I Say Mumbai, You Say Bombay.

As I have mentioned, it is Diwali season in India so most of the schools were closed on Monday so that meant we had nothing to do but spend some time seeing the sights and enjoying all that Mumbai (known as Bombay until 1996) has to offer. If you are not familiar with Mumbai, a little context. The city itself has 14 million people and the metro area has 20 million residents, so it is big. The city itself is on a long, narrow peninsula probably no wider than Manhattan. It used to be seven islands before the British arrived in the 18th century and decided to embark on some large-scale civil engineering projects that merged them into one mass. You can imagine how crowded a space like that with 14 million people can be, but because it was Diwali we actually lucked out and it wasn't as hectic as usual.

Our starting point for exploring the city was the Gateway of India. The Gateway is located on the waterfront in South Mumbai (the oldest and most urban part of the city) and is a nod to the British history in India. It was built to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary to Bombay in 1911.


Right next to the Gateway of India is the Taj Mahal Hotel. The Taj is the most luxurious hotel in Mumbai and has a long list of notable guests (with their pictures lining the walls) including The Beatles, Roger Moore, Kings and Queens of England, Bill Clinton, and many Indians such as Nehru.

Many of you may be familiar with the Taj because of the 2008 terrorist attacks. Hostages were taken at the hotel and over 100 people were killed. They have done a great job fixing the damage and there is a new memorial in the courtyard to the guests and employees who perished in the attacks. On a more positive note, since the Taj is the epitome of luxury, there is a Mont Blanc store in the hotel we came across a display window with what I would imagine is a controversial "Gandhi" pen.


The pen in the picture above is $25,000 USD (yes, a pen), it is 18-carat gold, and it bears the image and signature of the Mahatma...because, as we all know, Gandhi was known for his elaborate pen collection and just a general rich and famous lifestyle. After the Gateway of India and the Taj we walked a few blocks over to Leopold Cafe, one of the most popular and famous restaurants and bars in Mumbai.


Like so many good places in India Leopold's is not much on the outside, but it has a great atmosphere inside. Unfortunately this was another site attacked by the terrorists, but what is cool is they reopened four days later and the restaurant staff were very open about discussing the experience (our waiter was there the day of the attacks). We were at Leopold's around lunch so we had some lunch and Kingfisher beer, and it is served in a really unique way:


After a great stop at Leopold's in South Mumbai we worked our way a few blocks north to the Oval Maidan and the University of Bombay. The Oval Maidan is Mumbai's version of Central Park or Hyde Park, the premiere green space and on Monday it was full of people out and about, most playing informal cricket. The University of Bombay, one of the top three universities in India, stretches along one side of the green space and is defined by Rajabai Clock Tower and other Gothic style buildings:


On the streets surrounding the university, it was lunch time so many Indians were eating lunch, in standard Indian street squatting:


...and just like on so many urban streets in India, there were a lot of random vendor stands, including a few sugarcane drink stands:


Sugarcane drink is extremely popular in South Asia. Vendors crush the sugarcane stalks right there on the street and then sell the juice. The sugarcane is crushed with ginger, mint, and lemon, and while it sounds good, the vendors are usually surrounded by flies so I have never been able to bring myself to actually order a sugarcane drink. The final stop during our free day in Mumbai was Dhobi Ghat. A dhobi is a traditional Indian laundryman who will collect, wash, and then return your laundry. Dhobi Ghat is the most famous and largest ghat in Mumbai, where almost 200 dhobis work in row upon row of concrete wash bins:


The principles of sorting apply here to - there were complete sections of whites and darks, and you can get a close up view of the wash pens:


Monday evening was our first joint reception program so we had to get back to the hotel after spending a hot and sweaty day around Mumbai. I'll leave you with a few amusing signs from around the city. India, especially cities like Mumbai, are very noisy, and in an attempt to discourage people from honking (and apparently drinking even though most drivers drive like they're drunk), these signs have been erected all over the city with encouraging advice:



I enjoy the fact that "alas" made it onto a sign. Sufficet to say, at least from the noise perspective, no one is reading these signs. Today we are visiting schools in Mumbai and then boarding a plane for New Delhi, so the next post will be from India's capital city.