We stayed in South Mumbai which overlooks the Back Bay giving us a beautiful sun set. Mumbai is one of the worlds Mega Cities with a population of over 22 million at the last census. It is a magnet for migrants from other areas of India looking for better work/life opportunities. This has caused a huge growth in population with many living in slums and parks. There were many, many beggers with whole families living on street corners. It's a very sad situation with many having little hope of improving their situation.
The white family are popular for photos at 'The Gateway of India'!
The Gateway of India was built in 1924 to welcome King George V and Queen Mary and was also the exit route of the last British troops to leave after Indias independence. It looks out onto the Arabian Sea and steps down lead to a hub of Indian ports used for shipping goods and also delivering tourists to & from Elephant Island. It is a very, very popular attraction!
Traveling with the locals on the bus at a cost of 30p each!
They don't stop for long so you need to get on quick!
The first four rows on the right are reserved for ladies only
This is a Wedding procession complete with drummers.
Model of the very beautiful Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST for short).
It was designed by British born architect Frederick Stevens. It is a mix of Victorian, Italianate, Gothic & Mughal building styles and was completed in 1887 taking 10 years. It was built to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria and was originally named Victoria Terminus. It was later renamed after the 17th century king. There are almost 3 million commuters come through this station daily and it truly is a sight to see how many Indians can squeeze into one carriage, they call it 'Super dense crush load' so you can imagine! The doors do not ever close and there are people hanging on by the rail. It was also the station featured in Slumdog Millionaire.
It houses a small museum telling the story of the introduction of the railways to India and you can have a guided tour of the upstairs sections of the station. The construction is fantastic with so much detail, it's no wonder it took 10years to complete. The cornising is full of animals and on the outside many gargoyles ensure the heavy rain is dispersed without damaging the roof.
The space below the clock used to hold a statue of Queen Victoria which was removed after it was renamed.
Josh carrying the laundry home just like the locals!
We hired a guide for the day to take us on the 'Indian transport tour.' We used buses, trains & Tuk Tuks and visited the fish market, flower market, the largest outdoor laundry in India, the thieves market (yes they actually have a market dedicated to all the stolen goods), the DabbaWalas and finished off with a picnic in the park.
Ingenious use of space, farming between the tracks!!!
These flowers are all used for garland making so have no stems & are sold in their millions!
In India men do most of the outside work even bouquet making.
Dhobi Ghat is the worlds largest outdoor laundry. Once again it is all done by men. Each person (known as Dhobis) rents a washing cubical which consists of a large basin and a flogging stone, where the dirt & grime is literally bashed out of it! If you are sleeping on a bed in Mumbai then this is most definitely where the sheet was washed along with the hospital sheets, you wouldn't believe how white those sheets were down there, absolutely pristine! Our guide told us that unfortunately new homes are installed with washing machines and with many more people being able to afford machines then Dhobi Ghat may some day very soon be a thing of the past. There are already many empty cubicals. It's very sad as this is a great sight to see.
Thieves Market where we witnessed stolen cars being stripped down for spare parts!
These are the 'DabbaWalas'. Indian men leave for work very early, before their wife/mother is up so instead of purchasing a lunch in the city their wife/mother will prepare a home cooked delicious hot lunch once she is awake, which is then collected by a DabbaWala and brought to a central destination in the city close to their husband/sons place of work. All lunch bags are colour & number coded and once brought together these lunch bags are sorted out into destinations and delivered by foot, bikes or barrows. This process goes on all over the city with food coming from all ove Mumbai. They boast a 99% successful delivery rate! Absolutely brilliant!! No McDonalds or Subway needed here!!!
Josh the DabbaWala!
Load 'em up!!
We enjoyed our very one DabbaWala delivery.
For those who don't have a wife or mother to make their lunch you can order in a hot, home cooked lunch! It was absolutely delicious!
After a rest from our busy morning transport trip we ventured out to Crawford Market which houses everything from fruit & veg to bunnies & birds!
Spice Time!!
Mumbai was great fun if a bit manic! We enjoyed hopping on and off the transport which was easy once we did some research. We also had a guide take us on a 'Slums Tour' which was fascinating. There are many bustling industries within the slums. We witnessed plastic recycling, bottles from all over Mumbai are brought here to be crushed, cleaned, melted & turned into pellets which are then sent to manufacturers of anything plastic with the exception of bottles. We saw can recycling where they were cleaned & melted down to make parts for motors of all sorts. We were also shown the leather manufacturing where they clean and dye the leather ready for making 'Mulbery' bags and purses. They are all made here & shipped out to get the finishing touches of stamps & badges. They have even manufactured their own goods with their very own brand to sell so all the profit comes back to them. We finished off with a visit to the pottery area where we observed a potter producing pot after pot after pot, they have huge kilns which are so smoky. The 'Slum Tour' was a great experience, we have no photos as the workers enjoy their privacy and request no photography. I would also recomend a tour guide as the alleys are like a rabbit warren & you could find yourself lost in there for days!!!
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