The Gate, The Taj and the Navy Mumbai June 2012

A photo file of the sights during my few hours stopping over in Mumbai, enroute to London.

India Gate

Monsoon

The Promenade and Taj

Majestic Taj

Navy in Town

The Best Coffee

Just like Yarmouth - almost!

Proof that Colaba has garbage collections!

In the back streets of Colaba

The otherside of Colaba

Mumbai has leafy Avenues

India Gate and the Taj Mumbai June 17th 2012

Gate of India and the Taj..

As ever in these situations over the last 5 1/2 months in South East Asia a man pops up from seemingly nowhere with plenty of advise on where to stay - where a weary traveller lugging a backpack can say for a few dollars. A trek down this road, turning right, then left and along here, heading towards an 800 rupee room and if I don't like it we can try a 400 rupee room - sounds like a reasonable plan! This is definitely the better part of town, still with pockets of dilapidation and deprivation though.

As the man hovers outside, I'll see what 800 rupees gets in downtown Mumbai. well, not very much is the answer to that. A small room, a hard bed and a fan. Not the best, but not the worst on this trip, and not worth 800 I point out, picking up my bags and making for the exit - we end up at 700, about £8.50 which is probably the best anyone is going to get for a downtown location. Security actually is quite good with a robust padlock for the room door, but only after making a fuss and not paying anything until I had the key in my hand. The little man hovering outside wanted something for his trouble as I made my down to agree level. Still no small change, but he's happy with some Thai Baht I have surplus to requirements.

A few hours of exploration before darkness descends. A steady drizzle, looks like its set for the rest of the afternoon, but I guess that's a blessing in disguise masking what otherwise might have been an oppressively hot day. So, here I am in Colaba and wondering why folks stop off in Mumbai. A few yards from the guest house is the sea wall with hundreds of locals lined along its entire length looking out to sea. It's quite deep water here with waves crashing and splashing  over. Ok, it seems to be a game of avoid getting wet, a bit pointless as this drizzle seems to be getting a little heavier. But actually, looking a little further out to sea, a shadow in the gloom appears. It's an aircraft carrier with helicopters hovering around it. So, the Navy is in town, collecting supplies from the Juhu base I would think. Looking along the sea wall, another shadow in the mist - a tall, arched structure and just to the left of that, a rather palatial looking hotel. So, this is the Gate of India and the famous Taj hotel. Quite clearly going to cost more than a few dollars to stay here, 200$ minimum actually according to folks on Internet forums. It's the lap of luxury for visitors with money to burn. An awesome building towering high with intriguing architecture. Never far away though are folk lining the pavements dressed in rags. Children begging, taxi drivers food hawkers doing their utmost to attract custom. This is the place to hold on to those loose items, secure pockets and then enjoy the atmosphere, for this is why people stop off in Mumbai. It's noisy, it's grubby but it's colourful, vibrant and so different in culture - it's India!

Thousands of people are milling around the gate, queueing for boat rides and generally enjoying their Sunday afternoon leisure. Very few Western tourists though, buts it is out of season so not surprising. The rain sets in, the wind blows - uh oh, monsoon. Holed up, crammed in, sheltering under the eves of a public loo - It's the only place to escape the relentless, heavy rain for the foreseeable future! Finally, the rain stops as the last remnants of daylight slip away. Still just enough light for a souvenir photo of the Taj Hotel standing with prominence in all its majesty.

The Drive to Downtown Mumbai June 17th 2012

The Drive...

These are a few images snatched from the taxi as it journeyed towards downtown Mumbai. The roads were actually in good condition, much better than I was expecting based on my last visit.

22 hours In Mumbai June 17th 2012

Leaving the airport..

Leaving the terminal building on what is surprisingly small road given the international status of this gateway to India and Mumbai. A building site surrounds us as construction on new airport infrastructure and facilities is evident, and well overdue I would say looking at all the tuk tuks and taxis lined up along local roads for what seems miles on end. On the way to downtown then, which can take anything upto 2 hours for what is a relatively short journey.
Mumbai, the subject of first year high school geography and now I am here seeing it for myself, albeit some several decades later. The most populous city in India with its social and economic system at breaking point. Some might say its already broken and beyond repair, and perhaps it is looking around here, buts its not for me to argue and cast opinion on the politics of another nation in this blog. Extreme poverty as the route south runs alongside shanty towns and slum dwellings that line both sides of the expressway. It's hard to see the extent from ground level, but coming in on the plane, the whole slum perspective can be gained - covering vast swathes of land, all the way to the coast. Males blatantly urinating against a wall, garbage everywhere, on every street piled up on every corner. It's dirty, it's grim, no question.

It's quite cool here, cloudy but at least it's stopped raining, for now anyway. Much was often made of the Bombay stench during school lessons but I haven't really noticed it as the taxi driver continues our journey to Colaba. Mumbai expressway traffic is similar to the British M25 experience - good for a few miles then queued at entry and exit junctions, and this is at 2 in the afternoon. Highrise  and tower blocks in the distance indicates we might be approaching the downtown area. No emotion from the driver whatsoever, no smile just silence and perhaps concentration - better not disturb him then. Snapping scenes from the open windows then without any commentary. Slum dwellings in between decaying concrete housing blocks. New buildings are springing up on the right towards the coast - tower blocks, highrise apartments for the emerging middle classes I would think.

It's slow going in the middle of downtown. Traffic is stop start, more stop than start! A limping old timer sidles up, mumbling something about 1 dollar whilst at the same time a kid skips in between the traffic. An immediate reaction is to lock all the doors. This looks like a typical distraction scam in that the old timer has us looking one way whilst the kid attempts to snatch a bag or  anything else he can see to make off with. Not this time, although I still keep one hand on my bags indicating to a  would be thief that today isn't going to be! I would think it might be a completely different story at night though!
Here we are in Colaba. I'm dropped off an area with a few guesthouses dotted around, I guess there will be more in backstreets. It's smarter here being the main tourist spot, although there is still evidence of decay and poverty, just not as prolific as an hour and a half ago. Just a few steps and soon in conversation with the locals, which in India leads to just one thing, and so I quickly move on. So, here I am, in a strange place with nowhere to stay yet and it's just started to rain again.

The first Hurdle Mumbai June 17th 2012

No bus, no train, only taxi....

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