Category: Mumbai

I was looking forward to my stay in Mumbai. It is India’s most populated city, playing host to around 18 million people. However, it is a metropolis that is also rooted in history, with influences still visible today both from within India from the likes of the Mauryas and the Chalukyas, and also from outside of India, most commonly from the Portuguese and the British. It is in many ways, a city of many worlds.

Furthermore I was looking forward to staying with family in Mumbai. After being picked up from the station I was taken to their apartment. It is funny that even though it is a place I have never been to, I know when I am with family and I cannot help but feel at home. Thank you Mamaji, Mamiji, Avishi and Anika for looking after me so well.

This part of my trip was not associated with Rama, but was a chance for me just to explore Mumbai. My first day was spent venturing around south Mumbai and whether it was mansions, mandirs, museums or monuments, I saw a great deal. Driving through and seeing Mumbai made me realise how diverse it really was. One minute I found myself passing tower blocks worth billions, and other times through slums.

My mind feasted on places such as the Gateway of India, a piece of living history, and my eyes on the expansive sea.

At one point we were driving through a ‘silent zone’ which basically means car horns are not allowed to be used. I think it was the first time during my trip that I had been in a vehicle, and had not heard any noise. It felt strange, as though through the windscreen I was watching a film at the point where the sound is cut.  In those few moments, everything seemed slow and surreal, and I was sitting, waiting for the second that the noise would suddenly return, bringing life back to its normal speed.

However, in Mumbai, some of my favourite times were just staying at home, enjoying the company of family, or playing hide and seek in the gardens with Avishi and Anika. With all of the travelling I had been doing it was wonderful just to slow down for those few days.

The next day I had decided to explore Elephanta Island. Six miles from Mumbai, it is full of caves that are believed to date back to the 8th century. Setting off from the Gateway of India by boat and looking back, I could not help but feel struck by the historical significance of the area. The last British troops to leave India had walked out through the Gateway, before boarding the ships and sailing back. The Gateway would have been the last part of India they saw. Looking back I could not help but wonder what they thought as they left. It was an event that would mark the start of a new era for both the British and for India.

The caves themselves were impressive, hosting a range of icons dedicated to Shiva. I thought I may as well have a guide just so I would know a little bit more about the place I was seeing. Very soon a guide, probably seeing me try to eavesdrop on the guides of other around me, approached me. We agreed a price and I had myself a guide.

He was keen to remind me that the statues were regularly used for target practice by the Portuguese, which was either his favourite fact or the only one he knew as he referred to it a great number of times without a lot else. I decided to politely leave him half way through, realising he actually didn’t know anything more than was written on the signs on the way in to the caves. He told me to ask him questions, and the ones I did ask, such as why this spot was chosen or why certain statues were the way they were, were met with the reply: ‘The caves are very old, how can I know such things.’

I guess sometimes it happens I told myself, not regretting I had tried to get a guide, just enjoying the irony of the one I had ended up with.

The rest of my stay was spent relaxing, eating wonderful food and enjoying the company of those around me.

I had seen so many different worlds in Mumbai, and I had a feeling my next destination would again be a completely different world altogether, as I was off to the beaches of Goa.