World Cruise: Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India

We arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday, April 9th for a much anticipated overnight visit. With a population of over 20 million people, Mumbai is the most populous city in India and is known as the "Gateway to India". It is a massively congested city with over 8,000 taxis and 1,500 tuk-tuks jamming the streets along with overcrowded public buses and private tourist buses. As we entered the harbor, we could see the iconic Gateway to India arch on the waterfront and the famous Taj Mahal Hotel from the deck of the ship.

In the afternoon, we took a tour to visit the Caves of Elephanta which is an archaeological site of ancient temples that were carved into a mountainside in the 7th century. We took a 90 minute ferry ride across the harbor to the island of Elephanta, then a short train ride to the staging area for climbing to the top of the mountain to the entrance of the cave. In spite of the heat, we managed the climb up 125 steps okay, but the peddlers along the way were a challenge. Also, there were wild monkeys along the trail and a few sacred cows. It was well worth the climb as the amazing ancient carvings were unbelievable. We spent some time marveling at the intricate carvings inside the caves. Apparently, there are a number of other cave temples like this in the area. Along the descent we purchased some souvenirs, then enjoyed a cold Kingfisher beer at a café at the bottom of the mountain. As we were having our beers, a cow stopped by to check us out. It is funny how they wander among the people so nonchalantly. We enjoyed a cooling ferry ride back to the mainland and returned to the ship.

On our second day in Mumbai, we took a whirlwind guided tour of the City. On our tour we passed by several famous sites, including Victoria Terminus Railway (the neo-Gothic railway station built in 1888); Crawford Market (a bustling market in existence since 1867); Marine Drive and Chowpatty Beach (the upscale area of town facing the bay that looks a lot like Bayshore Boulevard in Tampa); Malabar Hill (upscale residential area); Hanging Gardens (botanical gardens); Towers of Silence (where the Parsi religious sect bury their dead in open tombs for vultures to eat the bodies - very gruesome); Jain Temple (where the religious sect believes all life is sacred so they don't eat meat or any vegetables that grow below the ground and they don't even kill insects and their orthodox members don't wear any clothes); the house where Mahatma Ghandi stayed for years when he visited Mumbai; and several other historic sites. This tour went so fast and took in so many sites it was a challenge taking pictures, but we were glad to see so many things and learn from our tour guide!

Of particular interest to tourists in Mumbai is the unique laundry service in the City. There are several "ghats" around the City where men (not women) provide a laundry service to residents of Mumbai. A service picks up the dirty laundry from your house in the morning and takes it to the washing ghats (outdoor concrete washing tubs) where clothes are soaked, scrubbed and pounded, then hung out to dry. Then, the men press the clothes with big heavy irons. Remarkably, sheets and other linens come out snowy white in spite of the murky looking water. The clothes are then delivered back to your home the next morning, ready to wear. The cost is 12 rupees (20 cents) per piece. On our tour, we visited the famous Dhoubi Ghat Laundry Service. That was an eye opening stop. The traffic at the bridge overlooking the place was total chaos with cars, buses, motorcycles, tuk-tuks, pedestrians, dogs and many, many peddlers and beggars all jammed together. We were warned by our tour guide to not make eye contact with any of the beggars and peddlers who are all professional pickpockets and scammers -- even the children. They are known as the "Peddlers Mafia", an organized criminal enterprise. We saw two small children, probably 4 and 6 years old, running barefoot in and out of the traffic posing for pictures and begging for attention. Their goal was to get a tourist to pull out a wallet so they are targets for a pick. It was tough to watch these small, unattended children at work in such a dangerous environment. It's tempting to give them money to get them off the street.

Another disturbing site was to drive by a 28-story high rise home owned by the wealthiest man in India. It is occupied by his extended family. The lower floors of the building are the garages where he keeps his 138 automobiles! Yet, this "over the top" opulent home overlooks some of the worst shanties and slums we have ever seen. There seems to be an acceptance of the different classes that is hard for us Westerners to understand.

Most of the people we met in Mumbai speak English. The women wear the most beautiful clothes. The jewel toned colors of their saris and scarves look so vibrant against their dark skin and hair.
Also, we learned how strong the family ties are. Although arranged marriages are still the norm here, it is not as restrictive as we thought. Rather, the families participate in the courting process by approving or disapproving of the potential mate in an elaborate dating and vetting scheme. Consequently, the divorce rate is much lower than in other countries of the world. Their close knit families stay together and work out their problems together.

One other custom unique to Mumbai is the use of the "dabba wallahs" (food men) each day to deliver lunches to the workplaces. Apparently, men prefer to eat home cooked meals for lunch each day so women prepare elaborate lunches during the morning hours. There is a service that is offered where food men pick the lunch boxes at the homes and deliver them to the men at their offices or shops, then return the empty lunch boxes back to the homes in the afternoon. It is a complicated distribution system. Most of the food men cannot read so they rely on their incredible memories to get the deliveries right each day and they have an incredible accuracy rate.

India is a bewildering country and Mumbai is a microcosm of its diversity with everything from fashionable villas, large luxury hotels, stately colonial buildings, busy commercial streets and extreme poverty and extensive slums. With our three stops in India, we feel like we got a great introduction to the culture of this fascinating country. We certainly enjoyed the delicious food and meeting the friendly people. We hope we can return here some day in the future.