MORE TIME IN MUMBAI

We are so lucky to have not only been able to go back to Mumbai, but to also meet a local friend we’ve worked on many ships with.  He and his new wife met us at the port and took us to see a bit more of the city.

We visited the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminushttp (छत्रपती शिवाजी टर्मिनस), a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It’s the beautifully crafted train station where the last scene of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ was filmed to the fantastic tune of ‘Jai Ho.’

We also went to another station and took the train a few stops. Luckily it was a Sunday, otherwise we were told it would be so squished that people would have to hang out the open doors on either side.

That train ride took us to the Mumbai Laundries, which is essentially hundreds of families living and working together, washing clothes and linens often for hotels in the area.  Our friend has a friend who took us in through the local entrance for a look around.  I wish I had captured more photos of the beautiful residents but I didn’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable.

From there we hit a local restaurant and feasted on the most delicious Indian specialties: paneer tikka masala, paneer butter masala, palak paneer (can you tell I like cheese?), poppadoms, garlic naan, mango lassi, and probably more things I can’t recall.  I’m salivating just remembering how good it all was.

Here’s a few more photos from walking around that day:

That night we met up again with our friends to watch the cricket final between India and Sri Lanka.  It was very exciting to be in India for it.  Would have been more exciting if they had won though…

The courtyard outside a mall during the match:

And after the match:

Afterwards we again, had a fabulous meal despite still being full from lunch.  We couldn’t help it though.  “When in India…each as much Indian food as you possibly can.”  I’m sure I’ve heard that before…

The next day Rob and I headed out on our own to find a few things and say goodbye to the city.

And I made it my personal mission to capture the hustle and bustle of a Monday in Mumbai.  For some reason it doesn’t look as busy as it actually was…

And finally, before returning to our life at sea, we bought a pack of a dozen water bottles. Being the compassionate softies that we are, we only made it back with two for ourselves.