And now! The very event that every lady would look forward to - Mahendi!!!!!!!
In the invitation it said 4pm. Angana was not up for it but Emma was. So Emma and I met downstairs at the lobby and got ourselves an auto and off we went!
Guess what! As we arrived at the club, the people just started to decorate the place and Anju was just getting her Mahendi done, which would take hours!
"The party is not going to start until 6:30pm." Anju said.
Well that's great! Because we was told that Mahendi supposed to start at 4pm!
Here we learned: Everything in India is not going to go according to plan, so don't plan. Just be very very late!
So we went back to the hotel and I continue to nap.
Showing posts with label Mumbai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mumbai. Show all posts
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
1 & a Half day in Mumbai - Final
I am going to finish this fast because I can't wait to get on to the next destination.
I woke up at 7am and relax on the couch until Dheepa woke up.
Shops are not open until 10am so we watched a movie on her laptop - The Road to Sangam, and had breakfast.
And then we get ready and went out to find our guy who promised to take us to the tailor.
And then we realised something is dodgy because he said he will take me and Dheepa can stay. Dheepa insist that she will not leave me alone.
We were at the tailor and it was close (for some strange reason), so we walked around a bit and found a tailor.
The blouse was ready to be picked up at 2pm
We went to those jewelry shop to pick up some accessories to go with the saree. Oh my God these men are fast in picking the right size and the right colour. I ended up with many colourful bangles at INR 35.
I also picked up some pretty ornamental Bindee. The little jewel Indian girl stick on their forehead.
And then we went to the facial parlor to do all the girlie staff like threading, waxing, manicure and pedicure.
I had a latte at Cafe Coffee Day.
And then we rushed back and had lunch at High Point - Dosa and Cheeku (ciku) shake.
And then we went to pick up the blouse. It was perfect, beautifully stitched.
And then we went home to get ready to leave for Mumbai domestic airport to meet Anju and the convoy.
After many phone calls and traffic jam and people selling strawberries and funny haha later, we arrived at the Domestic airport.
It was a very nice airport.
And I forgot how tall Anju was.
We bid farewell with Dheepa, hopped on the van and the 9 hours journey to Kolhapur begun.
It was 6:30pm.
I woke up at 7am and relax on the couch until Dheepa woke up.
Shops are not open until 10am so we watched a movie on her laptop - The Road to Sangam, and had breakfast.
And then we get ready and went out to find our guy who promised to take us to the tailor.
And then we realised something is dodgy because he said he will take me and Dheepa can stay. Dheepa insist that she will not leave me alone.
We were at the tailor and it was close (for some strange reason), so we walked around a bit and found a tailor.
The blouse was ready to be picked up at 2pm
We went to those jewelry shop to pick up some accessories to go with the saree. Oh my God these men are fast in picking the right size and the right colour. I ended up with many colourful bangles at INR 35.
I also picked up some pretty ornamental Bindee. The little jewel Indian girl stick on their forehead.
And then we went to the facial parlor to do all the girlie staff like threading, waxing, manicure and pedicure.
I had a latte at Cafe Coffee Day.
And then we rushed back and had lunch at High Point - Dosa and Cheeku (ciku) shake.
And then we went to pick up the blouse. It was perfect, beautifully stitched.
And then we went home to get ready to leave for Mumbai domestic airport to meet Anju and the convoy.
After many phone calls and traffic jam and people selling strawberries and funny haha later, we arrived at the Domestic airport.
It was a very nice airport.
And I forgot how tall Anju was.
We bid farewell with Dheepa, hopped on the van and the 9 hours journey to Kolhapur begun.
It was 6:30pm.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
1 & half day in Mumbai - Part 5
When we arrived at the Churchgate Railway Station, the after office hour crowd was there too. There was easily thousands of them!
It was a very grand, very dirty, very overused, but also very well maintain.
Because it was so crowded, and we are quite tired, Dheepa and I left almost immediately. Practically like fish swimming against the current, just to get out.
So, we continued with our mission to look for Fab-India, however, according to our source, Fab-India is in Juhu Street, which was not near where we were, and then according to another source, we should be able to find a Fab-India in central Mumbai.
It is getting late, so Dheepa suggest let's just go around Juhu street since the Punjabi couple lives not far from there.
So we told the driver to send us to the couple's home, for a visit.
It took us half an hour to get there.
The couple lives in the most expensive area in Mumbai, and they were very very nice.
Uncle was not feeling so well, but he was still jolly and chat with us. And auntie was one nice lady.
According to Dheepa, they met when she and her husband was living in Vietnam. The old man (sorry I forgot his name) was a banker (That explains the wealth) and his sons are now banker too.
We showed the old lady my sari and she complimented it and said it was very nice colour and it was perfect for the temple wedding.
And then we joke about not getting a blouse since we are running out of time.
They also advised me on do and don't in Goa, "Don't be too adventures," Uncle said, when I told them I will be staying near Anjuna beach, "Those peoples can be notorious."
They invited me to join them for dinner when I come back from Kolhapur.
Anyhow... I think I was almost half dead now and we are still have not found me a saree blouse.
We told the driver we are looking for Fab India in Juhu street and he took us marry go round so place else and finally we are in Juhu which is not quite Juhu street and then Dheepa's friend's called said need to pass her something so we are going to meet him in Infinity Mall.
45minutes later, we can't find Fab-India and we were already in Infinity Mall and found Dheepa's friend who was a film editor and he is getting married in Varanasi in a week time.
He invited me to his wedding.
We were home an hour later... which was around 10pm.
Tired and hungry, we went to the chat shop down the street to have some snack.
