Mumbai - Day 1 (December 16, 2006) -- Evening & Night

On my way back from D's office I called most of my friends and made tentative plans to meet each other. Most of the responses seemed to be "You're in town?? For how long?"

I had planned dinner with my mom that night, and at about 9:00pm (We eat late in India) we set off for Paradise restaurant on Colaba Causeway. En route, we stopped at Kailash Parbhat where I picked up mithai (Indian sweets).

Mithai

Paradise is one of my favorite restaurants in town. It's a small, quiet place run by an elderly Parsi couple and it has very simple food. My childhood favorites were the Chicken Steak and the Paradise Fried Chicken which was served with Pumpkin sauce. And the walls are adorned by Adam & Eve drawings by Mario Miranda, a famous Indian cartoonist.

Paradise had upgraded their decor and had finally installed air-conditioning, but the food was excellent. The waiters were still the same two gentleman and they recognised me and asked me if I wanted my usual combination of the steak and fried chicken. It was nice to see them after so long, and I left them with a large tip.

Adam & Eve by Mario Miranda

My awesome mom!

Later at night I was supposed to meet my friends at Mumbai's new lounge -- Shiro. Shiro is located in the old Bombay Dying mills compound, and I realized that it had been a while since I visited last when I was asked for a Rs 1500 (US$ ~35) cover charge. I coughed up the dues and entered. Shiro was huge, and I really appreciated that I could have a conversation with friends. Most nightspots in Mumbai are clubs which play loud music, but Shiro was different.

Once in I met quite a few friends and sipped on a glass of wine. I bumped into a guy I hadn't seen for 6 years and we exchange brief histories and e-mail ID. Turns out that he finished an MBA in the US and was working in the US, before returning to India earlier this year. That's pretty much the route I want to follow. Working in India --despite the many frustrations and low pay-- is so much more appealing to me now. I'll get to influence processes and actually contribute something. So that's my plan now, hope to get admitted into an MBA program, work in the US or EU and then return to India.

Anyway, I was talking with my friend and she introduced me to one of her girlfriends (S). S was very opinionated (why aren't more women opinionated?), intelligent, and kind and while we were talking I could feel the butterflies rising in my stomach. I haven't had this feeling for a long while (I hadn't been on a single date in 2006 until my India trip) and it felt very good.

Then S and her friends left and I caught-up with my other friends. I reached home at about 3:00 in the morning and I went for a walk behind my house by Apollo Bundar, the Gateway of India, and the Taj Mahal hotel.

The Taj Mahal hotel was built by J. N. Tata of the Tata family (India's premier industrial group) after Mr. Tata wasn't allowed into the then-famous Majestic Hotel. Indeed, the sign outside the hotel read "Indians and Dogs not allowed." So Mr. Tata decided to build a hotel that was bigger and better than the Majestic hotel.

The Gateway of India was built in 1924 to commemorate the visit of King George V. The last British troops leaving India left thru the Gateway of India as well.

The Gateway of India late at nightThe Taj Mahal Hotel

Mumbai - Day 1 (December 16, 2006)

Info on Mumbai

I got home at about 6:00am and I ventured out at about 12:00 noon. First call was to get a shave at Air Cool, next to Churchgate station in South Mumbai.

I've really missed going to a barber's shop where you sit back and the barber lathers you up and then shaves you with a very dangerous looking razor.
After the shave, I also had a head massage! Ahhh, the massage felt so good.

After that I headed to a friend's office in Bhuleshwar. I've seldom been to Bhuleshwar; it's a busy commercial area and I have no real work over there. But I desperately wanted to "fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds' worth of distance run," so off I went to Bhuleshwar.

Bhuleswar (snaps above) is a very crowded commercial part of Mumbai and the name is a contraction of Bhulle (to forget) and Ishwar (God) and means "the place where God forgets his own name." There are many Temples, Mosques, Churches, and Jain temples cramped into this very small area -- hence the myth goes that God forgets his/her name while visiting Bhuleshwar -- hence the name.

I landed at the office of a close friend (D) who I've known since 4th grade and who's in the seamless pipe business. After lots of catching up and after getting an update of D's dhanda (business) we ventured out. First stop was to get me a cell-phone, since I didn't want to purloin my mom's phone for 8 days. Next stop was lunch and along the way walked past the Mumbadevi temple after which Mumbai gets her name. The temple was also targeted during the Mumbai bomb blasts.

Mumbadevi Temple

I was very eager to have food from stalls on the road. As a kid, my parents warned me to not eat food from the road as it was very unhygienic. And I listened to them for 16 years! It was only in Junior College (11th & 12th) that I started eating from stalls on the road after observing that none of my friend's fell sick. And I've never stopped since! Some of the best food in Mumbai can be had from stalls on the road.



We had Jain (without the onions & potatoes) Bhel Puri (pictures above), bought a plate of BP for a little boy, and then had ragda pattice, and jalebis (a sickly sweet sweet dish).

Ragda Pattice

JalebiOn the way back, D took me inside a Jain temple. I'd never been inside one, so I was very happy. Unfortunately, I couldn't take pictures inside. Here's a snap of the outside. You have to appreciate that this building is right in the middle of Bhuleshwar ( see pictures above), and so it seems rather out of place.

Pillar inside the temple

After visiting the temple, I went back to D's office, chatted some more, and took a black and yellow to my next destination.

Mumbai

I flew Emirates from JFK to Mumbai. It was a wonderful experience; the planes were new, the inflight entertainment had 600+ options, and the cabin crew didn't look at you with contempt. Yes, that's 600+. I watched Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" and Woody Allen's "Scoop" starring Scarlett Johansson after which I fell asleep to "Carmen." Trust me, I'd rather fly economy on an airline subsidised by your friendly neighbourhood oil-rich sultan than on "business class" on any American airline.

I got a printed menu with my choice of entrees, an eyepatch, toothbrush, and a pair of socks. And the cutlery was real silverware including a real metal knife. There was even a thoughfully provided "Wake me up for Duty Free" sticker.

I had a short lay-over at Dubai airport, where I did some last minute gift-buying and then headed for my Dubai - Mumbai flight.
As the plane touched down in Mumbai, I was very, very excited. Close to two years of anticipation built up as I peered out of the window as we taxied to the gate. The airport was cleaner, and I went thru immigration very quickly. Baggage claim was still a mess. The conveyor belt was much to small, and the airport staff were removing baggage on either side of the belt in an effort to unclog the conveyor belt.

I finally got my bags and proceeded thru customs where the customs officials decided that the line was very long, so they just waived everyone thru. I was very impressed that no one had asked for a bribe or promised to get me thru in return for a "baksheesh."

Outside the airport, India beckoned. Crowded, chaotic, noisy, and full of life at 4:00 am in the morning. Oh, how I missed this!

On the way back, I noticed that the driving seemed a lot more chaotic than before. We in Mumbai have always prized ourselfs on our driving dicipline (by Indian standards). Anyway, halfway home, I asked the driver to switch places with me and I drove home.

I slept for about 5/6 hours (combination of jet lag and excitement) and then I headed out.