A bit belated I know, but thought people might be interested in reading all about my adventures in India - a week-long trip (as a mixture of work and play) to Bangalore and Mumbai, which happened at the end of February 2014. Here is our joint diary…
Friday 21 February 2014
A fairly quiet day,
preparing and packing. Fortunately I had
actually packed most things the day before, so was able to spend much of the
day just checking everything and doing little chores ready for
the following morning. We had a relaxing evening eating curry and watching ‘The Best
Exotic Marigold Hotel’ to get us in the mood for what lay ahead.
Saturday 22 February
I didn’t sleep
awfully well, suffering from insomnia from about 5 am, but perhaps that was
always inevitable given the approaching trip.
Still, I felt fine by breakfast and, after the usual rush getting
everything finally together, we left around 10:30 am.
Traffic was light
and we arrived at Heathrow soon after 11 am, waiting while Tony dropped off the
car and then checking in without hassle.
We were all relived to find the suitcases were well under the weight
limit. Passing through security was
uneventful, if slightly embarrassing as we were told to jump the queue, and
after a bit of shopping we had our picnic in the airport lounge. At the due time, we walked to the departure
gate via the tube/metro; this was actually quite impressive, and we worked out
later that the tube runs under the tarmac to a separate building, containing holding
gate C. The lounge was fairly empty when
we arrived but filled up rapidly, and we had a quick chat to the Imperial
people as they arrived. When told, we
were ushered through the barrier, again with some embarrassment at jumping the
queue, and were amused to be sat with all the hostesses and pilots for our
flight. We learnt from them that our
plane was delayed, slightly worryingly because they had to get a new/spare one
out of the hanger. However, eventually
we boarded without incident and took off about an hour late. The flight was
long but uneventful. The meal – chicken
tikka with rice and bean salad – was actually quite good and we passed the time
watching movies or dozing. Breakfast
several hours later was less pleasant, consisting of a full English breakfast
with some truly nasty scrambled eggs.
Sunday 23 February
We landed around 5:30
am local time (5 ½ hours ahead of GMT), and were hurried through the airport by
two helpful men who, again, embarrassingly made us jump all the queues. After a long wait at baggage for Tony’s
suitcase to arrive – which it eventually did – we joined the others and found
the cars waiting for us, after getting our rupees.
The weather outside
was cooler than expected, with a grey and misty start to the day which soon
burned off as the sun come up. It was
light as we drove away from the airport, and we had our first view of India –
actually remarkable similar to driving into Accra, the capital of Ghana, with
numerous billboards, construction sites and either developing or derelict tower
blocks. The drive took about 40 minutes
and was a suitably scary experience, but we arrived safely and turned into the
guarded campus which was quiet and green and peaceful. The guesthouse was a functional building, and
our room (or rather mini-apartment) was basic but spacious and perfectly
adequate for our needs – big double bed with ensuite bathroom, then a small
kitchen and actually a second bedroom and bathroom which we didn’t use. All rooms had a large ceiling fan, making it
nicely cool as by now outside was already warming up. We also had a nice little balcony at the
front. We had a brief breakfast in the
visitor centre dining room – although we weren’t really hungry – after which
the Tony and Judi left us in search of their hotel.
After a much needed
sleep, we had a simple but good lunch of dahl, rice and chapattis, and then we
left the others to be nerdy with their laptops while we went for a walk through
campus. This was lovely, with the now
very hot sun nicely shaded by tall trees.
The place was fairly busy, and we passed numerous people on motorbikes
or rickshaws, as well as several people just chatting outside their homes –
which varied from lavish houses to much more run down apartments and
shacks. As I suspect will be a
continuing theme, the juxtaposition of very rich and very poor side-by-side was
evident and stark. The university
buildings in between were also a mixture of rundown buildings next to ultra
modern glass blocks. After a nice
stroll, and watching some monkeys scavenging in the dust bins, we returned to
the room and spent a pleasant afternoon reading our books on the balcony and
writing this.
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| Monkeys scavenging on campus |
We had agreed to
meet the others at 7 pm and find somewhere for dinner. However, at the agreed time we learnt that we
were meeting at 8 pm instead, so to kill some time we went on a beer finding
mission. This proved to be quite
exciting and perhaps, in retrospect, unwise.
Upon leaving the serenity of the campus, we were faced with a manic
street of non-stop cars (all hooting at once), motorbikes, tuk-tuks and
bicycles – and the odd dog or ten. The
pavements were almost non-existent or were massive broken slabs of bricks, and
were also strewn with vendors selling coconuts, clothes and earthenware
pots. The shops were what I would
imagine a blend of UK and Africa would be like, if possible, with glass fronted
shops selling familiar brand names of shoes and clothes next door to open
fronted shacks and stalls selling food, fruit or trinkets.