We bought coupons for vada-pav (vadai sandwhich) and belpuri (rice salad). The must try in guide book. And then I saw Panni puri on the menu. I asked Dheepa what panni puri was, and Dheepa had no idea so she asked the boss behind the cash register.
The boss looked at us like 'how can you not know what it is?' and then explain in (more like mumble) in Hindi it's something small and crispy, with some puffy thing inside, and then dung in spicy liquid, "and you should eat it as a whole." He gesture putting the entire bite size thing into his mouth with a satisfying look on his face.
"Try first." He said.
Ok... we went ahead to get our vada-pav and belpuri, and the boss showed us the Panni puri stand and told the boy what we want.
Everyone was lining up to get their Panni puri. The guy behind the stand took out a puri (crispy ball about the size of a ping pong ball) from of a big round container that look like a giant size cookie jar, punch a hole with his thumb, fill it up with bits and pieces that looks like corn, and then dung it in a metal jar, and the thing came out filled with spicy liquid.
This is why you have to put the entire thing in your mouth and take your time to savour the juice and the crunchy deep fried puri.
It was fantastic! Spicy, sweet, and salty at the same time.
Dheepa and I liked it very much. And because of that, we didn't enjoy the vada-pav and Belpuri as much.
Vada-pav was vada sandwhich - very straight forward - vada + bun = vada-pav. No vege, no sauce. Just that!
Belpuri was puff rice salad with some deep fried cruncy stuff all over it. It was nice... but not as nice as Panni puri ;)
So, my favorite snack in India is = Panni Puri!!!!!!!
Panni = water
Puri - deep fried ping pong ball!
Tomorrow, I will be going to Kolhapur and I have not found my blouse. This is a big huge disaster.
And then we saw this accessories shop next to the chat shop, so we stopped by and 'look at' what they are selling.
Suddenly, Dheepa asked the girl, "Do you know any tailor that can stich a blouse in 2 hours?"
"Oh yes!" The girl said, and then a guy who can't speak English came along and said he can take us there tomorrow morning.
Apparently if we go there (because we are not local) the tailor might cheat us. So, it is better for him to bring us.
So, we are going to get a blouse stitch before I leave to Kolhapur :)
It was a very grand, very dirty, very overused, but also very well maintain.
Because it was so crowded, and we are quite tired, Dheepa and I left almost immediately. Practically like fish swimming against the current, just to get out.
So, we continued with our mission to look for Fab-India, however, according to our source, Fab-India is in Juhu Street, which was not near where we were, and then according to another source, we should be able to find a Fab-India in central Mumbai.
It is getting late, so Dheepa suggest let's just go around Juhu street since the Punjabi couple lives not far from there.
So we told the driver to send us to the couple's home, for a visit.
It took us half an hour to get there.
The couple lives in the most expensive area in Mumbai, and they were very very nice.
Uncle was not feeling so well, but he was still jolly and chat with us. And auntie was one nice lady.
According to Dheepa, they met when she and her husband was living in Vietnam. The old man (sorry I forgot his name) was a banker (That explains the wealth) and his sons are now banker too.
We showed the old lady my sari and she complimented it and said it was very nice colour and it was perfect for the temple wedding.
And then we joke about not getting a blouse since we are running out of time.
They also advised me on do and don't in Goa, "Don't be too adventures," Uncle said, when I told them I will be staying near Anjuna beach, "Those peoples can be notorious."
They invited me to join them for dinner when I come back from Kolhapur.
Anyhow... I think I was almost half dead now and we are still have not found me a saree blouse.
We told the driver we are looking for Fab India in Juhu street and he took us marry go round so place else and finally we are in Juhu which is not quite Juhu street and then Dheepa's friend's called said need to pass her something so we are going to meet him in Infinity Mall.
45minutes later, we can't find Fab-India and we were already in Infinity Mall and found Dheepa's friend who was a film editor and he is getting married in Varanasi in a week time.
He invited me to his wedding.
We were home an hour later... which was around 10pm.
Tired and hungry, we went to the chat shop down the street to have some snack.
We bought coupons for vada-pav (vadai sandwhich) and belpuri (rice salad). The must try in guide book. And then I saw Panni puri on the menu. I asked Dheepa what panni puri was, and Dheepa had no idea so she asked the boss behind the cash register.
The boss looked at us like 'how can you not know what it is?' and then explain in (more like mumble) in Hindi it's something small and crispy, with some puffy thing inside, and then dung in spicy liquid, "and you should eat it as a whole." He gesture putting the entire bite size thing into his mouth with a satisfying look on his face.
"Try first." He said.
Ok... we went ahead to get our vada-pav and belpuri, and the boss showed us the Panni puri stand and told the boy what we want.
Everyone was lining up to get their Panni puri. The guy behind the stand took out a puri (crispy ball about the size of a ping pong ball) from of a big round container that look like a giant size cookie jar, punch a hole with his thumb, fill it up with bits and pieces that looks like corn, and then dung it in a metal jar, and the thing came out filled with spicy liquid.
This is why you have to put the entire thing in your mouth and take your time to savour the juice and the crunchy deep fried puri.
It was fantastic! Spicy, sweet, and salty at the same time.
Dheepa and I liked it very much. And because of that, we didn't enjoy the vada-pav and Belpuri as much.
Vada-pav was vada sandwhich - very straight forward - vada + bun = vada-pav. No vege, no sauce. Just that!
Belpuri was puff rice salad with some deep fried cruncy stuff all over it. It was nice... but not as nice as Panni puri ;)
So, my favorite snack in India is = Panni Puri!!!!!!!
Panni = water
Puri - deep fried ping pong ball!
