India - Goa - (11)

Monsoon season is not yet finished and the rains were very heavy during the night, leaving pools of water on the beautifully manicured lawns of the Holiday Inn/Averina Resort, Goa. It is no wonder that Goa is a malaria risk area, heavy rains, high humidity, rivers and lakes. Fabulous breeding ground for the mosquitoes!

As usual, breakfast is a feast. Besides my English Breakfast tea and omelette every day, I try at least one Indian dish with breakfast. What is so amazing is the huge variety that is on offer - something different every day. The Indians also love their eggs so there is always a queue at this counter. The chefs are so fast and so good at making perfect omelette's right in front of you.

Our tour today is with the Holiday Inn bus to Mangueshi Temple, Old Goa and Colva Beach.

We started off at 14.00 hrs with a very full bus - again, we are the only Westerners aboard. It is great to see so many Indians enjoying their own country which is so vast that it could take up many holidays in different parts.

This ride was an experience in itself - bone-shaking, rattling, creaking and groaning, the bus struggled up the hills in first gear and very seldom reached full speed. Being high up we could see all the small settlements/villages as we passed and, always, hundreds of scooters darting in and out of the traffic. Many drivers without helmets. Today we saw larger houses in very bright colours scattered amongst the more squalid looking ones. Bright yellow, purple, orange, lime green and red are popular colours and stand out in the greenery which is everywhere in Goa. There appears to be new construction of apartment blocks (called Residency) in quite a number of areas so the economy can't be too poor for the construction industry. In some of the areas there are large. modern complexes which stand out, being so Western looking and clean.

At the start of the journey the passengers were very vocal but we could not understand a word of what they were talking about. Gradually, silence descended which was most odd. Looking back, we found that virtually the entire bus load had fallen asleep! Peace and quiet for a spell. Not that we minded the chatter, they were all enjoying themselves and on holiday, after all!

As we chugged along, we took to spotting names or signs along the way as we were still wide awake!!

Tobacco Free School
Infant Jesus Laundry
Papa Joe's Goan Restaurant
Ferrao Ice Factory
Chapel of Glorious Saint Sebastian

In Sirlim:
Royal Lush Family Restaurant, Wee Wonder Kindergarten, Watch Repairer and Repairer of Two Wheelers

Other Villages:
St Francis Xavier Chapel
Dream Skyline Residency
Be Happy Caterers
Angels Primary School
Rosary High School
Mum's Darlings (Child care)
Top Gear Bar and Restaurant - do you think James May, Richard Hammond and  Jeremy Clarkson have visited this pub during their Indian visit?
Walk In Hotel
Are We G-Oan Out - Pub
Janki Wine Store
Eco Friendly Putty that prevents your paint from flaking - they sure do need this in the rain and humidity.
Right Fuel is your Right - seen at a Petrol Station
Just Inn Bar and Restaurant
Adam and Eve - a  place for all occasions - the mind boggles and one has to wonder what goes on here?
Divine Medical Centre
Drive slowly - accident prone zone - ya right!!!

It seems that our bus does not have indicators as the guide needs to stick his arm out of the window to indicate when we are turning left or when asking somebody behind to slow down. Just ahead of us was a lorry and the co-driver has his door wide open - Indian Air-Con? He did eventually close the door when they passed another vehicle. At the back of most trucks there is a sign saying "Horn Please" So they expect one to hoot at them? Seems so.

Cows in the middle of the road are commonplace - how they do not get run over is beyond me. These cows also seem to be lying down much of the time - not grazing and chewing the cud. So they are either too well fed or have no energy to move? Only very load honking horns seem to get them up and off the road.

Goa has many dogs, all look totally ill and underfed, many have their ribs clearly defined. Very sad to see.

After about an hour or so, we reached the Mangueshi Temple. This Hindu temple is over 400 years old and is dedicated to the goddess Shiva. In the car park there were many buses and also a State Bank ATM - a blue bus parked and waiting for people to draw money. The road to the temple is lined with small shops selling clothing, trinkets, snacks etc. It is also very filthy with litter scattered all over. This is despite a sign at the temple asking for Silence and "Maintain Cleanliness"  The ladies outside sell the offerings meant for the gods of flowers in banana leaves at 10 Rupees.

Before entering the temple, shoes must come off and one has to walk barefoot into the temple. In the temple, the half-naked, fat men (no tops) are sitting cross-legged and doing their prayers and blessing the followers by giving them some "water" which they put to their mouths and then they throw it over their heads. No photos are allowed inside the temple.

We were watching this when a chap asked us where we were from and offered to show us something as he was a "priest of the temple" He took us outside to a large, wooden carving but I have no clue what he said it was. He then proceeded to tell us that:
We would expand our business
I would receive promotion - yeah, I can promote myself at long last!!!!!
We would move to a new house in April
Our children would all become very successful in 2014 - I think all 4 between us are already pretty successful.
We would return to India in 8 months time!!!
He professed to "see" things when talking to people as he was a priest.

By now feeling hood-winked, it came as no surprise when he asked for money. I have my doubts that he was even a priest, just some local looking for gullible tourists to con. The men in the temple are all rather large - this guy was dressed in normal clothes and skinny!!!
Oh well, I suppose everybody gets conned at some stage in India - we will be more careful next time.

