Tropical times after the multi topical megatropilis

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07/02/16 catch a 6am 2.5 hour flight to Mumbai, locate a local guest house/hostel, a little crowded but a bed none the less. Venture south via metro & train to visit a couple of art galleries, exhibitions around a seasonal street arts festival while stumbling upon the odd sight. 08/02/16 move into the Salvation Army hostel in the south, I spend the rest of the day with a small group voice dubbing a Bollywood movie, my few lines as a policeman in what looked like a Bollywood attempt at a thriller, set in Ireland made a fun afternoon & an insight into how things get done. 09/02/16 head off first thing on a tour of the Dharavi Slum; Asia's largest hosting a fascinating collection of back street industries grossing estimated to be well over $400 million a year, skinny alleys separate workshops, bakeries & impressive wide spread recycling operations situated above and below crowded homes. jump off on the return train to spend an hour visiting the City's vast outdoor laundry at dobi Ghat, industrial sized spinning drums,surround water channels & concrete vats shadowed by rope lines and roof tops flapping with shirts and sheets. I make it over to Mumbai's west side or queens necklace" outlooking the polluted ocean, far from a fresh sea breeze but a popular locals spot none the less, finish the evening with a decent feed and a kingfisher before catching my night train to south Goa. 10/02/16 roll into madgoan station for 11am, via a connecting bus reach the beach of Benaulim, find a beach hut for 300 rupees and enjoy the remainder of the day enjoying the seaside bliss, swim and a nice meal at a local restau shack. 11/02/16 I casually move on by bus to the next line of beach spots of cavelossim @ morbor, with no cheapy huts available I enjoy a swim and a fish lunch before hitching over the new highway bridge to Assolna then bus to the little fishing village of Betul, without much aspiration for further travel I end up being taken in by a local lady and her small family, a floor space for my thermarest makes for a non luxurious stay but one of those random authentic moments life swings you. 12/02/16 walk & hitch the route through the hills to Agonda, settle at "cupids heaven for 400 inr and enjoy another day swimming, walking , eating and sleeping. 13/02/16 grab a scooter for the day to see surrounding beaches; Cola, Palolem & visit Caba da Rama (a hill top fort). 14/02/16 catch a train to Gorkana in Karnataka, spend the next day on a bicycle visiting the local beaches of om & Kudli before catching an evening train back to margoa, change of plan due to train times leave Goa and opt to head straight to hospet/hampi train sleep at station & leave 8am 16/02/16

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