Tomorrow, I will be going to Kolhapur and I have not found my blouse. This is a big huge disaster.
And then we saw this accessories shop next to the chat shop, so we stopped by and 'look at' what they are selling.
Suddenly, Dheepa asked the girl, "Do you know any tailor that can stich a blouse in 2 hours?"
"Oh yes!" The girl said, and then a guy who can't speak English came along and said he can take us there tomorrow morning.
Apparently if we go there (because we are not local) the tailor might cheat us. So, it is better for him to bring us.
So, we are going to get a blouse stitch before I leave to Kolhapur :)
Monday, April 11, 2011
1 & half day in Mumbai - Part 4
Ok... Enough for hating myself for not taking photo. I blame Dheepa.
Anyway, it was great to be there looking at the monument, blaming myself for not being Indian enough to don't plan, just do it. I also blame no one warn me before head.
So... along the way there was many army and police since it was right next to the Taj hotel. Security is extremely tight here. They can't afford to lose another life, the Cricket World Cup going on, it is better to tighten up the security to protect fellow human being.
So road was a narrow one way street and you can't turn back unless you are riding on a horse and carriage decorated with tons of flowers and gold.
The driver dropped us on the side of Taj Hotel, we walked passed police, soldiers and mix of foreign and local visitors, passed a very smelly public toilet with vendor selling flowers and big huge balloon, and occassionally 1 feet long cricket bat, pen, watch and boiled peanuts.
After passing through the security scanner, we are in the compound of the Gateway of India!!!!!
We looked at the Gateway of India and sigh how grand it was, how nice the sunset was, and those pigeon pecking and shitting away spreading virus/bacteria, and how disgusting it was for peoples to spit all over the place like the entire place was a public toilet!
"Just now I saw a guy who spit 3 times in a row!" Dheepa said, as I watched a dusty woman clad in sari with a dusty child in her arm and spit about 2 feet away from me as she walks, "How disgusting."
"Spitting is fine. I am surprise where he got some much of flam!"
We laughed. What else can you do?
So we walked at ease, Dheepa fished out her Sony point and shoot and we took some photos (which I'm still waiting for her to send them to me).
The wind was so cool we forgot about the heat in the afternoon, and join the crowd looking out at the Arabian Sea.
It was very nice, and surprisingly calm (with ranging horns and traffic noise 5 meters away).
We spent about 20 minutes there and we decided it's time to go.
As we walking back to the main entrance, an old man holding some prayer stuff and dressed like a priest, obviously fake one saw us, or rather, saw me and walk towards us.
As I had been a poor tourist with nothing much to offer for many times now, I instinctively (trying) to walk away before he catch me, but...
Dheepa, she paused and wondered what the old man was doing, despite me trying to drag her away.
And the old ma started doing all kinds of "ritual" on her - mumbling away whatever it was, don a red dot on her forehead, tying a multi-coloured string on her wrist (This is when she, "What is he doing?!" on top of her voice) and then gave her some candy like flower looking beats on her palm...
And then he turned to me and done the same thing...
Dheepa, is more a tourist than Indian.
So after he finish mumbling away, pointed at the string on our wrist, "This is for good luck." And then the candy like flower looking beats, "This is sweet."
Both of us looked at her, wide eyed.
"And now I will need some money."
All in less than 10 second.
I looked at Dheepa, and Dheepa looked at me, she opened her bag, fished out her purse, and gave the man INR20.
The man thanked us and walked away... Happily...
Business must be good that day.
Dheepa was suspicious of the guy might have voodooed us, so she quickly called a friend to find out if they know anything.. Again... these few calls away seems to work for everything.
Or she was just paranoid.
Anyhow, her friend said it's ok. don't worry about it. Just throw and wash away anything the fellow don on us if we don't want to keep them.
So that's what we did.
It was quite funny actually.
Anyhow.. it was getting late. So we decided to continue with our mission. But the driver had other plan for us - the Churchgate Railway station.
Anyway, it was great to be there looking at the monument, blaming myself for not being Indian enough to don't plan, just do it. I also blame no one warn me before head.
So... along the way there was many army and police since it was right next to the Taj hotel. Security is extremely tight here. They can't afford to lose another life, the Cricket World Cup going on, it is better to tighten up the security to protect fellow human being.
So road was a narrow one way street and you can't turn back unless you are riding on a horse and carriage decorated with tons of flowers and gold.
The driver dropped us on the side of Taj Hotel, we walked passed police, soldiers and mix of foreign and local visitors, passed a very smelly public toilet with vendor selling flowers and big huge balloon, and occassionally 1 feet long cricket bat, pen, watch and boiled peanuts.
After passing through the security scanner, we are in the compound of the Gateway of India!!!!!
We looked at the Gateway of India and sigh how grand it was, how nice the sunset was, and those pigeon pecking and shitting away spreading virus/bacteria, and how disgusting it was for peoples to spit all over the place like the entire place was a public toilet!
"Just now I saw a guy who spit 3 times in a row!" Dheepa said, as I watched a dusty woman clad in sari with a dusty child in her arm and spit about 2 feet away from me as she walks, "How disgusting."
"Spitting is fine. I am surprise where he got some much of flam!"
We laughed. What else can you do?
So we walked at ease, Dheepa fished out her Sony point and shoot and we took some photos (which I'm still waiting for her to send them to me).
The wind was so cool we forgot about the heat in the afternoon, and join the crowd looking out at the Arabian Sea.
It was very nice, and surprisingly calm (with ranging horns and traffic noise 5 meters away).
We spent about 20 minutes there and we decided it's time to go.
As we walking back to the main entrance, an old man holding some prayer stuff and dressed like a priest, obviously fake one saw us, or rather, saw me and walk towards us.
