Mumbai, India - a city of contrasts

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13^thApril Mumbai, India



People’s views of India differ whoever you speak too. We have tried to keep an open mind of what to expect in Mumbai. It was always going to be an eye opener.



We had opted for not the City tour or Highlights but a trip by boat (another one) to Elephanta Island to the Elephanta caves. More of that later.



India’s capital Mumbai (formerly Bombay) is a city of stark contrasts. Modern towers stand next to stately stone colonial buildings from the days of the Raj.



Mumbai is a huge commercial capital but a large percentage of its population live in slums without running water or electricity. Begging is prolific and people sleep on the streets amongst rats (dead & alive) and human filth. There are over 12 million people in the city.



Our approach to the harbour was in the early morning. The harbour is quite impressive, seven miles wide has mountain islands, the huge sky rise buildings on one side and the peaks of the Western Ghats on the other. It is the largest harbour in India and handles the majority of passenger traffic as well as a great deal of India’s import/export trade.



Our tour started at the ‘Gateway of India’ next to the Raj Hotel. His monument was erected in 1911 when King George V & Queen Mary visited by sea. It was the first time a reigning monarch had visited India. This is where we boarded our boat to Elephanta Island & the caves.



As we left the pier we had the opportunity to photograph the Gateway and the Raj Hotel. Because it is India’s naval dockyard as well, the guide insisted we stop taking photos when we were a few hundred yards offshore (in case we were stealing naval secrets). The fact that from the Queen Elizabeth you could see straight into the dockyard and photograph their aircraft carrier (used to be ours) and all manner of naval ships didn’t seem to matter.



The trip to the island was about an hour, and then a small train took us from the dock to the base of the caves on the island. Elephanta Island was named by the Portuguese after a statue of an elephant was found near the landing point on the island. The statue is now in a museum in Mumbai



To reach the caves was about a 120 steps, quite steep in places but running the gauntlet of shopping stalls all the way up. We were glad that it had been an early start; we would not have wanted to do the climb at midday as it was in the 90’s when we started the ascent.



It was worth it!!



The Hindu caves contain rock cut stone sculptures, representing the Shaiva Hindu sect, dedicated to the god Shiva.



The rock cut architecture of the caves has been dated to between the 5th and 8th centuries, although the identity of the original builders is still a subject of debate. The caves are hewn from solid basalt rock. All the caves were also originally painted in the past, but now only traces remain.



The main cave, also called the Shiva cave, is 27 metres (89 ft) square in plan with a hall. At the entrance are four doors, with three open porticoes and an aisle at the back. Pillars, six in each row, divide the hall into a series of smaller chambers



This cave was renovated in the 1970s after years of neglect, and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 to preserve the artwork



The panels 8 of them in bas-reliefs unfold a story carved in stone. The carvings centre on the life of Lord Shiva, The Destroyer. Some of the panel have been disfigured, mainly by Portuguese soldiers using them as target practice. The most impressive panel is that of the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva: The Creator, The Preserver & The Destroyer.



Our trip back down was more sedate. In the noonday sun (mad dogs and Englishmen came to mind) it was getting pretty warm.



The Caves are a huge local attraction and as it was Sunday, by the time we got back down, the world and its dog were flocking to the Island. Unsustainable tourism is said to be one of the major threats to the Caves.



The boat ride back was uneventful, but when you hit the pier at the Gateway you are straight back into the cauldron of people, traffic and city life. We had to wait for about 15 minutes for the coach to pick us up, that gave the local hawkers to try to ply their wares yet again. Getting back to the port via the squalor & beggars was an eye opener.



Definitely a city of HUGE contrasts.







Next stop Abu Dhabi, UAE

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