japan, but it has A LOT more green in its cities. The trees here are so beautiful and lush and wonderful to look at (and thankfully, not cut back every fall).

I lunched back at the same restaurant and had masala dosa. A dosa is like a brittle crepe and in the middle was this wonderfully spiced potato and onion mix with curry leaves and mustard seed. After, I went to my hotel to nap as I was still tired from a late night arrival. In late afternoon and evening I went shopping at FabIndia - an awesome clothing store with inexpensive, beautiful Indian wear. I got some long and short kurtas and some pajama type pants to wear under the long kurta. Then I went to a bookstore and looked around for a bit. By this point in the day, I noticed many guys wearing thin colorful threaded bracelets with small flowers or trinkets on them, and found out that it was Raksha Bandhan day - a day that celebrates the bond between brothers and sisters. It takes place during the full moon and the sister ties the band around her brother's wrist and the brother gives his sister a gift and vows to look after her. I really liked this idea as I have an awesome sister - I would see men on the trains and streets sharing cellphone messages they'd received from their sisters. Girls can also give bracelets to good male friends they wish to "adopt" as brothers. In the evening everyone was out and the streets were damp and everything was colorful and very happy.

That's it for my first full day in Mumbai.

More later...