As I had been a poor tourist with nothing much to offer for many times now, I instinctively (trying) to walk away before he catch me, but...
Dheepa, she paused and wondered what the old man was doing, despite me trying to drag her away.
And the old ma started doing all kinds of "ritual" on her - mumbling away whatever it was, don a red dot on her forehead, tying a multi-coloured string on her wrist (This is when she, "What is he doing?!" on top of her voice) and then gave her some candy like flower looking beats on her palm...
And then he turned to me and done the same thing...
Dheepa, is more a tourist than Indian.
So after he finish mumbling away, pointed at the string on our wrist, "This is for good luck." And then the candy like flower looking beats, "This is sweet."
Both of us looked at her, wide eyed.
"And now I will need some money."
All in less than 10 second.
I looked at Dheepa, and Dheepa looked at me, she opened her bag, fished out her purse, and gave the man INR20.
The man thanked us and walked away... Happily...
Business must be good that day.
Dheepa was suspicious of the guy might have voodooed us, so she quickly called a friend to find out if they know anything.. Again... these few calls away seems to work for everything.
Or she was just paranoid.
Anyhow, her friend said it's ok. don't worry about it. Just throw and wash away anything the fellow don on us if we don't want to keep them.
So that's what we did.
It was quite funny actually.
Anyhow.. it was getting late. So we decided to continue with our mission. But the driver had other plan for us - the Churchgate Railway station.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
1 & half day in Mumbai - Part 3
The lunch and sari shopping was productive and fun... in a way. at least I can strike off Paan from my list on my next visit. However, I will definitely get cotton saris on my next trip.
So, we sort of completed our shopping, which only some minor accessories and sari blouse left for hunting, we are heading to Central Mumbai with Dheepa's "change of plan" - we are going to look for Fab-India and some sight seeing (Surprise surprise!!!!!).
Because India and Indians are ever changing, all you need is a little patience and be ready to go with the (very super fast kind of) flow, or you will get, "This is now how its done here," lecture again.
It was almost 3pm when we came out of City Mall. It was getting pretty hot (though the wind was cooling), and we had no idea where and who our driver is.
So, Dheepa did the usual 5 phone calls away routine.
25 minutes later, we found our driver, who was waiting there for like more than 25 minutes in a white colour van.
I would love to figure out why Dheepa spoke to the feller who booked the van than to ask for the driver's number instead. Well, it's how its done here, everyone can be your brother, your friend, and total stranger so better let the local do what they do best - 5 phone calls away routine.
But Dheepa is not quite a local, but... never mind. I stopped minding already.
So we got on the van and took off to the city.
There was tol when crossing the causeway.
Dheepa saw some pretty cool residential area against the hill on the other side of the causeway.
She asked the driver if it was (insert a name of the place), and the driver said yes. Dheepa turn to me, "Would you like to experience some Punjabi's hospitality?"
"Sure." I'm up for all things Indian.
"Great!"
And she started making a call.
Long time ago, Dheepa and husband was living in Vietnam. The Indian expat's community was very small in India, so everyone knows everyone. She met these couple there and very soon they became like family. she called them uncle and auntie.
We will stop by their home after we done out things in the City, but I wasn't sure if there will be dinner.
Ok. Now... what were we suppose to do again?
So... about 45 minutes later (traffic was good), we arrived in Central Mumbai.
We took a slow drive through Marine drive and the city is full of beautiful colonial building. It was so cool... Intercontinental Hotel was one of them... and many more. I totally immerse in the beauty of it.
Other than hotels, all the buildings, no matter how beautiful, was covered with a layer of black... something... It used to be green and yellow, I believe.
Anyhow, we drove by Marine drive... It was almost sunset, so a lot of elders, elderly couples, young couples and family with small children are taking a leisurely walk there... Occasionally, you'll find someone giving services like massage and shoe polishing here and there.
As we drove passed a roundabout and saw this really huge mansion that was the police headquarter, also beautifully erected with pride but covered with black thing I mention before.
As we were crossing the city, the driver pointed out a hideous looking multi-stories building because it was some VVIP's residents.
Slowly we arrived to an area full of colonial residential looking places. Rows and rows of beautiful houses with all its already faded glory...
Its glory was so poorly maintained all of them was covered with black thing all over it, but hey! You cannot deny that they were beautiful once many years ago.
"We are going to the Ghandi's house." Dheepa said.
I thought we were looking for Fab-India.
"And he said," She pointed at the driver, "There's nothing much in there to see."
I don't think the driver been in Ghandi's house before, because he dropped us at the wrong street, and we found the house about 2 streets away.
It was very nice. A small part of the house was still under renovation, but all the exhibits are pretty well done.
Ghandi's hand written notes, letter, newspaper articles, photos are well preserved. Painting and sketches of Ghandi, he life stories complete with photo, and an area with miniature/sculpture of events that took part throughout Ghandi's life.
It was weird walking in the house where this great man used to lived and worked. The one man that united India and killed by his own people...
"I have to show you a movie," Dheepa whispers, "It was about Ghandi, but without Ghandi in it."
We spent about 40 minutes in there.
The driver was glad to see us. He thought we went shopping!
Anyway, our next destination was...
This is so far the most beautiful and symbolic destination in Mumbai.
Right next to Taj Hotel!
And Pigeons!!!!!!!
Locals, foreigners, beggars, police, soldiers, tankers, scanner for bombs and the "priest", girls clad in Saris Maharathi style, and the statue of the very popular Maharathi king...
All of Mumbai! Was here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And I left my camera at home...
So much for the very affirmative, "We wouldn't have time for sight seeing."
