About 40 minutes to get through immigration, collect baggage from the belt, check-in again and clear the outbound formalities. Mumbai Airport isn't busy during daylight hours so should just about be feasible, with a little help from the gate agent. Irrelevant now since the flight is full, even the premium seats are all taken - so, it's tomorrows flight, as scheduled then. This is about the 5th time transiting through the Indian immigration department and each occasion has been quick, painless and without incident. Surprising given the Indian love affair with red-tape and bureaucracy. Formalities completed and bags collected. Nothing tampered with thankfully, well, not that I can see right now. so, I've arrived in India, a place where tourists and visitors need to be one step ahead of Indians at all times, whenever and whereever possible!
Next, a place to stay. Ask anyone who knows, Mumbai is an expensive town. Research beforehand revealed hotel rooms around the airport area were going for nothing less then $100 a night, but since there is a line of hotel desks here, I shall ask anyway. $40 downtown, still on the pricy side so it's plan b - make my own way downtown and scout around, it's worked well so far, so let's hope it works this one last time! The tourist hangout in Mumbai is in a district called Colaba, South from the airport and only accessible by taxi according to the tourist desk - no bus, no train. There probably is a bus, but of course there will be a degree of collaboration with the local taxi mafia to channel folks like me into a waiting cab. All advise from books, Internet forums etc. is book a taxi from inside the airport, the official taxi booking desk. These taxi drivers can generally be trusted and getting into a cab down the road is likely to lead to trouble, the expensive kind. It's £5.40 for the ride to Colaba, even says that on the receipt, the only proof I have of having paid anything, there's no official coupon, not for me anyway. Change some money next, 85 rupees to the Pound, 10 up on last year.
Stepping out of the terminal expecting to be inundated, mobbed even, by over excited taxi drivers. No, it's all rather orderly, makes a pleasant change actually, but I'm not going to relax my guard, not for 1 second. Men, milling around the taxi stand and before I can say "help, get me outa here", at least 4 of them swoop in, quickly and creating a scene of confusion as each one tries to take my ticket, claiming to be the taxi i need.They know already which is my cab since the desk agent radio'd ahead, and it's the only proof I have of paying anything. The ticket stays with me at all costs until I get into cab 527. The posse seems eager, over eager to be helpful, and I am lead to the correct cab, and it turns out one of this little group was actually the driver. Another 2 insist on taking my baggage from me, fine but I stay close to it and watch them lumber up to the rear seats with 2 heavy packs. Of course, this helpfulness comes at a price - unfortunately I didn't have any small change on me, they were not pleased as the cab pulls away. The driver frowns too, oh dear! Well, first hurdle passed without any drama, now let's see if this driver is one of the trusted folks.
Next..it's dirty, it's decaying, it's Mumbai
Hi Paul,
ReplyDeleteGood helpful report for us to get the feeling of India for our arrival in Delhi next month. Thanks, Paul.
Michael and Virginia
Penang, Malaysia