What did really make me mad was the state of the place - for a temple that is supposed to be very holy, it is surrounded by filth and litter so how can this possibly be of any value to anybody? Surely, it would not take much to employ a few cleaners to pick up the litter strewn around outside by the Indian tourists? The mess just gives off bad vibes. One would also think that anybody visiting would want to make this a holy place and cleanliness is next to godliness? Or does this not apply to Hindu temples? Sad to see.

Our next stop was Old Goa - again hundreds of buses and tourists. This was the Portuguese capital of Goa - today the churches and cathedrals are all that remains. The Church of Saint Francis of Assisi was built in 1521 and looks very imposing. We only had time to visit the Basilica of Born Jesus where the remains of Saint Frances Xavier are preserved. He was a missionary and the Patron Saint of Goa. Born in Spain 7th April 1506 at the Castle of Xavier. He was a brilliant student and excelled at sports.  He later became a priest and after journeying for 13 months, he arrived in Goa in 1542. He undertook many hazardous journeys whilst preaching and died on 3rd December 1552.

Before entering the grounds of the church, one is again accosted by women selling candles. I was offered candles so accepted them and walked off!
The lady came tearing after me telling me that I had to pay her. They are very shrewd, these people. Anyway, I handed the candles back amidst her voluble protests that I needed to pay! The grounds of this church are immaculate and clean - a major difference from the Hindu Temple seen earlier. Restoration of some sort is in progress and this is now a Heritage site.

Back in the bus, we shook, rattled and rolled onwards towards Colva beach.
On the way, we spotted the following:

Drive with Care, life has no Spare
Driving Rash causes Crash
Don't be a Hell Mate, wear a Helmet
There were more of these signs on a large bridge that we drove over but the driver had a good speed going so could not write them all down!

Passing a railway line, we spotted some people walking right on the tracks - one hopes that they have the train times in their heads to get out of the way!

As we started on a minor road towards Colva, the "Speed Breaker"  humps are back in full force. So irritating to slow down every few yards for a Speed Breaker. Our bus is unable to break the speed limit which seems to be 50 km per hour for 2 Wheelers (Scooters), 70 kms per hour for cars and 60 km per hour for Commercial Vehicles. I wish!

However, it seems that there are accidents as we passed the Paediatric Neuro Centre along the way. There are many kids being carried on 2 wheelers, most without helmets. There was a huge Dental College and also a Signal Corp Army base along the way plus My Eye Hospital and Clint Restaurant.

Billboards are all over, they are huge and advertise Milk, Insurance, Housing Products and Jewelry.

As we got closer to Colva Beach, shops were lining the road on both sides. The parking area at the beach was again packed with buses. Unfortunately, it was now rather late and the light was fading so we could only take a very short stroll the the beach which was full of people, staring at the sea. A large Life Guard building = busy beach! This beach is apparently a huge favourite with local Indian travellers and gets even busier during October month when many pilgrims come to visit Colva Church. One of the Indian guys wanted a HOUR here. Bummer for us as the light was gone so a walk on the beach was out of the question and we were not too taken with the many shops around as we are watching our budget!

There are loads of food stalls, ice-cream vendors, plus fancier jewelry shops that offer Credit Card facilities, pubs etc but we abstained from everything.
A beer would have gone down a treat but the bladder would not have been too happy afterwards in the "shake, rattle and roll" bus and I refuse to use local toilets.

There were many scooters available "Motor Bikes On Rent" and the Black and Yellow Colva "Auto Rickshaw Stand"

The cleanest looking restaurant I saw was affiliated to a hotel!

A local chap, also on the bus, started chatting to us. He lives in New Delhi and is employed by an American company in Reno, Nevada. He was telling us that he had recently visited Johannesburg on business and visited the Gandi Museum there. Being paid in USD makes life very pleasant in India I would say! We have to admit that we would never be able to walk/move around so freely in South Africa as we have been able to do in India. The folk are pleasant, honesty seems high on the list of priorities and even the beggars/hawkers have a smile on their faces when you say No.

Get the place cleaned up and it would certainly be a wonderful country. Even with the honking horns and traffic!!

A great day out - who needs rock and roll music when you can enjoy the Holiday Inn "Shake, Rattle and Roll" Bus???

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

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India - Goa (9/10)

After a horrific start to our Goan leg, with soaked laptop and just everything going wrong, we hope that things will improve!

Breakfast was good - omelette, baked beans, herb crusted potatoes, horrid jam, stale croissants (come back Taj President, Mumbai!) and many Indian dishes which we avoided so early in the morning!

After trying in vain to get the laptop working, we decided to take a bus. What fun - you have never seen such a decrepit bus - not even in Mauritius. It went so slowly, we could have walked if not for the heat. We got off when we spotted Watson's Chemist and Mike's Restaurant. This was not very far from the Holiday Inn but we had promised Len and Alison that we would pop in and give their regards. Mike's Restaurant looks lovely - however, we were still to full from the breakfast buffet. Mike is lovely, very welcoming and pleased to get the good wishes all the way from Cape Town. He offered us a free beer and also offered to get our laptop fixed by his IT chap on Monday. This made us feeling a little more light-hearted. We popped into Watsons to buy a map of Goa as I, very stupidly, had not done much research, thinking that we would be based near the city of Goa! Stupid woman, hey? It's a huge province so now we need to try and sort out some sort of tour/s to see this place with all it's history.

