A Different India: The City Of Mumbai
Udaipur. Thursday, 6.30am. Chilly. Dark. Not many people about, those that are, are wrapped in quilted coats, caps and scarves. We’re in T-shirts. Taxi to airport, flight to Mumbai. Disembark Mumbai a short time later. Just gone 10am and it’s already a sweaty 27 degrees. How is that even possible?
Baggage tags have the 3-letter airport code on – you know, like LHR for Heathrow or LGW for Gatwick. Except that if you’re heading to Mumbai then you now have a bag with a label clearly stating “BOM”. Got to see the dark humour in that, yeah?
Brand new metro system, Line 3, the Aqua Line. All the way to the end, Cuffe Parade station. Fast and efficient. 45 minute journey, about 60p each. Hotel right next to the exit. Must be 30 degrees already. The hotel has Christmas trees, fake snow, a sleigh and a Christmas Carol playlist. Don’t know what’s more weird, the fact we have fake winter in 30 degrees or the fact there’s suddenly a bucketful of Christianity when for the last three weeks it’s been Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism with not the slightest hint of a Virgin Mary or a baby Jesus asleep in the hay, now all of a sudden it’s Santa, glittery baubles and Oh Come All Ye Faithful. Our heads are spinning.
Choosing accommodation in Mumbai isn’t straightforward, it’s basically a choice of one extreme or the other, cheap enough to be risky or international prices for better guarantees. There’s precious little in the way of middle ground. We opt to shell out on the more expensive option, we’ve been bitten by lower standards in India before and have concluded that busting the budget is better than dirty buckets and cockroaches. Which is how we come to be looking out across South Mumbai from the 15th floor of the President Hotel.
(Michaela says it’s worth every penny for the bathroom alone. After three weeks of showers where the water pressure was such that we had to run around to get wet, this one is heaven).
Mumbai is a different India. There are taxis instead of tuk-tuks, people with dogs on leads, and not a cow in sight. Business districts and financial quarters occupy infinitely more space than chowks, wide tree lined streets are not rammed with horn blowing traffic and some drivers even stop to let us cross. It is, in a nutshell, a city which is far more recognisable as such than most Indian cities: there’s more than just the metro to make Mumbai look familiar.
That’s not to say this bustling, authoritative city is lacking in tradition, absolutely not so, as we are first to discover at the hive of activity which is the Sassoon Dock. This fabulous, manic fishing harbour and market is steeped in tradition having been operational since 1875, and, as we make our way around, it’s obvious that some of its practices are little changed in all that time. The wooden boats look battered and unsafe, fishermen decant the catch into heavy plastic baskets – which they then throw upwards from deck to quay where they are athletically caught midair by waiting colleagues without spilling a single fish.
Dozens and dozens of women sit all day on the dirty wet quay shelling prawns and descaling fish, working their way through mini mountains as more and more boats dock every hour. The sheer quantity of secondary jobs is startling: ice makers and deliverers, fishing net repairers, diesel pump attendants, oil suppliers and, last but not least, caterers delivering meals for returning boatmen. There’s an entire micro economy here supporting the fishing industry itself.
It also stinks beyond belief. In a country where it’s not uncommon to have to hold your breath, Sassoon Dock stakes a claim for a seriously unwanted accolade: Worst Stench On Earth. Rotting fish, discarded shells baking in the sun, the quay awash with fish oil and blood, the smell of fishing nets drying….and then, at a point where one can only assume the fishermen, err, relieve themselves, the whole putrid cloud is laced with the stench of stale urine. Is that graphic enough? Imagine working here all day, sitting on the wet quay, handling seafood for eight hours or more. Envious we are not.
Despite all that, watching this hive of activity is fascinating, an absolutely non-stop workload for hundreds of people. Away from this rather unique setting, Mumbai’s greatest asset is for us its copious supply of outrageously grand buildings, there are some fantastic examples of gratuitously wonderful architectural masterpieces. We wander past many…
The incredibly majestic Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, museums and public buildings with the hallmark of the best of British colonisation (say what you like about the British Empire but boy we knew how to build railway stations – just look at Mumbai Central!) and a whole gamut of head-turning glory and glamour. At the University of Mumbai, there’s even the Rajabai Tower, a clocktower based on the Elizabeth Tower (as in Big Ben, synonymous with London), designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott, he of St Pancras fame.
Mumbai, not London
Strung between the impressive buildings and leafy streets, a succession of maidans provide wide open green spaces where back to back boundaries encircle numerous cricket squares. There must be hundreds of organised matches (players in their whites, umpires correctly attired) taking place at any one time in cities like Mumbai and Kolkata, no wonder India keeps producing cricketers of quality.
Back down at the seafront, the Gateway Of India stands tall and proud, commemorating the first visit by a British monarch to India when George V landed here in 1911. This triumphal arch, not actually completed until 1924, soon became the ceremonial entry point for visiting royalty and dignitaries from across the World and subsequently the principal symbol by which Mumbai was recognised. Poignantly, it also served as the exit point for the last troops of the British Army when India achieved independence in 1948. That must have been a moment of huge excitement and national pride, seeing the very last of the Empire symbolically leaving via the Gate itself.
Close to the Gateway these days, ferries depart regularly for Elephanta Island where a collection of cave temples pay homage to the Gods Hindu and Shiva via extensive carvings hewn into the basalt rock. Most of the carvings are thought to date from the 6th century and have endured changing periods of sanctity – closed off and isolated by the Portuguese as they sought to impose Catholicism, protected from further damage (but not resurrected as places of worship) by the British, restored fully by the Indian Government in the 1970s. It is today a popular pilgrimage site for visitors from across India.
