I’m back in Mumbai: I’ve got a lovely old hotel, from 1922. Proper colonial, from the twilight of the Raj. Even better, the internet here is free, and it’s five minutes walk from the glorious old Victoria Terminus (but it’s not called that any more) train station. I’ve just waved Jo off back to Pune. I’m going to miss her, but I have some nice plans for the next couple of days. There’s a walk to go on tomorrow, with a bazaar to look round, and then, on Tuesday, I shall go museuming. I’ve been to two lovely museums in Pune, full of all sorts of interesting knick knacks and curios in glass cases: one had some really beautiful sarees, and embroidered children’s clothes, and a whole room done up like a mughal’s palace. The other was full of entirely random things: the odd motheaten looking seal; an elephant’s scull; a portrait of George V done in ‘nail art’ on a giant piece of paper in an elaborated carved wooden case; Edward VII in embroidery; examples of pottery; and several scary looking posters inveigling one to avoid Alcohol and Tobacco on pain of lowering one’s academic achievements!
Yesterday, we went to the Taj Mahal. It was absolutely beautiful. We finally got there as dusk was beginning to fall (we were on the state organised tour – the problem with state organised tours is that there’s an awful lot of being rushed and an awful lot of eating lunch!), and the dust and the low light levels made it magical. I just managed to squeeze into the dome itself – it was pitch black in there, so I had to let my camera do the seeing for me, with its flash. Despite all the crowds and crowds of people, it was a peaceful sort of place. And there were lots of children running round, and climbing up and down, and laughing and playing. All the men looked such a drab lot – they’ve mostly adopted western dress (with some of the foulest knitted sleeveless jumpers – I forget the technical term – knitted with love, but out of horrible wool). The ladies, in their brightly coloured sarees and shalwar kameez made a contrast. They love acid bright colours: colours that really glow! The trip was worth getting up at 6 am, and a three hour train journey (we were very lucky – the guard let us have his reserved seats: I think because we didn’t argue about being in the corridor. We had ‘waitlisted’ reserved seats, which bought us the right to sit down if someone else cancelled, and were far down the list), and much bumping on a bus, and then a four hour journey home. I’m not sure why the train was so late, but I was very glad that we’d got seats on the way home, even if the gentleman two seats down was snoring fit to wake the dead! He sounded positively adenoidal!
I’ve more or less solved the horrendous poverty problem for myself: Jo and I bought a box of sweets on the platform at Agra. They were local sweets, made from pumpkin, and rather sickly after one or two. So we gave the rest of the box to the little children who were begging, dishing out one sweet at a time. There were some very sticky small beggars after that, but they looked so pleased! And we could see them eating the food – it’s a much nicer way of dealing with things, because then we know they’re getting something rather than being controlled by someone else. Still, I intend to get the Brownies onto fundraising for them, perhaps as something to do for Thinking Day (when we Think about all the Brownies and Guides and Girl Scouts round the world). That would be more practical and helpful in the long term. I do long, though, to take some of those children off and give them a hearty meal and a good scrub! Doubtless, they’d be filthy again within the hour.
It being Sunday, there were lots of impromptu cricket matches going on in the streets round here when we walked out to find a bookshop (I’ve had to buy books, I have run out of reading matter – they are so much cheaper than in England, I shall have to be restrained. Was very pleased to see that ‘What they don’t teach you at Harvard Business School’ is still in print – Dad has had a copy since it was first published, and there is salient information in there!). Jo is really rather good at fielding errant plastic balls and returning them to their owners. I rather wanted to join in, but no girls were playing, and there was nowhere safe for my bag to go….
Have managed to be bitten, three times: but my super-strength Jungle Formula anti-mosquito repellent is evidently working. Jo hadn’t been so diligent, and has managed to be bitten several times more.
We spent this evening on Chowpatty Beach, which is, like the rest of India, rather more rubbish strewn than one would like: but safe, and full of families, and hawkers wandering round and selling windmills, and nuts, and candyfloss in lurid shades of pink and orange. There were some chaps with plastic toy cars and a motorbike, and they were trundling round the toddlers in these things for 10 rupees a go. Some brave souls were swimming, which I don’t think I’d do – the water looked like Southend on a bad day, and was miles out. We avoided tar, as there didn’t seem to be any. Hurrah!
I’m enjoying myself and I’m in no huge hurry to come home quite yet. So far, I think this is the best trip I’ve been on!
xxx