After our bus ride back in a much faster bus (IR 16) we ended up back in the hotel. A swim was called for and we could enjoy the stunning pool all to ourselves as there is a conference on so most guests were not around. After this swim, we headed up the beach on a long walk. During the monsoon season, the sea is not safe due to a strong current. Again, this is a major disappointment as I really need to get into the Arabian Sea. The beaches go for miles - one could become a beach bum and just walk and walk......! Very clean but the famous "beach huts" are not yet operational as season starts in the Indian winter - October onwards once the monsoon season is finished. So we are just too early it seems. The fun part was walking behind a bull, 2 females and a calf. They just ambled down the beach, in no hurry at all. We eventually caught up with them as they headed towards a shack just off the beach - one assumes their home!!! Luckily, no cow pats, just one long widdle from the male! Typical, no decorum!

However, having said this, we must say that we have been rather disappointed with the tourist services offered in India - quite frankly, they really are non-existent in  comparison to South Africa hotels and B&B's where we bend over backwards to give as much info as possible and to assist guests. Both Taj President in Mumbai and Holiday Inn, Goa are 5* resorts, yet very little tourist info is available. I don't really understand why this is? Don't they want overseas tourists? Are there enough Indians to keep their hotels busy? Not sure what the rationale behind this lack of info can be. No tours are offered from hotels - a great disappointment as one cannot drive in India as a foreigner. Next years destination HAS to be in a country where we can hire a car and DRIVE!

This is very frustrating for me as we are used to being independent. Once again, if there was a choice of tours on offer, with experienced tour guides, this would not be such a huge issue. Methinks, India must be more forward thinking in this regard.

My bright idea was to place the laptop in the sun on the balcony - James pooh-poohed this idea and told me I was wasting my energy.
Thankfully, I listened to my inner voice or whatever prompted me to do this. After about an hour in the afternoon heat, I asked James to try again. Voila!!!!
It worked and we were able to save the 7 days of photos to an external drive. Nightmare over for now - let's hold thumbs that the laptop is OK.

I am not even going down the road of why it stopped working in the first place - far too embarrassing a story.

Supper is now calling, lets hope it's not all too "hot" and spicy!

The supper buffet was great - some salads with no spice or curry, good Indian dishes to sample, and dessert treats. The ice-cream is good and just calms/cools down the palate after all the Indian food. Service is excellent and very friendly.

Frustration, frustration, frustration!!!! Getting anywhere here is very expensive and there are no tour operators around? Taxi drivers charge IR 50 per hour for waiting whilst one visits anywhere so it really is not the place to be unless you just want a beach holiday. And with the beach still "dangerous" it's just frustration all round. Next year - somewhere where we can hire a car!!!!!!!!!!!

Breakfast was very busy this morning - apparently 600 pax in last night, mainly for some sort of conference. Food good though - no complaints on that score.
I even had something with curry - for breakfast - can you believe it?

The wi-fi at the Holiday Inn, Cavelossim is very expensive and one is charged full rate for an hour even if you only use it for 5 minutes. Not impressed as this is a total rip-off. We do not mind paying for an hour as this would have lasted a few days at 5 minutes per log-on but no, it does not work like that.

Tourists to South Africa are so very spoilt compared to services here in India. However, I suppose one must take the rough with the smooth - we opted for Timeshare in Goa instead of doing a tour so let's make the best of it. But at a cost......

Luckily, there is a tiny little shop just outside of the hotel so at least the beer is cheap!!

Humidity is high this morning so not sure what we are going to do - maybe another bus ride. The air-con in the bus is fresh air from the windows - makes quite a change from living in air-con rooms all the time.

Our guide - with very red eyes!!

After some debate, we decided to book a taxi ride the the Sahakari Spice Farm. This seems to be the nearest one to the hotel and is still quite a drive away.
There are a number of Spice Plantations in Goa, namely Savoi, Pascol, Abyss and the Tropical Spice Plantation. The tropical climate in this area of India plus the dense forests, make it an ideal place for growing spices. On arrival, IR400 per person, one is greeted with a flower garland plus some warm tea with spices. Rather tasty.

Our Indian "English" guide appears to be very food of his beer, whisky and the local drink, Feni as he told us all the spices that would take those hang-overs away or also make sure the wife did not smell any liquor on his breath when he returned home .....after a hard day's work! The Indians do believe that spices are a cure for many ailments. For example, taking curry leaves before you contemplate becoming pregnant can prevent heredity diabetes? True or false?

Nutmeg produces 2 spices, nutmeg and mace. Some black pepper helps constipation...... but don't take too much as you will be stuck for the day! Take Cardamon to assist your memory but if you are over 40, then you need to add another spice to the mix. Sad, but true!

Food is included in the price but it looked very boring so we did not have any.

The tour was interesting and the farm uses organic methods. I love the tiny little bananas that one finds here - apparently, the smaller they are, the sweeter they taste. Tiny, tiny - just 2 mouthfuls, if that!

The vegetation is very lush in Goa so everything is pure green and tranquil looking. However, the buildings are so very decrepit in looks, there is rubbish dumped along the road, dogs are very street-wise as they wander all over and we have not yet seen one being knocked over, cows lie alongside the road, sometimes in the middle of the road, scooters are everywhere, roads are pretty good, except for the odd pothole, and the roads are not as busy as in Mumbai. Thankfully!

