It’s the last day of our amazing adventure. Up early, breakfast and back towards the Gateway of India and Elephantine jetty. Mumbai (Bombay) like any Indian city requires an adaptation period of at least 12 hours. It’s unlike anywhere else on the planet. Crazy, bewildering, chaotic. No words can summarise it. We have travelled through India many times but no matter how many times you come here it’s still overpowering when you first arrive. We have our Ghandi sandals on now and are back in the swing.
I’m sat outside the digs in a tiny back alley and there are fireworks and gunfire all around. Not little fireworks but chock off ones and numerous bursts of small arms fire. I’ve just asked someone what is going on thinking that a war has started without our knowledge and at any moment tanks are going to roll through the streets. Crispy is on the bed with her eyepod, she’s used to it and hasn’t even asked what’s going on. It turns out it is a “small” festival venerating some obscure god or goddess. Feck knows but I hope they stop shooting the sky soon as we have an early start.
We made our way to the jetty behind the Gateway to India and bought tickets for the ferry. It’s a 10km boat ride to elephantine island on boats that look as if they should have been decommissioned twenty years ago. Each packed to capacity with Indian holidaymakers and day trippers. This stretch of coast is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world and as such is not the crystal clear waters that you would expect of the Arabian Sea. To look at it I would rather go swimming in the Leeds and Liverpool canal than jump in here. Grey green and choppy. The ferry boat was rising and falling 3 feet against the jetty steps and you have to time your step onto the boat with precision. We boarded without incident and took our seats. We had the obligatory photo shoot with a few people on the boat and settled down for the trip. If the number of times you have your photograph taken by complete strangers qualified you for celebrity status then we must be in the top 10 of the rich and famous.
It starts with one or two people milling about, sly selfies with you whilst trying not to let you see that they are doing it. Then the more adventurous will ask “photo” and as soon as you agree a queue forms and your goosed for the next 20 minutes. We estimate we must have had in excess of 100 photos in the last 3 days. Christ knows why.
The boat trip was nice out from Mumbai past the naval dockyards, Tanker holding are and gas refuelling plants. After an hour we arrived at the island. Elephantine island is a network of cave temples built over 1000 years ago into the basalt rock. When the Portuguese took Mumbai they used it as astrategic military base and garrisoned troops here. In there wisdom the used the ancient sculptures and carvings inside the caves for target practice and no original statues remain intact.
They named the island Elephantine because a huge carved elephant stood on the shore. When the British took Mumbai off them we tried to move this enormous sculpture to London but broke it to bits in the process. What remains of it now graces a small park in the centre of Mumbai.
The caves were crawling with the little furry feckers but they kept their distance so all was well.
We strode around the caves and forest paths before grabbing some lunch and heading back. The last boat leaves the island at 17:30 so we left at 1700 just to be sure we got back in readiness for tomorrow.
As stated when we first arrived our digs are up a tiny back alley in and obscure part of the city.
We made our way to the taxi rank and had no luck trying to find a taxi that knew our address.
We must have tried 10 drivers before one agreed to take us home. After a few minutes it was obvious he didn’t know where he was going and started suggesting we pay him the fare and walk the rest of the way. Crispy was having none of it she informed him to take us home or stop the taxi and let us out. He tried to argue but Crispy was having none of it. It was an interesting exchange but as always Crispy won and we got out without paying him. He drove off disgruntled knowing that he had been bettered. After a few more attempts we found a taxi that was on “naval business” and he agreed to take us home before picking up the next naval officer. Home and sorted, backpacks packed and out for tea. Our time here is at an end. We have loved Mumbai and it has done its job in splitting the flights but the wheel turns and it is time to go home to Crispy HQ.
Bare and Crispy, signing off Mumbai, India 🇮🇳
I’m sat outside the digs in a tiny back alley and there are fireworks and gunfire all around. Not little fireworks but chock off ones and numerous bursts of small arms fire. I’ve just asked someone what is going on thinking that a war has started without our knowledge and at any moment tanks are going to roll through the streets. Crispy is on the bed with her eyepod, she’s used to it and hasn’t even asked what’s going on. It turns out it is a “small” festival venerating some obscure god or goddess. Feck knows but I hope they stop shooting the sky soon as we have an early start.
We made our way to the jetty behind the Gateway to India and bought tickets for the ferry. It’s a 10km boat ride to elephantine island on boats that look as if they should have been decommissioned twenty years ago. Each packed to capacity with Indian holidaymakers and day trippers. This stretch of coast is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world and as such is not the crystal clear waters that you would expect of the Arabian Sea. To look at it I would rather go swimming in the Leeds and Liverpool canal than jump in here. Grey green and choppy. The ferry boat was rising and falling 3 feet against the jetty steps and you have to time your step onto the boat with precision. We boarded without incident and took our seats. We had the obligatory photo shoot with a few people on the boat and settled down for the trip. If the number of times you have your photograph taken by complete strangers qualified you for celebrity status then we must be in the top 10 of the rich and famous.
It starts with one or two people milling about, sly selfies with you whilst trying not to let you see that they are doing it. Then the more adventurous will ask “photo” and as soon as you agree a queue forms and your goosed for the next 20 minutes. We estimate we must have had in excess of 100 photos in the last 3 days. Christ knows why.
The boat trip was nice out from Mumbai past the naval dockyards, Tanker holding are and gas refuelling plants. After an hour we arrived at the island. Elephantine island is a network of cave temples built over 1000 years ago into the basalt rock. When the Portuguese took Mumbai they used it as astrategic military base and garrisoned troops here. In there wisdom the used the ancient sculptures and carvings inside the caves for target practice and no original statues remain intact.
They named the island Elephantine because a huge carved elephant stood on the shore. When the British took Mumbai off them we tried to move this enormous sculpture to London but broke it to bits in the process. What remains of it now graces a small park in the centre of Mumbai.
The caves were crawling with the little furry feckers but they kept their distance so all was well.
As stated when we first arrived our digs are up a tiny back alley in and obscure part of the city.
We made our way to the taxi rank and had no luck trying to find a taxi that knew our address.
We must have tried 10 drivers before one agreed to take us home. After a few minutes it was obvious he didn’t know where he was going and started suggesting we pay him the fare and walk the rest of the way. Crispy was having none of it she informed him to take us home or stop the taxi and let us out. He tried to argue but Crispy was having none of it. It was an interesting exchange but as always Crispy won and we got out without paying him. He drove off disgruntled knowing that he had been bettered. After a few more attempts we found a taxi that was on “naval business” and he agreed to take us home before picking up the next naval officer. Home and sorted, backpacks packed and out for tea. Our time here is at an end. We have loved Mumbai and it has done its job in splitting the flights but the wheel turns and it is time to go home to Crispy HQ.
Bare and Crispy, signing off Mumbai, India 🇮🇳
No comments:
Post a Comment