The Road To Goa

We have spent the past four days or so travelling to Goa from Udaipur. First we took a night train to Ahmedabad and spent a day or so there.

I didn't find Ahmedabad a particularly nice place to be. According to the guide book it is, or certainly was, in the world's top ten most polluted cities. We can now vouch for that. It is a hazy smog ridden industrial feeling city. Walking down the streets you are watched more intently than usual (even for India). It is like they don't see many white people here and they don't really care much for us either. Glances of disdain, hushed comments and nudges for whomever they were walking down the street with and occasionally blatent upset that they have to serve us in a restaurant. Not a welcoming place and not the kind of reward for a 10 hour overnight train ride I was hoping for.

Nevertheless we got out and about as much as we could and wondered the filthy streets, taking care not to trip over birds dragging away the carcasses of long since expired rodents. Dodging the usual kamikaze traffic and trying to avoid slipping into the rivers of sewage lining the street. Huge birds of prey circled the skies above, possibly eagles or hawks but I think more likely vultures, waiting to carve up the remains of broken willed visiters. Ok perhaps that is a little bit of an over reaction but we certainly didn't take a shine to the place. Sometimes however you arrive somewhere and your first impressions really give you good feelings about a place, even overpowering your pre-conceptions. One such place was Mumbai. Formerly Bombay (prior to 1996) it is still largely referred to by it's former name. An almost Manhattan like semi-island perched on the east coast of India.

It is a Bombay mix if you like, in places western with wide straight roads, modern shops and rickshaws nowhere to be seen. In the outskirts a sprawling expanse of slums. Taking off from the airport you can get a sense of the scale of the encampments. Some of the most appalling examples of poverty you are likely to ever see. Corrugated iron roofing and wooden and material make shift walls formed the abodes lining the streets. The gap between the classes is vast but all are living in close proximity. Whole families are laid out on the pavements. One father pushed his half naked child towards Sam arms out hopefully. It is something you can't ignore but oddly it didn't detract from a good feeling about the place. Perhaps it was our first glimpse of the sea in a month or so. Maybe the glorious sunshine or possibly even the phenomenal lunch we had just consumed that gave us a spring in our step.

The British architectural influence gives Mumbai a nice feel with some landmarks to speak of. The immense gothic Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station built by the British in the late 19th century sat just a minute or two from our hotel. The gateway to India by the harbourside was nothing special but at least a little different from the sandstone forts that rate as highlights of many Indian cities. I had expected Mumbai to be an amplified version of Ahmedabad and so was a liitle disappointed we had already booked our flight to Goa and could only spend a day and a half in the city.

Now we are in Arambol in north Goa and will spend many days lazing in the sun and surf. Regenerating and relaxing after a fairly constant first month on the road.

Jed

So, finally after several days relaxing in Goa, I am ready to write about our journey here! We left Udaipur on Valentines day, on the night train to Ahmedabad. The train itself was an antique, i'm sure! We spent several hours rocking back and forth and side to side before I gave in to travel sickness and spent the next few hours being violently sick into a very wobbly toilet! On the trains here, the toilets have holes in the bottom and anything that goes in to them falls straight out on to the track! So I guess I made quite a mess accross India - whoops!

We arrived in Ahmedabad before dawn and decided to hang around the station until it got light before going in search of a room. It was here we realised that they probably don't get a lot of English backpackers coming through Ahmedabad. Some people walked by staring, pointing, some laughing or whispering but none without some sort of reaction. We eventually wandered off to find ourselves a room, which we got, along with a strong feeling of unwelcomeness! One waiter in particular in the hotel restaurant took a very strong disliking to us straight away and seemed absolutely disgusted at us being in the same air space as him, let alone having to speak to us! (The only time I saw him smile was as he was ushering us out of the door as we were leaving!)

We had heard about the pollution in Ahmedabad and about the dangerous levels of carbon monoxide in the air and I found that after a short time outside, breathing was beginning to cause a burning sensation and despite protests from Jed about my ridiculous appearance, I had to cover my mouth and nose! We were both feeling a bit dizzy and sick and we were unable to stay out for too long! I did see several of the locals wearing a scarf or bandana across their faces too so at least I fitted in a bit more!

We saw some extreme poverty in Ahmedabad and I found some things very hard to deal with. Whilst walking along the busy streets we noticed a little girl who had been tied by her wrist to a drainpipe with a bit of bin-liner. She was pulling, trying to free herself, although she kept smiling. I dont know if that is their alternative to reigns but in situations like that, it is so hard not to get involved!

It was quite a relief to move on from Ahmedabad, although it meant another night train, but luckily this one was far less rickety and the journey turned out to be shorter than we had thought, which was a pleasant surprise! We arrived in Mumbai and got a taxi straight to our hotel where we spent the next four hours or so sleeping! I was suffering from heat stroke and it turns out, some form of dysentery which I hadn't been able to shake off since Agra, so I was not in the best state to go exploring. But, we only had one day in Mumbai, and we couldn't not have a look around, so off we went!

To be honest, after what I had read and heard about Mumbai, I wasn't expecting to like it. As it turns out, I liked it a lot! We met a lovely little old man who owns a restaurant called Brittania & co, who couldn't have been happier to meet some English people. (A welcome change from Ahmedabad!) He told us to say hello to the Queen for him and also wrote down a plan for our day, recommending some of the cities sights! We took a walk down to the beach and it was so good to see the sea again- it had been such a long time and we just sat and enjoyed it for a while! We don't realise how lucky we are living by the coast- some people in India and of course Nepal, go their whole lives without seeing it! We had to postpone our sightseeing as the heat became unbearable, but we headed out early the following morning to see the gateway to India and a very gothic train station. Then off we went to catch our flight to Goa!

On route to the airport we saw so many slums, huts and tents lining the pavements, a complete contrast to the rich side of Mumbai we had seen. Despite their poverty we saw many smiley, happy (but extremely dirty) faces! Glancing in to their homes I saw children washing themselves using bowls of water and women sitting in doorways, watching the world go by. Their lives are all about survival, and they have a simplicity to it that we just dont have.

I really enjoyed Mumbai and wished we could have had a little more time there. I hope to return someday!

Sam xxx

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Part of trip: Asia

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