The madness of Mumbai |
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Mumbai, wow, Mumbai will always have a special place in my heart. I could never forget this city of 19million. If you want a real adventure, an eye opening experience (not some quasi-hippie deal) visit Mumbai!
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You need alot of energy to visit Mumbai!
The traffic is totally chaotic, and the streets are overcrowded with cars and ancient taxis.
There are people everywhere and they like to look at Westerners, especially if you have fair skin and blonde hair like my mum, but i didn't find they hassled to much.
In general i found the city to be far less modern than i had expected, many of the buildings were very run down.
However the most astonishing thing is the number of homeless people. Our flight arrived at night and we got a taxi into the centre, driving in we passed so many people sleeping on the pavements, in the gutter under bridges, even on the roundabout. And the slightly better off lived in pavement dwellings, with little more than a tarpaulin over their head. The poverty in Mumbai is not something that i heard so much about, i got a shock when i saw it but i am very glad i did, it is something to acknowledge not to shy away from and pretend it doesn't exist.
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| Favourite spots: |
EVERY VISITOR TO MUMBAI SHOULD DO THE DHARAVI SLUM TOUR. It is an unforgettable experience. With a guide you can go into the slum (which is actually of a higher living standard than many of the other slums) and see the reality of the lives of the people here. You will never forget it. Wear comfortable sealed up shoes as the ground isn't so clean especially in monsoon season when the sewers overflow (i had to chuck out my shoes afterwards because they stank so bad even after being washed). And take an umbrella and long sleeved top and pants.
Crawford Market isn't exactly my favourite spot but walking around this
area is something a visitor shouldn't miss.
My favourite place is undoubtedly Kotichawadi. Here there are a few streets with Portugese style houses. For me it was a total step back in time. It was surreal and anyone interested in history and how life was 100 years ago should visit here (maybe at night), there is such an eerie feel to this place.
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| What's really great: |
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Recycling oil cans in Dharavi slum
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Dharavi Slum tour is a must for anyone who wants to see the real Mumbai that few tourists get to see.
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| Sights: |
- Dharavi Slum
- Kotichawadi
- Crawford Market
Mumbai outdoor laundry
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| Accommodations: |
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I stayed at Hotel Oasis in the Fort are, it was an ok hotel. Cheap at 18€ a night but there was no shower in the bathroom just a tap at knee height and the beds were tiny, with just a pillow, small sheet and a very old blanket.
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At Krishna restaurant we had the only good meal of our whole 3 days in Mumbai. It serves delicious vegetarian food. You can find it near Chowpatty beach.
Another meal we had at Cafe Universal, Fort, we ordered chips which came totally soggy and cool. I ordered toast which came stale, i couldn't even bite into it.
We also ate at the famous Trishna seafood restaurant but were'nt terribly impressed by either the food or atmosphere. It was quite empty and through our entire meal we were watched like a film by 5 or 6 waiters.
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Published on Thursday October 1th, 2009 by livvy
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