I spent today wandering round Mumbai: or, rather a small part of it. It goes on rather. I started off going to Banganga Tank, which is a great big tank of water (which was an odd shade of green), set deep in some winding side streets. I had an argument with a taxi driver, who wanted to charge me 400 rupees for going there. I found another taxi driver, who was prepared to go ‘by the meter’ and it only cost 70. Much better. It was ever so nice and peaceful at the tank: it was a bit like a lido, but without any swimming going on in there (and, given the murkiness of the depths, I’m not particularly surprised!). There were a few tourists, and some families, and a group of small boys who wanted to make friends with me, because they thought I might be a source of pens (I wasn’t), and some chickens. Wandered further into town, found Mahatma Ghandi’s house, and had a lovely wander round that: it was full of tourists, including some extremely fat Americans who arrived by chauffeur driven air conditioned car. I learnt that Ghandi used to spin, and felt that by taking the manufacture of cloth goods out of the factories, and back to the villages, India’s poor would become less poor, and it was the only way to ensure their survival. He was very keen on spinning himself, and there’s examples of some of the cotton he spun. It was a really cool museum, and I spent ages in there.
Had lunch in the same restaurant Jo and I went to last night (well, it was simple, and the food was quite nice, and the service was reasonable), and then went off hunting for the antiques stalls which were supposed to be about a mile away. Didn’t find them. I found shops selling motor spares, polishing materials, concrete, musical instruments, sewing machines (and spares), electroplating, embroidery threads, material, lunghis, sweets, Chinese food, bangles (I bought 12 bangles for 20 rupees, but I find that Indian ladies have smaller hands than I, so half of them shall be given to Eff), flowers, leather by the yard, plasticised fabric: pretty much everything but the shops I was looking for. It was a very interesting sort of walk, and nicely untouristy. Hundreds and thousands of people all jostling about, and lots of noise in the road – if you took away an Indian driver’s horn, he would not be able to drive. I also found the Mumbai Royal Opera House. It’s a fabulous building, and disintegrating completely. I doubt there’s been an opera there for at least 20 years: apparently it got modified so that it could be used as a cinema, but even that wasn’t enough to keep it open. It’s a shame. You can just see the remnants of the etched glass in the doors, and the carvings at the top of the building are stunning.
I meandered back to Chowpatty beach, to watch the sun go down (again), and ignore the hawkers. It got more and more crowded as the evening went on. I debated going down to the Royal Bombay Yacht Club, but I really need a good clean before I can show my face there, as I’m terribly dusty. I think I’ll go for a fizzy pop tomorrow morning, after the Gateway to India. I’m looking forward to tomorrow: the Prince of Wales Museum (it’s not called that anymore, but it’s far easier to spell!) is open, and that sounds rather fascinating, in a lots of glass cases full of random objects sort of manner. I think I prefer all these odd museums, with glass cases full of things to discover: I’m obviously getting old and more patient with it!
xxx
Comments (1)
These stories are all so amazing.. I’m glad you’re able to blog about your trip!