LImited time means we don’t, unfortunately, get to visit the famous dobhi ghat, which was on our list until some shenanigans with Air India forced us into a visit to their local office and restricted the time available. Something had to give, so regrettably the world’s biggest open air laundry got sidelined.
And so our run of four cities is done and it’s time to head south to Goa. As we wander out of the beating sun and back into the hotel lobby for the last time, the mixed and heady scent of cumin and incense drifts through the air – accompanied first by Ding Dong Merrily On High and then by Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.
Santa himself steps out of the shadows and hands Michaela a couple of chocolate bars. We are still wiping sweat from our brow as we pass the pile of fake snow and two plastic reindeer.
Incongruous or what. They’ll be serving figgy pudding curry next.
29 Comments
Arvind P
Being a resident of Mumbai, I can safely vouch that you have captured the vibes of Mumbai quite well. Please do try our fabulous street food during your stay.
Eha Carr
OMG, you two! A hugely Merry Christmas first of all – it is nearly 5pm on Christmas Day here as I keyboard this! Not that it could be anything but that for you at the moment:) ! Trust you two to manage > the obligatory Gateway to India and even Elephanta Caves ‘done’ already and you even found a smiling Santa . . . wonder what figgy pudding curry would taste like . . .huh?! Wonderful photos of the beautiful historical buildings – ‘Mumbai, not London’ as you say . . . but the ones I am looking at are the women shelling prawns for their crust . . . can you imagine doing that hour after hour and day by day with no other future in sight . . . makes one think . . . hugs and huge thanks . . . and my mind is racing ahead to Portuguese Goa, which must be the next and longer stay . . . blessings . . .
Phil & Michaela
Neither of us would want to be employed on that dock, that’s for sure. Mumbai was unexpectedly grand, Eha, more so than we ever imagined
Lynette d'Arty-Cross
Figgy pudding curry? I don’t even want to imagine what that would taste like although I’m sure it’s a better taste equivalent than those olfactory adventures you mention. 😉 I’ve experienced the fake snow and the heat that you mention and yes, I always find it to be a bit of an odd juxtaposition. Safe travels and Happy Christmas. 🎄
Phil & Michaela
Cheers Lynette, all season’s best wishes to you too x
Monkey's Tale
Mumbai does have stunning architecture, but we saw plenty of cows. One was trying to get into the Ferragamo shoe store, the contrast of which made us giggle. Maybe it has cleaned up a bit in the last seven years because your descriptions don’t sound like the same city. Hope you’re having a wonderful Christmas. Maggie
Phil & Michaela
We spent our time in South Mumbai given our limited time there, and it was very different from other cities. Felt quite westernised in parts.
Alison
So glad to see you still write so lyrically after your short break. It’s making me rethink India. What fantastic buildings and all so English. Not sure about the stinky market though! You definitely made the right choice with the hotel
Phil & Michaela
It’s a much more recognisable city than we expected it to be, Ali. Felt very different.
Helen Devries
So the fish dock is still old India…..
Phil & Michaela
Smelt like it…..
Toonsarah
I’ve never considered Mumbai as a destination (I tend to prefer more rural India or at least smaller cities), but it sounds so different that I’m now tempted. I would love brave the stink to take photos around the fish dock, although persuading Chris to linger long enough might be difficult as he doesn’t even really like the smell of fresh fish 😆 Elephanta Island also really appeals and some of the buildings look amazing!
Phil & Michaela
Quite different from what we expected, though we did stick to South Mumbai so obviously didn’t see all sides. The British certainly left an architectural mark, though!
WanderingCanadians
I’d gladly shell out more money for no cockroaches either! The architecture looks gorgeous. Not sure I could get use to the smell of rotting fish. Hope you had a lovely Christmas.
Phil & Michaela
Splendid city though, enjoyed our few days there
Lookoom
This is a part of India that I am unfamiliar with, so your perspective is interesting, both in terms of the traditions of the port and the westernised neighbourhoods of the city. I am familiar with the dilemma of choosing between staying in local-style accommodation or an international hotel; there are advantages to both.
Phil & Michaela
Mumbai was a surprise…. and now that we’re in Goa, it feels like we’ve left India and entered a different country…
grandmisadventures
Stunning architecture, temples carved into caves, and even seeing Santa- seems like a great time all around 🙂 I hope you had a wonderful Christmas
Phil & Michaela
It was, though Christmas turned out to be…..err….different. Happy new year to you all Meg ❤️
Annie Berger
You were brave or adventurous sticking it out on the docks for so long. What an almost unbelievable contrast with the elegant and stately British architecture of the train station, palace, etc. I think my head would have been spinning.
Phil & Michaela
South Mumbai (the only part we saw) is very much the modern face of India…the strangest bit was seeing people with dogs on leads when everywhere else there’s only street dogs.
Limentinus
Thank you!
Phil & Michaela
Thank you for what, my friend?
Limentinus
For posting.
Phil & Michaela
😁
Latitude Adjustment: A Tale of Two Wanderers
This is great folks! Very educational and so colorful. Amazing place.
Phil & Michaela
Just a bit different from the other major cities of India
Bevan
Thanks for a nice article about my home city Mumbai. I stumbled upon your blog while researching Malawi. I think you would have added that most of the architecture in Mumbai is Indo Saracenic, which, although made during British colonial times, blends Indian, Mughal and Gothic architectural styles into something unique.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Bevan – Malawi is a fabulous adventure country but not without logistical difficulties. We’re here if you need any advice or guidance