I would imagine that it is difficult to keep buildings sparkling when the monsoon season brings so much rain and the humidity is high. However, it would not do my well-being any good to live in such run-down houses or work from shops where rubbish is strewn outside and everything just looks so dirty and unhygienic.

We drew the short straw with the taxi driver, a morose chap with no commentary except to ask if we wanted to visit the Shatadurga Temple. As we had not kept him waiting whilst we had lunch at the Spice Plantation, we thought this was a "freebie" out of the kindness of his heart! This is a Hindu Temple and the complex was constructed in 1738 AD. No photos are allowed inside as one has to take off shoes before entering. A family of 3 was standing listening to the prayers of a half-naked man and afterwards took out their wallets and parted with much cash. He did give them a blessing in the form of a flower. Unfortunately, without a guide, we do not understand what this was all about.

Outside the temple, an elderly man asked us where we were from and told us that the temple has a long history but this has never been translated into English. He recommended that we get a guide in future so as to learn about the history. I wish - that's what we have wanted all along but the hotel is unable to assist in this regard. This despite the fact that they are hosting a Hospitality Conference this week-end!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Goa is lacking in tourist facilities as the taxi drivers just drive - there is no information given. Unless, of course, we got the short straw with this driver?
The driving was also very erratic, hard braking which even upset James. Thankfully, I take my Sturgaron each day otherwise I would not survive without getting violently ill.

Perhaps we may find a better driver who is more open to telling us about the country he lives in? We live in hope.

Margoa is the closest large town to where we are staying but oh my goodness - really run-down and not very inspiring at all. Whilst we did not get out of the taxi here, I doubt we will return. Apparently, there is a large market but the town is so depressing I would prefer to stay away from it. Perhaps, our clinical cleanliness would not go down well with Indians who may find it cold and depressing as well? There are grander houses tucked away in the forest at various points - these do look much better.

Compared to other poorer countries such as Greece and Spain, Goa is not "cute" We have visited many really poor Greek villages where time has stood still, yet they are clean and well-kept. Different strokes for different folks? It is beautifully green though, very tropical with swaying coconut palms everywhere.

After that crazy taxi ride, some Kingfishers and Lays Chili Limon (spelling is correct!!) chips are going down a treat!! I prefer them to the Lays India's Magic Marsala as they are not quite as tasty.

The area of South Goa where we are staying features most of the luxury resorts in South Goa - namely, Varca, Cavelossim and Mobor.

A stint on our balcony in the balmy evening breeze, listening to the waves, watching the palm trees sway, hearing the cacophony of hundreds of crows, seeing the rain clouds descending to make us wet and cool us down, such is life in the slow lane. Time out from the day and it's turmoil.

A shower and jeans (yes, feeling cold!!) and then off to our dinner.

Dinner at the hotel is a treat - the dishes are very Indian as 99.9% of the guests are Indian. Every night there are loads of dishes to try and there was also Jain food tonight. The Jain sect do not eat onions or garlic so their food has to be prepared without these 2 ingredients. I could well do without garlic but onions? Oh my goodness, no. I love onion in any form. The Jain religion is now a minority religion in India with approx. 4.2 million followers. The Jain's have a high degree of literacy and their libraries are the oldest in the country.

The waiters are first class at Holiday Inn, even more attentive than those at Taj President in Mumbai (although they were very good!)

All round, service is excellent - we have no complaints.
Only the Wi-Fi cost and lack of tourist info has been a disappointment.
However, who says life has to be perfect all the time?

On that note, good night!

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

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India - Mumbai - Goa (8)

View from our room at Taj President, Mumbai

A sort of sad good-bye this morning to Mumbai and the Taj President Hotel. Mumbai's noise will not be missed yet it has been a great stay and the hotel service has been extremely pleasant.  The trip to the airport took approx. an hour over the amazing sealink - this road, built in the sea, took about 7 years to complete and makes a huge time saving in the grid-locked roads of the city. There is a toll fee but well worth the price for a little bit of  speed! No honking is supposed to be allowed on this bridge - I wonder who this sign is aimed at as nobody takes a blind bit of notice! There are numerous shacks along the way - feels like the N2 Cape Town!!

Checking in for Jet Airways we had to pay for 12 kilos of excess baggage. Not sure how their scales reached this amount as we were only 38 kgs coming from South Africa - but it is no good arguing. Perhaps this is just Jet Airways method of making extra money from foreigners? There are very few International tourists who would only have a 15kg bag per person unless they are back-packers or intend buying all their clothes in India.

The Security check point is split into sexes! Metal detection is used on everybody. There are no announcements for boarding so make sure you are sitting near your boarding gate and keep an eye on the locals. When they start lining up, follow suit! At the point for the bus, all bags are checked again for Security stamps. My handbag did not have one, even though it had gone thru the machine so my boarding pass was taken away from me and I had to go back to Security. Needless to say, I was not impressed by this service - if the staff at Security had done their jobs efficiently, I would not have been subjected to this extra stress of thinking that I would be left behind!!!! Slap-dash security at Mumbai Domestic airport is not confidence boosting.

So, not a good start to the flight. The plane was a Boeing 737 - 800 - very modern and new. There were a bunch of very noisy people - some guy was obviously cracking jokes which made the rest laugh and laugh and laugh. Not being able to understand the language meant that it was just plain irritating!