I am upset now... Stay tune for part 4.
Sulking~~~~~
So, we sort of completed our shopping, which only some minor accessories and sari blouse left for hunting, we are heading to Central Mumbai with Dheepa's "change of plan" - we are going to look for Fab-India and some sight seeing (Surprise surprise!!!!!).
Because India and Indians are ever changing, all you need is a little patience and be ready to go with the (very super fast kind of) flow, or you will get, "This is now how its done here," lecture again.
It was almost 3pm when we came out of City Mall. It was getting pretty hot (though the wind was cooling), and we had no idea where and who our driver is.
So, Dheepa did the usual 5 phone calls away routine.
25 minutes later, we found our driver, who was waiting there for like more than 25 minutes in a white colour van.
I would love to figure out why Dheepa spoke to the feller who booked the van than to ask for the driver's number instead. Well, it's how its done here, everyone can be your brother, your friend, and total stranger so better let the local do what they do best - 5 phone calls away routine.
But Dheepa is not quite a local, but... never mind. I stopped minding already.
So we got on the van and took off to the city.
There was tol when crossing the causeway.
Dheepa saw some pretty cool residential area against the hill on the other side of the causeway.
She asked the driver if it was (insert a name of the place), and the driver said yes. Dheepa turn to me, "Would you like to experience some Punjabi's hospitality?"
"Sure." I'm up for all things Indian.
"Great!"
And she started making a call.
Long time ago, Dheepa and husband was living in Vietnam. The Indian expat's community was very small in India, so everyone knows everyone. She met these couple there and very soon they became like family. she called them uncle and auntie.
We will stop by their home after we done out things in the City, but I wasn't sure if there will be dinner.
Ok. Now... what were we suppose to do again?
So... about 45 minutes later (traffic was good), we arrived in Central Mumbai.
We took a slow drive through Marine drive and the city is full of beautiful colonial building. It was so cool... Intercontinental Hotel was one of them... and many more. I totally immerse in the beauty of it.
Other than hotels, all the buildings, no matter how beautiful, was covered with a layer of black... something... It used to be green and yellow, I believe.
Anyhow, we drove by Marine drive... It was almost sunset, so a lot of elders, elderly couples, young couples and family with small children are taking a leisurely walk there... Occasionally, you'll find someone giving services like massage and shoe polishing here and there.
As we drove passed a roundabout and saw this really huge mansion that was the police headquarter, also beautifully erected with pride but covered with black thing I mention before.
As we were crossing the city, the driver pointed out a hideous looking multi-stories building because it was some VVIP's residents.
Slowly we arrived to an area full of colonial residential looking places. Rows and rows of beautiful houses with all its already faded glory...
Its glory was so poorly maintained all of them was covered with black thing all over it, but hey! You cannot deny that they were beautiful once many years ago.
"We are going to the Ghandi's house." Dheepa said.
I thought we were looking for Fab-India.
"And he said," She pointed at the driver, "There's nothing much in there to see."
I don't think the driver been in Ghandi's house before, because he dropped us at the wrong street, and we found the house about 2 streets away.
It was very nice. A small part of the house was still under renovation, but all the exhibits are pretty well done.
Ghandi's hand written notes, letter, newspaper articles, photos are well preserved. Painting and sketches of Ghandi, he life stories complete with photo, and an area with miniature/sculpture of events that took part throughout Ghandi's life.
It was weird walking in the house where this great man used to lived and worked. The one man that united India and killed by his own people...
"I have to show you a movie," Dheepa whispers, "It was about Ghandi, but without Ghandi in it."
We spent about 40 minutes in there.
The driver was glad to see us. He thought we went shopping!
Anyway, our next destination was...
GATEWAY OF INDIA!!!!!!!!!
This is so far the most beautiful and symbolic destination in Mumbai.
Right next to Taj Hotel!
And Pigeons!!!!!!!
Locals, foreigners, beggars, police, soldiers, tankers, scanner for bombs and the "priest", girls clad in Saris Maharathi style, and the statue of the very popular Maharathi king...
SUNSET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All of Mumbai! Was here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And I left my camera at home...
So much for the very affirmative, "We wouldn't have time for sight seeing."
I am upset now... Stay tune for part 4.
Sulking~~~~~
Sunday, April 3, 2011
1 & half day in Mumbai - Part 2
So, Dheepa and I had really deliscious Thali in Rajdhani.. free flow of bread and rice and dishes and yogurt and sweets for less than RM30, 2 persons!
I can't stop letting out sigh of satisfaction each time I put a handful of food into my mouth... Dheepa was so please she asked, "Is it worth coming to India?"
"Oh yes..." I said, and gobble up the rest of the food.
Rajhani have a special way of working. There are 3 captains on the floor and many servers responsible of different dishes. So, the guy who serve you chapati will not serve you rice, the guy brought you yogurt will not bring you sweets.
Everytime you ask for something, the captain will wave and do a simple hand signal and the right guy will come with the right food. There was no use of calling and shouting.
Very cool.
Though, I do not like Indian sweet very much. But Indian loves their sweets like how they love cricket. Every course will have something sweets in it, and it'll always be dairy based.
A guy came by with a basket of things wrap with betel leaves with a price tag INR20. Dheepa said those are Paan, very good for digestion after a full meal.
You have to do what Indian do when in India, so I took one, opened the outer layer that was not edible, and found it came with a silver leaf.
I had doubt... really... I was not sure if it was a good idea to try it.
As soon as I put it in my mouth... GOSH!!!!!! It felt like I just put Hindu temple in my mouth.
Well... It was not a racist remark. It was sweet... with some areca nut and rose mixture, the after taste was similar to the incent in Hindu temple.
