Bombay! aka Mumbai

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My first intro to India is Mumbai and it is quite loco!...it is a concotion of taxis, rickshaws, people, dogs, mopeds, and bikes all trying to cross the street at the same second and the only way to get through traffic is to force your way in...even if it means nearly causing an accident...using your horn without reprieve is essential because this lets other drivers know of your presence. The poverty of Bombay is quite obvious from the time u arrive at the airport. Makeshift homes and slums surround the airport, upon exiting you are likely to be followed and asked for some spare rupees.

As timid and scared as I am after arriveal, I am quite lucky to have Udeepto here, a friend I met at CSU East Bay who now lives in Bombay...I phoned him once I arrived at the hotel and he was full of do's and don'ts...part big brother and part Jewish grandmother (sorry Udeepto!) He was concerned with where I was, if the hotel was safe and clean, what I was gonna eat "promise me you won't eat street food Chelsea!" And "please be OCD about hand sanitizer!" I spent most of the afternoon feeling exhausted and disoriented, I didn't think I would be able to take a nap because of the blaring horns and street noise, but I laid down on my bed around 2pm and woke up at 7pm! I guess after not sleeping for 2 days I was a bit tired. I ordered dinner from the veg rest attached to the hotel, it cost me about $2usd...so much food I couldn't finish it and already some of the best Indian food I've ever had. The hotel staff was super sweet and helpful...my charger/transformer wasn't working and my phone was about to die so one of the staff went out and bought me a new one and didn't even charge me for it.
Udeepto called again and we agreed to meet at a bar and that I would take a pre-paid cab so I would not get ripped off, I didn't and I did...oops...I'm still learning how things work here.
We met at the Elbo Room (yep, same name as in sf but totally different atmosphere) in a nicer area of town (the beer I ordered cost more than my dinner) Udeepto treated me to some Indian rum which was delish...we had some interesring conversation on the Westernization of India/ wealth disparity and the role of FDI in his coutnry...Udeepto works as a banker so we agreed to disagree on certain subjects 😊...and talked lots about music. He is a singer as well and has been studying Indian classical music. One thing that really surprised me is how "Western" many young females dress; in short skirts and high heels, I felt like I was dressed like a nun compared to many of them! I was told that even showing your knees is frowned upon and I guess it still is in rural areas but Bombay is the trendsetter of India as well as the fashion/Bollywood capital.

Last call in this neighborhood is 1:30am but in true Indian fashion rather than kicking patrons out they just turn all the lights off so people can keep buying alcohol until the police come, but if the police do wander over you really have to leave. We took an auto "rick" (weeee I'm glad I was slightly tipsy because it made me fear for my life a bit less) to the beach and had some froyo (he was disappointed that I passed on a jaunt to his favorite kebab place and even though I continued to insist I wasn't hungry, I finally gave into froyo) we chilled on the boardwalk for a bit and then again the police came to shut down the party and clear the beach so we called it a night. I promised Udeepto that I will come back to Mumbai a few days before my departure next month so that he can show me all the things I missed!

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Photos

Mumbai
View from hotel window

Udeepto
Udeepto and doggie hanging out by the sea after dark

Comments

[Josh Hayes]

So Cool
Hey lady, it's me. Was trying to wait until you came home to hear stories, but couldn't resist. Gotta say, I'm impressed by the writing in the blog. It's really interesting and goes past a simple recounting of events. Hope all is still well. See you in two weeks :)