The flight is only 45 minutes to Goa so service was brisk - a veg or chicken roll with juice and water. Unfortunately, there was some turbulence so I started feeling ill. According to James, the plane was virtually on the runway, when the pilot announced very low visibility due to a sudden rain squall and he had to abort the landing. Not good for my motion sickness problem. It took another 10 - 15 minutes of pure hell for me, eyes closed, praying for a smooth landing and the end of the feeling ready to puke. Luckily, I didn't.

Bag collection at Goa was another nightmare - hundreds of people jostling near the carousel. It always amazes me that bags go on together yet come off nearly 20 minutes apart. Anyway, the bags eventually arrived and we made our way outside to be met by a rep from Averina Beach (Holiday Inn) Vey pleasant and full of smiles, he welcomed us to Goa and introduced us to our driver.

It is a 50 minute drive from the airport to the hotel through very winding roads, with many speed-humps! Goa is incredible green, with huge palm trees and lush vegetation. High humidity! Houses and small apartment blocks line the road with little shops every now and again. The welcome from our hostess, Melissa, was warm and friendly - this is so important, especially after my horrendous flight! Ice cold apple juice went down smoothly and we were shown to our room. Quiet and spacious as requested, it's gorgeous!

Our next mishap was the laptop getting wet - I don't even want to contemplate the fact that all our photos and videos of Mumbai may be lost - the thought is just too depressing for words. Now it is down to my Asus only and, holy cow, let's hope this can stay dry!

I was terrified of falling on the way to the bathroom during the night as the floors get so wet - air-con plus high humidity seem a huge problem here. The floors are tiled and very slippery.

To cheer ourselves up (very difficult) we took a walk on the beach. Apparently, we cannot swim in the sea due to strong currents prevailing due to monsoon season - can it get any worse? It was very low tide so we walked as far as the river mouth. We spotted many fishing boats, some larger than others, still out fishing. On the way back, we saw a few people in the sea just up to their knees and the life-guards were standing guard. Goa is all about beaches - we are obviously just a tad too early for the good beach vibe in the Indian winter (November/December)

Breakfast and Supper buffets are included in our package so after a cold shower we set off to sample the buffet wares. Curry, curry and more curry. Once again, the staff are very polite and friendly and explained all the dishes. James opted for chicken (very hot!) and I stayed with vegetarian. All very tasty, some hotter than others.

An early night was called for and the bed is extremely comfy so hopefully tomorrow will be better????

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

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India - Mumbai (6)



Churchgate Station, Mumbai, India

We arose rather late this morning - all the walking and noise is exhausting!

Breakfast at the President Taj was busy this morning. Service is always friendly although sometimes rather hit and miss as the staff seem to be all over the place instead of concentrating on a few tables. The spicy tea (don't ask me for the Indian name) gets the taste buds going and then we can enjoy our eggs and normal tea/coffee.

A IR 50 taxi ride, with us holding on for dear life, got us to Churchgate station in time to watch the  dabbawallahs come off the trains, cross the road and start sorting out their food bags for delivery to offices across  the city. How on earth they know what goes where is beyond my little brain but it is all precision packed either onto bicycle handle-bars or those famous Indian wooden carts. The carts take loads of meals and are pulled by hand. Luckily, all the bags are closed as we saw one of these guys picking his nose and then proceeding to go off on his deliveries for the day.

Hygiene does not seem to be a big thing in India, given  the fact that so many tourists fall ill.

Started a century ago with home-cooked meals. this tradition lives on in the modern Mumbai. 5000 of these man deliver approx. 200,000 lunch boxes from homes to respective offices every day. Making virtually no mistakes (1 in every 16 million delivers)  these men earn between 2000 - 4000 IR per month. The system was started by the British who preferred their home-cooked meals, made by their staff, to be delivered to their workplace. The fact that this system still runs like clockwork and is favoured by many so many years later, is incredible, given the age of modern technology. This defies modern systems and shows that old traditions can survive, despite everything. The boxes are colour coded which tells where the food comes from, which station it will be delivered to and the address where it has to be delivered. The dabbawallahs deliver in all weathers, never go on strike and now even have their own website or you can order via sms. Modern and ancient mixed together in an incredible way.

Apparently, business schools ask these dubbawallahs to lecture on their systems and they have been used to promote their new products. Prince Charles met them in 2003 and Richard Branson has also spent time with them. It's totally mind-boggling that such a simple system, yet with so many logistical problems such as train travel, can be delivered on time each and every day. Dubbawallahs need to be well-disciplined as there reputation is of paramount importance.

Hats off to these people in carrying on with a tradition which started in the 1890's. It's mind-boggling to me, yet it runs like clock-work.
Sometimes, people from other countries need to sit up and take note of systems that work, of people that have pride in their jobs, no matter that they are not the most well-paid in society. Coming from South Africa, where many people have no pride in their work and yet expect huge pay increases  every year, despite the poor economic climate, makes one see India in a very positive light. The Indian papers are also quick to report rapes or crimes - they are not hidden away or swept under the carpet.

Once all the dubbawallahs had left, we saw from the map that Churchgate  Station is not too far from Marine Drive, so off we set on foot. This time we walked North to the end of the pier which is right opposite the Fisherman's Village (near our hotel). With humidity of around 88% today, it is very hot unless walking in the shade. Once again, we are surrounded by only Indians - the Westerners can be counted on 10 fingers so perhaps they are more into the fancy shopping centres than the down-to-earth Mumbai with it's thousands of taxi's, honking horns, normal people going about their daily lives, collecting their kids from school and catching buses and trains to wherever they need to go.