The first thought that crossed my mind was I should spit it out.
Dheepa observed my expression and asked, "Do you like it?"
She obviously liked it, so I politely replied, "Not my favorite."
I finish it anyway, and it was not that bad. Everyone should try it at least once. Not for me, thank you.
We'd spotted a few pretty girls clad in beautiful silk chiffon saris and I went gaga about it...
But Dheepa never fail to put me off with its price - Darn! You can really tell the different from these to the cheap one! I even found sari with LV's logo all over it!
So I kind of accepted that I can't afford the sari I want.
We descended to Nalli and was greeted with rows and rows of colourful and neatly folded fabrics categorised in different price.
Dheepa told them what we looking for, or more like pointing at me and said, "She wants to buy a saree for a temple wedding, and our budget is around 2k to 4k, and the colour must suit her skin tone."
We were lead straight to the INR2k to 4k rows, and very quickly, about 6 to 7 pieces of different colour silk saris lay before us.
All of them felt like really good Thai Silk.
India is one of the largest textile industry in the world, I truly believe the demand of saris made it that way.
How many people in the world actually wrap themselves around 6 meter of cloth and walk at ease like Indian women do?
Indian women ROCKS!
So I spent quite a while in the shop trying on sari to see which is better and finally, I like the purple one with green and gold lining.
I basically ran out of patience.
By the time we paid and came out of City Mall, it was already 3pm. Convinced that we may not find a tailor to get my blouse done, we hired a car to central Mumbai to look for Fab-India.
I can't stop letting out sigh of satisfaction each time I put a handful of food into my mouth... Dheepa was so please she asked, "Is it worth coming to India?"
"Oh yes..." I said, and gobble up the rest of the food.
Rajhani have a special way of working. There are 3 captains on the floor and many servers responsible of different dishes. So, the guy who serve you chapati will not serve you rice, the guy brought you yogurt will not bring you sweets.
Everytime you ask for something, the captain will wave and do a simple hand signal and the right guy will come with the right food. There was no use of calling and shouting.
Very cool.
Though, I do not like Indian sweet very much. But Indian loves their sweets like how they love cricket. Every course will have something sweets in it, and it'll always be dairy based.
A guy came by with a basket of things wrap with betel leaves with a price tag INR20. Dheepa said those are Paan, very good for digestion after a full meal.
You have to do what Indian do when in India, so I took one, opened the outer layer that was not edible, and found it came with a silver leaf.
I had doubt... really... I was not sure if it was a good idea to try it.
As soon as I put it in my mouth... GOSH!!!!!! It felt like I just put Hindu temple in my mouth.
Well... It was not a racist remark. It was sweet... with some areca nut and rose mixture, the after taste was similar to the incent in Hindu temple.
The first thought that crossed my mind was I should spit it out.
Dheepa observed my expression and asked, "Do you like it?"
She obviously liked it, so I politely replied, "Not my favorite."
I finish it anyway, and it was not that bad. Everyone should try it at least once. Not for me, thank you.
We'd spotted a few pretty girls clad in beautiful silk chiffon saris and I went gaga about it...
But Dheepa never fail to put me off with its price - Darn! You can really tell the different from these to the cheap one! I even found sari with LV's logo all over it!
So I kind of accepted that I can't afford the sari I want.
We descended to Nalli and was greeted with rows and rows of colourful and neatly folded fabrics categorised in different price.
Dheepa told them what we looking for, or more like pointing at me and said, "She wants to buy a saree for a temple wedding, and our budget is around 2k to 4k, and the colour must suit her skin tone."
We were lead straight to the INR2k to 4k rows, and very quickly, about 6 to 7 pieces of different colour silk saris lay before us.
All of them felt like really good Thai Silk.
India is one of the largest textile industry in the world, I truly believe the demand of saris made it that way.
How many people in the world actually wrap themselves around 6 meter of cloth and walk at ease like Indian women do?
Indian women ROCKS!
So I spent quite a while in the shop trying on sari to see which is better and finally, I like the purple one with green and gold lining.
I basically ran out of patience.
By the time we paid and came out of City Mall, it was already 3pm. Convinced that we may not find a tailor to get my blouse done, we hired a car to central Mumbai to look for Fab-India.
Friday, March 25, 2011
1 & half day in Mumbai - Part 1
As you know, my mission in India was to attend Anju's wedding.
And then Anju hooked me up with Dheepa to help me do some shopping for Sarees.
Dheepa suggested Sarees may not be practical and hardly anyone stitch Saree blouse in a day now. So she suggested maybe Salwar is a better idea.
So, I said I will get a pair of Saree and a pair of Salwar... so we had to do 2 sets of shopping in one day.
No shops in Mumbai is open until after 10am. So waking up early is not a good idea. However, I woke up with the sound of crows! And many many distant honking filled air.
It was 7am. and it was a beautiful morning.
Dheepa was still fast asleep, so I got up and read my book.
2 chapters later, Dheepa came to ask me if I would like some coffee.
"Sure!"
"Do you want Nescafe instant coffee or filter coffee?"
I gave her a very long, "Errrrrmmmmmm..."
"The coffee is south India coffee, very nice. Would you like to try?"
Sure!"
20 minutes later... Oh my God!!!! The coffee was so nice, I wanted to ask for another cup and bring a few packet home.
Anyway, Dheepa told me she bought the coffee from Chennai because it is difficult to get it else where. But I can get the similar taste in Starbucks, All I have to do is to ask for cafe latte, double shots, without foam. That's what she usually have when she is back in the U.S.
