Welcome to Mumbai!

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I have now been in Mumbai two weeks and feel it is time to start writing my blog. The main reason I have not written here earlier is because I have felt too overwhelmed by this incredible city to even begin to describe it, however I will now try as best I can. My first few days in Mumbai were overwhelming to say the least and now seem a bit of a blur. This place is so different to anywhere I have been before.

As I stepped out of the airport the two main things that hit me were the heat (obviously!) and the noise of hundreds of car engines and horns- at first I thought that this raucous must have meant that there was some sort of accident or demonstration happening, I now realise that this is the norm here pretty much anytime and anywhere in the city. On the drive from the airport to my apartment I began to realise why it's so noisy here. The traffic is absolutely crazy! Cars, lorries, rickshaws and bikes all swerving around each other at scary speeds, with very little attention being paid to lanes or traffic lights. The drivers use their horns all the time and while initially I found this intimidating and aggressive, I quickly realised that beeping is a necessity here and a way of warning other drivers that they are there. Another thing that struck me on that first car journey was seeing the poverty. I have always been aware that it's a huge problem here, you see pictures in the news and I've heard heart breaking stories from friends who have been here before but none of this prepared me for actually seeing it first hand. Children walking around in traffic jams begging for money, rows of families sleeping at the edges of main roads with nothing to use for shelter. It's shocking and upsetting to see.

My apartment is in a part of Mumbai called Andheri, which is very close to the sea, it has lots of high rise apartment blocks, shops and restaurants, but also has lots of trees and greenery. The apartment itself is bright, air conditioned with WiFi - everything you need really - and I am living here with other girls who are doing the same contract as me. Being the 'new girl', I am following their lead and quickly learning the way things work here.

For anything to do with work we travel in a big air conditioned car. Being chauffeured to and from rehearsals and shoots by our wonderful driver, Ali, I have spent most of these journeys gazing out of the window in complete awe of my surroundings. Endless rows of stalls selling all kinds of fruits and vegetables and strings of beautiful flowers; huge, gleaming hotels and shopping malls towering above thousands of tarpaulin shacks; massive billboards advertising the latest Bollywood films and a sea of yellow and black rickshaws, cars and buses. It's a chaotic place, full of character and constant hustle and bustle everywhere you look. Pictures to follow!

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