We have not been brave enough to catch either a bus or a train but we have walked most of Colaba -  my feet and legs tell me so. 

Most of Mumbai is fairly clean - the streets are tidy and neat except in the areas where the squatters (fisher folk) live. Even there, the rubbish seems confined to patches near the rubbish skips and on the beach where they have their boats.

Crossing the roads in Mumbai is a rather death-defying experience as nobody stops at a pedestrian crossing and one wonders why they even bother to paint them? Most are very faded and worn from all those feet stumbling across! I nearly got squashed by a taxi today and I was not amused - silly people - surely a second will not make that much difference in their lives? But no - they blow their horns and just keep going hell for leather. It's daft, it's crazy, it's Indian and it's Mumbai. Love it or leave it! Some of the locals just walk - I suppose they know the taxi will stop at the last minute or face homicide charges, but we are not willing to take that chance. Scaredy cats? YEP!

We have not seen many stray cats or dogs - those near the shack dwellers are all rather thin and don't look too healthy. The well-looked after dogs are being  walked on leads by their well-dressed owners. Those look in tip-top shape.

We reached our hotel totally drenched in perspiration and me looking like a beetroot with my hair all over the place and the shorts sticking to my limbs. A cold shower has somewhat revived me but my core temperature still feels overheated!

At least we can say that we have walked this small area of Colaba (in relation to the entire city!) It is so very different to anything that we are used to in Cape Town or have ever experienced anywhere else in the world. Over-stimulation of the senses, especially the ears!

Feeling peckish, we decided to try a Pizza place in Nariman Point. Well....nobody wanted to take us there - obviously too close and they wanted a min of IR 80 to virtually go round the corner. So...too far to walk and having tried at least 5 taxi's, we decided that they were all a rip-off so we stayed at the hotel and ate their pizza instead! Boring?? Yep but what can one do. The taxi's do seem to rip off foreign tourists, as I suppose they do all over the world.

Complimentary fresh fruit from the hotel and a cuppa of my own Five Roses tea will do me fine together with some R&R time on the Kindle.

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

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India - Mumbai (5)

Now we head for the Prince of Wales Museum to "try" and soak up some culture.
Yeh right - it is difficult but nothing ventured, nothing gained. The taxi fare of 100 Rupees (most probably a rip-off!) got us to the door of the museum just as the rain came down.



We waited under shelter, like idiots, as nobody told us that there were umbrellas to use to reach the entrance.

The museum has 3 floors of art collections such as Nepal-Tibet, Krishna, Chinese and Japanese, European paintings, sculpture, weapons, coins etc.

The foundation stone was laid by Prince of Wales (later KIng George V) in 1905 and is a heritage building and landmark of South Mumbai.The museum opened to the public on Jan 10, 1922 wit various collections plus the Sir Ratan Tata bequest. The Tata family are well-known and very wealthy - Tata vehicles are even available in South Africa.

The Natural History section is superb, spoilt only by a group of Primary (Called High School) kids who were sooooo noisy we could not even hear our audio head phones. They were all very smartly dressed in uniform, with name tags and photos, all wearing sandals but, oh my goodness, what alot of chatter at the top of their voices. The teacher telling them to be quiet had absolutely NO effect! Even the museum chap tried to move them along....he did not succeed. Rather a pity that such smartly dressed kids from obviously wealthy backgrounds can be so disobedient when all the signs say "Silence Please" We had to wait for them to leave to enjoy the exhibits.

Have you ever seen a "saw" fish? It's the most amazing looking sea creature with a huge saw in front of it's body. Don't think I would like to encounter one of those in the ocean! Forget the magician trick of sawing somebody in half, this would be the real deal!

Indian 1 Horn Rhino's also faced near extinction until measures were taken to increase the population. The conservation program in India and in South Africa (White Rhino) are mentioned here for their efforts in saving these magnificent animals.

We found the history of Karl Khandalavala most interesting. A lawyer by profession, he became an Indian Art Collector and had close links with the Prince of wales Museum. He was asked to source art for the museum and then stopped collection for his own use. He was also a great photographer and one numerous awards. His collection is now in the gallery where he spent many a Saturday afternoon, such was his love of the arts.

A video in the Prechand Roychand gallery was totally fascinating as it showed the history of the art of painting for mobile temples. This huge painting is taken from village to village. Today this art form includes words and more colours than the originals - however, it needs to be preserved for future generations.

We decided to walk back so that we could get some exercise and experience the noise of Mumbai again!!!!! The noise is so invasive that I can't even concentrate on taking interesting photos of people, cars, shops etc that we pass. It's all encompassing noise that assaults the senses to such a degree that one walks like a zombie! There is nothing like this anywhere in Europe, USA, SA and certainly not in New Zealand (peace and quiet!!) or law-abiding Australia. There are no rules of the road and most roads are packed, with truly only about a centimetre of space between cars or bodies. How there are not more accidents, I have no clue. Apparently, in the monsoon season there are many accidents - thankfully, for my sanity, the rain is no longer too much. Whew!

We had hoped hoped to see the Kala Ghoda Pavement Art which is on either side of the Jehangir Art Gallery but this is closed until October ( after the Monsoon Season) I suppose no self-respecting artist would want his/her work ruined by the rain?