By the way, Starbucks do not exist in India. The Starbucks version in India is Cafe Coffee Day, and they made very good coffee too! Nescafe is also a hit, they have their own cafe. Very cool...
Anyhoo... we also had berries cornflakes with banana for breakfast.
Dheepa briefed me activities for the day during breakfast, which basically was just shopping...
We took an auto rickshaw to Inobit.
Traffic in Mumbai and a ride on auto rickshaw may not be for the faint hearted. Not only it moves crazily fast in the traffic, honk to its heart content, and there was just too many emergency break. The rule of thumb is, as long as there's no accident, there is no problem.
Though, the traffic was not as bad as I thought. But it was flowing with school children walking to school at ease with motorcycle and auto rickshaw zig-zag between them you thought they going to knock those kids down anytime.
There are small shops along the way selling all kind of stuff you could imagine, you may spot a couple of people urinate in the open, vendor selling flowers and small stuff from one car to another, and beggars begging with children in one hand...
The journey took about half an hour, and there was police greeting us at the entrance.
Terrorism is a problem in Mumbai. We can see signboards everywhere that says, "Let's fight terrorism together" and the like. The terrorist attack in 2008 that killed 170 people left many Indian hold grudge against it.
Anyway, police are performing routine check on all shoppers - Check bag, walk through scanner, into the booth, get another scan, and then we are off. They were very friendly though.
Inobit had everything world class you can imagine. Just to mention a few - Mark & Spencer and Mac and a few other well known cafe except Starbucks and 7-eleven.
We went into SS department store. With Dheepa's help, I tried on a few Salwar and picked the green and gold one.
After that we looked at earrings. We spent almost half and hour there picking and making a fuss about everything... everything must put against the dress to see if it match perfectly. well, basically being a pain.
I tell you, Indian women and their matching accessories! How fussy they are to achieve the style and that perfect look. I salute those server who served us with such amount of patience.
Finally, after about 12 earrings later, we decided the traditional looking one is the best.
On the way to the check out counter, we saw a pearl counter with buy one free one promotion. So we picked up 2 sets of pearls necklaces and earrings as Anju's wedding present. That also took quite awhile because we want "NEW ONE!"
So there you go. It was almost 2pm when we left Inobit.
We took another auto rickshaw to City Mall to have lunch in Rajdhani Thali Restaurant.
Dheepa was on the phone many times talking to many peoples, one them was brother who ran a successful Saree supplier/distributor. Honestly I'm not very sure.
Anyway, I heard the word "Nalli" many times. and apparently that's the only shop we will not get cheated because they priced their merchandises. As we were on the escalator to go up to the restaurant, I saw "Nalli" on the ground floor.
"Dheepa..." I tapped her on the shoulder, and point,"Nalli."
And her eyes sparkled, "XXX... listen! There's Nalli in City Mall."
And then Anju hooked me up with Dheepa to help me do some shopping for Sarees.
Dheepa suggested Sarees may not be practical and hardly anyone stitch Saree blouse in a day now. So she suggested maybe Salwar is a better idea.
So, I said I will get a pair of Saree and a pair of Salwar... so we had to do 2 sets of shopping in one day.
No shops in Mumbai is open until after 10am. So waking up early is not a good idea. However, I woke up with the sound of crows! And many many distant honking filled air.
It was 7am. and it was a beautiful morning.
Dheepa was still fast asleep, so I got up and read my book.
2 chapters later, Dheepa came to ask me if I would like some coffee.
"Sure!"
"Do you want Nescafe instant coffee or filter coffee?"
I gave her a very long, "Errrrrmmmmmm..."
"The coffee is south India coffee, very nice. Would you like to try?"
Sure!"
20 minutes later... Oh my God!!!! The coffee was so nice, I wanted to ask for another cup and bring a few packet home.
Anyway, Dheepa told me she bought the coffee from Chennai because it is difficult to get it else where. But I can get the similar taste in Starbucks, All I have to do is to ask for cafe latte, double shots, without foam. That's what she usually have when she is back in the U.S.
By the way, Starbucks do not exist in India. The Starbucks version in India is Cafe Coffee Day, and they made very good coffee too! Nescafe is also a hit, they have their own cafe. Very cool...
Anyhoo... we also had berries cornflakes with banana for breakfast.
Indian fact:
Milk is essential in India. Everyone drink milk and is very fussy about it. Any milk that is not full cream and fat reduced, is water.
Milk is essential in India. Everyone drink milk and is very fussy about it. Any milk that is not full cream and fat reduced, is water.
Dheepa briefed me activities for the day during breakfast, which basically was just shopping...
Destination 1: Inobit
What: Buy Salwar, and accessories for Salwar
Estimated time: 1 hour
Destination 2: City mall
What: Lunch
Estimated time: Half an hour to an hour
Destination 3: Mumbai Central
What: Buy Saree
Estimated time: Travelling, 1 hour, shopping, give and take about 1 hour
Destination 4: FabIndia, Mumbai Central
What: Buy Matching Saree blouse
Estimated time: Travelling, give and take about half an hour (depending on traffic); Shopping, give and take about an hour.
What: Buy Salwar, and accessories for Salwar
Estimated time: 1 hour
Destination 2: City mall
What: Lunch
Estimated time: Half an hour to an hour
Destination 3: Mumbai Central
What: Buy Saree
Estimated time: Travelling, 1 hour, shopping, give and take about 1 hour
Destination 4: FabIndia, Mumbai Central
What: Buy Matching Saree blouse
Estimated time: Travelling, give and take about half an hour (depending on traffic); Shopping, give and take about an hour.
So that basically takes up the entire day. And we do not think we have much time for sight seeing (She had not seen Mumbai, by the way...), So I left the camera at home and we went out around 10:30am.
