Modern Hotel Mumbai (Bombay)

... ocean (2 streets from our hotel) where the monument the Gateway of India stands. This is a colonial structure commemorating the first visit to India of the British monarchy in 1911.Here is tout city and pestering for guides, taxis and tours is normal but the structure itself is worth a look. Lining the seafront old colonial homes now mansions and hotels including the famous and recently bombed ( with loads of security all around it now) the Taj Hotel. The air was thick and ...

... means that this neighborhood is now considered central, with North Mumbai stretching far beyond it. Vijay's father built the first floor and added apartments above as his sons got married, with the result being that the whole building is occupied by one very extended family. Doors are mostly left open and unidentified relatives, from seven to seventy, continually wander in and out. Pinkey and Vijay have a separate room and ...

... revenues of over 650million USD per annum- it's amazing!! But it's not right alot of western countries ship there plastics for recycling to India and most of it ends up here. They crush the plastics clean them segregate them form ribbons and eventually pellets that can be reused to make lower grade plastics but all this is done with no hygene standards or safety standards and the air in the factories is really toxic. a ...

... and taught, beautiful big offices for the teachers, plants - it was just overwhelming. Our kids were immediately silent - I've never seen them so well behaved. On arrival they were treated to a nice samosa meal and then got to partake in an art class with the other kids from the International school. They were dumbounded to find they each had their own little pot with glue, scissors, crayons etc in it. I was dumbfounded as I watched them politely ask to ...

... obviously did not understand the subtle sexual innuendoes. While the movie was in English it was sub-titled, some of the sub-titles watered down the actual words said. After the movie, Keith had to leave for the airport for his flight to the US. The staff were giving the hotel a paint over, so we had to be careful what we touched as there was no signs warning what was repainted. They also painted over all the switches and with no floor coverings the marble floor.

... we were born in the Western World, while these folks were not. The industry is almost entirely recycling. Generally, the women sort the trash, and the men use the machines. Safety, in any form, does not exist. The federal government has a plan in place to redevelop the area. Is it because they care about the terrible working conditions (almost all of these operations are technically illegal) and the plight of the poor? No, actually ...

Stick a fork in me...I'm going home :) 120 days of touring Asia, 9 different currencies, +60 beds, at least 11 languages, and who knows how many buses and trains and planes later. Wonderful food, wonderful people, and wonderful scenery. It's always great to be ready to go home when the time comes and thankfully I'm good and ready. My time in Pune was spent mostly recovering and discussing a few things about India's past, present, and general culture with my ...

... we were awoken by the blazing heat at 8am so we had a fairly relaxing day wandering the streets, people watching down by the sea and watching some local cricket. We decided to take a punt and watch a Bollywood film called RACE at the EROS cinema. It was all in Hindi but we were able to understand the basics of what was going on. That evening we were booked on a 2 night sleeper train to Varanasi, India, one of the most sacred places on Earth.

... how uncomfortable it was going to be, I just didn't want to stay in Mumbai. The woman behind the desk was unusually helpful and put me on a waiting list for a seat. If I didn't get one, I should still be allowed on the train if I shared a bunk with my new friends. I was feeling very glad I'd met these guys, but in the end I was lucky enough to get my own bunk for the 11 hour journey overnight.