As we did not find the Colaba Causeway on our Saturday outing, we decided to walk back to via this route. These stalls of full of cheap trinkets and clothing and quite claustrophobic. We did buy an elephant for 300 rupees for my elephant collection at home. Gorgeous and ornate, he will rule the other elephants when he gets back to South Africa! The beggars all seem to be women with children, sitting on the pavement. I was eventually tempted to use rather strong African swear words - just the fact that they did not understand these, seemed to have an effect! I won't repeat them here!

Although the Internet reckons that the area around the President Hotel is not so safe we have found all the areas so far to be hassle free. Wherever we have walked there has been no problem even though we stand out like sore thumbs - white faces and with a Nikon camera slung around my neck! Many of the buildings look like total slums, yet they are not. It's a crazy place, a noisy place and the Indians themselves are all over, shopping, eating, buying and driving.

We spotted a Driving School called "Good Luck" - yep, I think the bumps and scratches on the car are testimony to the crazy driving in Mumbai and India. Quite frankly, I would think that no license is required - nothing could equip one for driving in this country - hence the fact that foreigners are not allowed to hire a car without a driver. Driving in India, without being born in this country, would be the fastest way to voluntary suicide.

Indians, please come to South Arica - you will LOVE the way we drive - we don't hoot very often, we tend to obey most of the rules of the road and we can be very polite!!! Capetonians, your driving is SUPERB - I love you all!!!!!

Our laundry arrived, delivered in a briefcase and with cardboard in the t-shirts. Service!!!!! Singita Lebombo, a fantastic hotel in the Kruger Park of South Africa,  can learn a few tricks from the Taj Group! Joking - Singita is very special and our memories there will never fade.

For our evening meal, we decided to catch a taxi to Leopolds - famous in Mumbai. This is right in the Colaba Causeway area and was packed with locals and a few Westerners. The menu is under the glass on the table so sometimes you have to read upside down. The noise is incredible as the buzz of conversation competes with the honking horns in the road outside. If you are in the mood for a romantic dinner, this is not the place to be. If you want tasty food at a reasonable price, then it IS the place to be. Our waiter was very helpful and I decided on a vegetable curry called Makhanwala  while James chose Butter Chicken. Served with some Naan Bread, it was delicious. Leopolds also serves huge "tower of beer" at 1400 IR - needless to say, we stuck to a glass each at 180 IR! No need to fall over in Mumbai! The cakes and desserts are scrumptious - the Chocolate Ecstasy was just that - so rich that I could barely finish it, despite James stealing a few mouthfuls.

There were plenty of taxi's outside so we opted for one that said 80 IR (the fare we paid to get to the restaurant)
At our destination, James handed over a 100 note and was told "no change" So he counted out his smaller notes and made 60 which he then offered the driver. Suddenly, change of 20 miraculously appeared! We were not impressed by this tactic - however, only fair to say that this has happened to us whilst taking a taxi to Cape Town airport so it is obviously a ploy used by taxi drivers world-wide. Why they would want to annoy their fares to such an extent, is beyond me. Mind you, in Mumbai you never get the same driver - this last one was extremely surly and spoils the good experience that we have enjoyed from others in this city.

The streets at night are even more crazy it seems than during the day with far more people walking, riding and just being out and about. We even saw a gent sitting on the pavement having his ears cleaned by another. How gross is that? Funnily enough, I have only seen one taxi driver open
his door and spit! Even more gross!

On that note, back to our cool, clean hotel room......to read the latest in the Indian Newspapers:

The Mumbai Mirror, the Bombay Times and the Times of India are delivered to our room daily. They make interesting reading and show us that problems are really world-wide and so is good news.

Some snippets:
Armed with lathi, constable beats back 10 train robbers
In a first, chemist is booked for not having pharmacist!
Ragpicker stumbles upon woman's partial remains near sea link
Free Seminars across the city to help students study in USA
Rehearsing teens spark real dram on Marine Drive ( this happened across from the Inter-Continental Hotel where the Pakistan Judicial Commission is staying!!)
Study: Drug-resistant TB in city air, families clear yet kids affected.
Irrespective of faith, 12 year old cannot be wife.
Grad steals mobile, blackmails owner - love this one - in SA they just re-sell them at bargain prices!
Wheelchair bound Deepa Malik (43) will cover 2000 km across 6 states in 10 days in a car designed by students from Sathyabama University, Chennai
If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. "Keep it simple, stupid" Kiss Principle

Ad - 2 months later, 7 kilos lighter and a plan that finally worked. SMS Slim to .......!
Ad - Get going in your own Innova for a perfect holiday (Toyota)
Ad - 30,000 cars sold, 30,000 lived changed - Honda

You have guessed - it is raining today so more time to read these fascinating glimpses into Indian life in Mumbai.

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

Please share - if you did not enjoy this post .....Shhh - but please still share!

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India - Mumbai (4)



Mumbai from Marine Drive

05.30 and disaster.....we have all heard of the song "Beds are Burning" Well, my b.. was burning! Obviously, the tummy did not enjoy the delicious Thai flavours quite as much as my palate did!! So a very basic breakfast for me at 09.30 in the hopes that the unruly tum would settle down as we hope to explore at least one market today.....

Meanwhile, reading the "Times of India" is a worthwhile way to pass the time.