We took an auto rickshaw to Inobit.
Traffic in Mumbai and a ride on auto rickshaw may not be for the faint hearted. Not only it moves crazily fast in the traffic, honk to its heart content, and there was just too many emergency break. The rule of thumb is, as long as there's no accident, there is no problem.
Though, the traffic was not as bad as I thought. But it was flowing with school children walking to school at ease with motorcycle and auto rickshaw zig-zag between them you thought they going to knock those kids down anytime.
There are small shops along the way selling all kind of stuff you could imagine, you may spot a couple of people urinate in the open, vendor selling flowers and small stuff from one car to another, and beggars begging with children in one hand...
The journey took about half an hour, and there was police greeting us at the entrance.
Terrorism is a problem in Mumbai. We can see signboards everywhere that says, "Let's fight terrorism together" and the like. The terrorist attack in 2008 that killed 170 people left many Indian hold grudge against it.
Anyway, police are performing routine check on all shoppers - Check bag, walk through scanner, into the booth, get another scan, and then we are off. They were very friendly though.
Inobit had everything world class you can imagine. Just to mention a few - Mark & Spencer and Mac and a few other well known cafe except Starbucks and 7-eleven.
We went into SS department store. With Dheepa's help, I tried on a few Salwar and picked the green and gold one.
After that we looked at earrings. We spent almost half and hour there picking and making a fuss about everything... everything must put against the dress to see if it match perfectly. well, basically being a pain.
I tell you, Indian women and their matching accessories! How fussy they are to achieve the style and that perfect look. I salute those server who served us with such amount of patience.
Finally, after about 12 earrings later, we decided the traditional looking one is the best.
Indian fact: "We serve with a smile" is just a tag. We don't smile. We only serve.
On the way to the check out counter, we saw a pearl counter with buy one free one promotion. So we picked up 2 sets of pearls necklaces and earrings as Anju's wedding present. That also took quite awhile because we want "NEW ONE!"
So there you go. It was almost 2pm when we left Inobit.
We took another auto rickshaw to City Mall to have lunch in Rajdhani Thali Restaurant.
Dheepa was on the phone many times talking to many peoples, one them was brother who ran a successful Saree supplier/distributor. Honestly I'm not very sure.
Anyway, I heard the word "Nalli" many times. and apparently that's the only shop we will not get cheated because they priced their merchandises. As we were on the escalator to go up to the restaurant, I saw "Nalli" on the ground floor.
"Dheepa..." I tapped her on the shoulder, and point,"Nalli."
And her eyes sparkled, "XXX... listen! There's Nalli in City Mall."
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Take-off and Landing
A week before I went to India, Anju the bride hooked me up with a really cool lady named Dheepa and she was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We exchanged a few emails before I finally left from our beloved LCCT with the Airasia, Now Everyone Can Fly, I was really really nervous. So Dheepa offered to pick me up from the airport.
The flight was delayed for about an hour because of runway closure and there was a plane coming from Melbourne and some dudes in there are going to Mumbai too!
I sat with a Gujarati boy. His name was Vihar and we chat all the way from KL to India.
He just graduated from a University and went to Melbourne for few months.
He was very talkative and always have many "One Thing" to tell me; he scribbles a lot too.
I asked him loads of question about India and he told me my knowledge about India is better then him. So we concluded that India is the only place where you can find the most beautiful and the ugliest anything on earth.
He also taught me what cricket is all about.
We landed in the great Mumbai International Airport at 9:45pm local time.
I asked Vihar what is his plan that now he is home.
"I think I'll enjoy the world cup first." He said matter of factly, with a smile.
It was Cricket World Cup and it is the only thing that unites India.
Remember Peter Russels and his joke about India? I expected a mixture of bad smell as soon as I step out of the plane.
I didn't smell anything.
There was a long que at the immigration, and then a very long walk to the arrival hall...
I hired a prepaid taxi and as soon as I step outside, I saw Dheepa in her orange Salwar.
She had a bit of problem with her knee. I felt bad to had her come all the way to the airport. But she was so warm and made me feel like I have known her for a long time.
As soon as we settled down in her 1 room apartment in Lokhunwala, I felt at home already...
We exchanged a few emails before I finally left from our beloved LCCT with the Airasia, Now Everyone Can Fly, I was really really nervous. So Dheepa offered to pick me up from the airport.
The flight was delayed for about an hour because of runway closure and there was a plane coming from Melbourne and some dudes in there are going to Mumbai too!
I sat with a Gujarati boy. His name was Vihar and we chat all the way from KL to India.
He just graduated from a University and went to Melbourne for few months.
He was very talkative and always have many "One Thing" to tell me; he scribbles a lot too.
I asked him loads of question about India and he told me my knowledge about India is better then him. So we concluded that India is the only place where you can find the most beautiful and the ugliest anything on earth.
He also taught me what cricket is all about.
We landed in the great Mumbai International Airport at 9:45pm local time.
I asked Vihar what is his plan that now he is home.
"I think I'll enjoy the world cup first." He said matter of factly, with a smile.
It was Cricket World Cup and it is the only thing that unites India.
Remember Peter Russels and his joke about India? I expected a mixture of bad smell as soon as I step out of the plane.
I didn't smell anything.
There was a long que at the immigration, and then a very long walk to the arrival hall...
I hired a prepaid taxi and as soon as I step outside, I saw Dheepa in her orange Salwar.
She had a bit of problem with her knee. I felt bad to had her come all the way to the airport. But she was so warm and made me feel like I have known her for a long time.
As soon as we settled down in her 1 room apartment in Lokhunwala, I felt at home already...
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