Mumbai

  Mumbai (Bombay), Maharashtra, India
Thursday, January 22, 2009

My final entry from India...

I'm leaving for Ethiopia on Thursday, the 22nd.  I got a one way ticket from Mumbai to Addis Ababa, direct and only 5 hours, for about US$400.  Not bad at all in my opinion.

Mumbai is the first big city in India that I've really truly enjoyed.  There are over 16 million people that live here yet it certainly doesn't feel that way.  The feeling I get from the city and the people definitely seems more inteligent and cultural.  There are some nice museums, art galleries, quality restaurants, etc.  It's nice to see people in business attire for a change.  On the other hand, you can also feel the caste system's effects here.  You either see the wealthy or the poor, not much in between.  Here are some stats:

Population density: 29,000 people per square kilometer
# of taxis: over 40,000
Average daily income: US$2.90, which is 3 times the national average
% of people living in slums: 55%

Speaking of slums, Slumdog Millionaire opens in India on the 23rd.  I didn't find this out until after I booked my ticket out of here for the 22nd.  I would have LOVED to have seen this movie here in Mumbai.  Anyone seen it yet?  Thoughts?


CST (Victoria Terminus) is the major train station here in Mumbai.  It has 2.5 million people passing through the railway station per day!  I was here the day of the Mumbai Marathon and the finish line was just in front of the train station.  According to the papers, there were about 35,000 runners this year and the winners were Kenyan.  I was wondering why I saw quite a few Africans around town earlier in the week. 

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (Victoria Terminus)

The Taj Mahal Palace is the most famous hotel in India.  The Taj Group has hotels in most major towns, all 5 star quality, but this is a landmark.  It's also the main place that was targeted during the November 26th terrorist attack.   It is now heavily guarded and has barracades (sp?) surrounding the building.   They refer to the November 26th attack as 26/11 and they consider it the Indian 9/11.

The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel

Right next door to the Taj is the Gateway of India, another landmark.  I don't have the info in front of me regarding when it was built or anything...sorry.

Gateway of India

The Taj and Gateway of India

Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue is not too far from the Taj.  From the outside it doesn't look all that special, but the inside was quite beautiful.  There were photos in the hallway of various famous visitors to the synagogue, Madonna being one of them.

Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue

Crawford Market is down the street from CST.  Just like any other market I've been to it has a fruit and veggie section, a meat section, and a general junk section.

Vegetable market

Mmmmm...watermelon

garlic and onions...yum

kidneys or livers????

Pet shop

YELLOW LABBIES!!!!!

Prince of Wales Museum is very similar to Chicago's Field Museum minus the dinosaur skeletons.

Prince of Wales Museum

There's a one hour ferry that goes to Elephanta Island where there are rock-cut cave temples.  The first cave, there are 5 total, was quite impressive, but other than that I enjoyed watching the monkeys play and clean each other more.

Rock cut temple

Rock cut carving

3 faced Shiva, the destroyer, creator, & preserver

Carving in better light

What's that smell?

Bollywood is the term used for India's major film industry and Mumbai is the heart of Bollywood.  You can take an overpriced tour of the studio for US$100 but I certainly didn't have the desire to see it.  It is possible though to be asked to be an extra in one if the films that are being shot at the moment.  There's this guy that hangs out close to the backpacker hotels and asks the tourists if they would like to be an extra the following day.  Yes, he asked me probably 3 different days and I said "no"each time.  You do get paid about US$10 (woohoo!) for the day but I hear that it's a long day, about 10 hours, and you mostly just sit around and wait.  And there's no guarantee that you will be used.


I was able to watch Obama's Inauguration, I had a tv in my hotel room and luckily it had CNN.  WOW, what an emotional event.  Over 2 million people in and around The Mall to watch/hear this historical ceremony.  As always, Obama's words were hopeful and inspiring.   Even though Bush was seated only a few feet from him there was still a bit of Bush bashing in the speech. haha!  I LOVED how as the ex-presidents were entering the stage the cameras took a moment to show the moving trucks moving the Bush's boxes out of the White House.   Then when I woke up this morning I turned CNN back on to see the Obama's make their rounds to the Inauguration Balls, Michelle looking stunning in her white gown, Barack as handsome as ever, dancing to "At Last", such an appropriate song for the occassion. 


I feel like I should end my experience here in India with some final words.  I can't believe I'm finally leaving this country and I certainly can't believe I have spent 6 months here.  I feel ashamed that I haven't picked up the language, but I must add that just about all regions have their own langauge, not everyone speaks Hindi.  It has been an incredible experience visiting the diverse regions of this country, the desert, the mountains, the beaches, the big cities.  India has something for everybody.   But India is definitely not the country for just anyone to travel to.  You have to be prepared for the experience.  You have to be prepared for the smells, the filth, the spitting, the public urination, farting, belching and picking of the nose.  No matter how much skin is covered ladies, men will blatantly stare at you.  And will continue to stare, without looking away, until you are out of site.  The sides of streets aren't used for sidewalks, these really don't exist.  The sides of streets are used as garbage dumps.  Spitting is huge problem throughout the country.  Men chew paan, which is made from the betel nut.  It's mixed with tobacco and folded into a banana leaf.  Once chewed it turns into a red liquid.  You can see streams of red liquid coming down from the windows on buses and puddles of red on the streets.  There are actually "No spitting" signs in train and bus stations.  Men will still try to talk to you when they're chewing.  It's absolutely disgusting.  And their teeth!!  Enough of that.  Men will fart, belch, pick their nose without any shame in public.  They will hold one nostril closed and blow to clear the other one right on a busy street.   I've been to many third world countries, but India definitely tops the list of the dirtiest country I've been to.   Back in October they passed a smoking ban in public places.  I remember reading an article in the paper that stated that they hope they have better luck enforcing the smoking ban than they did when they tried to pass a ban on public urination. 

Women are not seen much in public.  They are generally not allowed out of the house alone.  I have seen maybe ten women driving during my trip.  Arranged marriages and dowries still exist here.  The bride's family must give the groom's family gifts and cash, how much depends on what they're asking.  In general, marriage doesn't seem to be about love here.  It's about business.  Men seem to be more intimite with their male friends than with their wives.  

Despite many aspects of the life and culture I don't agree with, India is a fascinating country.   Religion, whether you're a Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, whatever, is very central in Indian life.  The food is amazing.  I have always loved Indian food, but after 6 months I have learned a lot more about the food and regional specialties.  And there's just so much diversity here in the landscape.  Like I said before, there's something for everyone.  Other than some disgusting men you encounter, the people are extremely friendly and helpful. 

I know I just wrote a lot more about the frustrations of India, but I think that if you've been following my blog you already know exactly how much I've enjoyed my time here.  I will truly miss India and I consider this one of my most memorable trips I've had.  Namaste India!! 

Congratulations Gader on your engagement!  I'm so excited for you!!

Next blog will be brought to you from Ethiopia!!
peace,
Jen