Forget about Car Pools - a Mumbai resident has a Helicopter Pool. After 12 years of leaving home at 06.00 and only getting back by 23.00 at night, he discovered that he could get enough folk together to share a chopper. Innovative thinking from a 45 yr old Chemical Engineer. Needless to say, he owns the factory but still - imagine having work hours that long? Not for me thanks!

As my tummy problem was more a reaction to all those delectable Thai spices, I swallowed an Imodium and off we set for our next adventure. The hotel cab dropped us off at the Crawford Market. Taking our lives in our hands, we crossed the street and entered the market to be accosted by a "guide" who showed us his official badge and told us that he had to escort us around the market! He stated that his services were free so we obediently followed.

The Crawford Market was built in the days of the British Raj. Named after Arthur Crawford, this market is still a very much part of South Mumbai life and teems with local people. The fresh fruit and veg all look very tempting and there were many types of fruits that we did not recognise. The stalls sell anything from chocolates, biscuits, plastic ware, toiletries, and a stunning array of spices from the Spice King - just about anything and everything one could wish for.
spicekingmumbai@yahoo.com

Pay them a visit - it will be worth your while!

There is also a meat market which we did not visit and then the pet market which is rather depressing - hundreds of birds in cages, geese, canaries, love birds, small puppies, wagging their tails in the hope of finding a good home, beautiful kittens, quail (for the pot, I assume!) fish in tanks etc.

It's a kaleidoscope of colour, an overload of people and no Westerners except us and a Dutch couple travelling the world (Europe, India, China and whatever else takes their fancy) Young and free, they did not have a guide! We were then told to cross the road - death staring us in the face! There are so many stalls in this area, that it is hard to take it all in. Artificial flowers are absolutely stunning but would get crushed in a suitcase. How everybody makes a living is beyond me but I suppose they all do. There were people sewing suitcases, making juice from something that looked like sugar cane or bamboo,  men staring, others smiling, most thinking we are crazy tourists!! Which we are!

After walking for ages through all this chaos, we decided to take a taxi to Marine Drive to breathe some sea air and relative quiet! If you have never driven in a local cab in this mayhem, you are totally missing the point of Mumbai. It is TOTAL MAYHEM and far worse than anything you could ever see on TV. Hooting is the name of the game, anything and everything goes from guys with baskets on their heads (local Courier service!!) to animals pulling goods, to parents with 3 kids on a scooter, to people walking in amongst this mess, to guys with loaded wagons and many, many taxis! 50 thousand of them apparently, all living by their horns!!! Hang on as you progress slowly, then have a burst of speed, only to brake and nearly go thru the windscreen! It has to be seen to be believed, the noise is incredible and just does not stop. In fact, I think I have to say that it is worse than Manhattan, New York. In the traffic jams, anything and everything goes - no rules apply - it is each man for himself!

With a sigh of relief, we reached Marine Drive and some cooling sea breezes. This is a very long drive so we could only walk part of it. There were many students also catching the sea breeze and perhaps a little cuddling away from parents eyes!

Even though the traffic was free flowing along this area, the hooting continues - just for the hell of it! Perhaps the Indians are not all born with a silver spoon, so they have a hand that simply loves the horn and it's blaring sound! The drive is 4.3 km long, with C  shaped 6 lane concrete lanes along the natural bay. The road links Nariman Point to Babulnath and Malabar Hill. The sea breeze was most welcome and the litter was not TOO much! In fact, we did see somebody picking up litter hence the fact that this area is not so dirty. Malabar Hill has the most expensive real estate in Mumbai it seems with a recent sale at Darshan Apartments reaching a new high. This apartment has 3 floors, 4 bedrooms, attached terraces, a covered garage of 700 sq feet and the unit is 3510 sq ft. The price of 57 crore is huge (1 crore = 10 million rupees)

We walked as far as Chowpatty Beach. This beach is huge and I would not like to be there when it gets packed with people. Seething masses are not my favourite! Besides Juhu beach, Chowpatty is Mumbai's most famous beach and comes alive at night when family's descend on this area. During the day it was not so busy although there were a number of kids having a swim. The fishermen were hauling a boat up the beach with military precision and it seems as if they live in shacks on the beach. After a very long walk, we caught a cab back to Cuffs Parade for 100 Rupees. Most probably a rip-off as the distance was not great.

We are total plebs, so we wandered down the road again to find some more Kingfishers - 100 Rupees each for 650 ml against 225 Rupees for 200 ml in the bar fridge in our room. As we have to go thru security every time we enter the building, they must think we are really not 5 star quality guests!!!!! Love the comfort, don't like the prices!!

We also wanted to see Fashion Street today as we passed this yesterday - however, it seems the stalls are closed on Mondays so too bad!

A great day out and a true Mumbai local experience. Mixing with the locals in areas where there are truly no Westerners, has been incredible and awesome experience.

The legs are tired, the body needs a shower but what a great day out!

Tonight we decided on "safe" food - chicken and veg with choc mud pie desserts. Boring, but hopefully my silly tum-tum will behave. Mind you, we are drinking buffalo milk with our tea - 50,000 buffaloes supply approx. 750,000 litres of fresh milk daily to Mumbai. Housed in Buffalo Tabelas (cowsheds) the smell is apparently over-powering and there are moves afoot to re-locate these.

© Judelle Drake

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradclinphotography

For Accommodation Cape Town, South Africa

www.bradclin.com

Please share - if you did not enjoy this post .....Shhh - but please still share!

Thanks!