After walking
around a bit and narrowly avoiding being hit by tuk-tuks, we found an open-fronted
liqueur shack and bought some beer. We
returned to the peace of the campus (not before we’d mistakenly tried to enter
the hospital on our way back!) to realise we didn’t have a bottle opener. After several attempts involved keys, a
lighter and the table, we finally opened a beer and sat on the balcony until it
was time to meet. At 8pm we were met and
taken by one of the Indians in our group just around the corner, to the nearest
place she knew of that served beer (she clearly knew all about the
English). We had a really good meal of
selected curries and dahls, before returning to our room for a much needed
early night.
Monday 24 February
After a horribly
early start, and not a huge amount of sleep (due to a combination of jet lag,
unfamiliar bird noises and what we thought was a monkey outside our window) we
had a good Indian breakfast (as well as an omelette for Amy) and were driven
across the campus to the meeting room.
This, unfortunately, was on the first floor, but we had lots of helpers
so no problem. The meeting was long, but
fortunately the room was well air conditioned by fans and there was a regular
supply of very sweet coffee and various snacks.
Lunch was
remarkably good, outside under a red tent and consisting of a clear soup
followed by various dahls and chapattis.
The meeting continued, and finally ended late at 7 pm. We were given a short while to ourselves back
at the guest house, before being picked up again and driven to another nearby restaurant. This was much smarter than the previous night
and very good, although we possibly ate too much of the starter as things just
kept arriving – chicken, fish, pork, sweetcorn etc. The meal as excellent and the number of
speeches became slightly silly as people drank more and more beer or Indian
wine – or both. Finally, we were driven
back to the campus and fell into bed.
Tuesday 25 February
After another early
start but another good breakfast, we returned to the meeting and passed another
long day talking about work. Lunch again
was good, and the day finished a little earlier, at 6 pm. After a short rest and another beer on the
balcony, we were again taken by car to another nearby restaurant, this time
open air and on the rooftop of a tall building.
For us British, it was quite incredible to be sat outside during the
evening in February - the temperature was cool, as the heat and humidity of the
day slowly dissipated by a gentle wind - but very comfortable. Apparently Bangalore is known as “the
ventilated city”, because it’s relatively high elevation (roughly 900 m above
sea level) means there is usually a cooling breeze and so it is less stuffy
than other Indian cities. The view was
impressive and the meal very good, and we were slightly wiser this time to save
room for a variety of curries. Again
felt a bit sorry for Andy, who insisted on sticking to a vegetarian diet and
therefore missed out on a lot, in my opinion.
His rationale, probably completely correct, was that this was the only
way to avoid becoming ill - on the other hand, I ate meat on several occasions,
and was perfectly fine. After a good
meal and quite late finish, we were driven home.
Wednesday 26
February
Another early start
and a breakfast of paratha and yoghurt, after which we were once again driven
to the meeting. The day was much sunnier
than the previous. The meeting only
lasted for the morning, so finally at around midday we said our goodbyes and
left the group, who were all returning home the following morning.
We returned to the
guesthouse, and had a slight panic as Tony and Judi’s taxi driver struggled to
find us. They did eventually however,
and once packed we all piled into one car (which was a bit of a squash) and
were driven to the airport.
We always knew the
domestic flight to Mumbai would be the most challenging, and indeed it
was. After a long argument at check-in,
during which several supervisors had to be summoned, we finally persuaded them
to let us keep the chair all the way to the door. Getting through security was also a picnic, as
they wanted to take away the chair and scan it separately.
Eventually security were satisfied, and we were allowed through with
just enough time to wait in the departure lounge. At the due time, we boarded the plane, which
was smaller than I would’ve liked, and the chair was taken away with the
promise that it would be returned upon arrival.
The flight was mostly uneventful, despite some turbulence in the middle,
and to our surprise we were served some food (chicken tikka). We landed without incident and, surprisingly,
were met by my chair.
Walking out of the domestic
terminal, once we had collected our bags from a carousel heaving with people,
was everything the books had described – hot, humid, loud and crowded. The heat, even at 6 pm, was like a blanket,
and we struggled to get a pre-paid taxi.
In retrospect, this was a mistake.
We were shown to the oldest, smallest and crappiest car I’ve ever seen,
and somehow managed to get everything in, with bags and pieces of chair lashed
to the roof with bits of string. The
driver was helpful but surly, as were several other boys who then demanded,
quite aggressively, a tip. First
schoolboy error of Mumbai.
Once we had
satisfied them, off we drove in a scary and extremely hot and humid hour and a
half ride of heavy traffic. Looking
back, I’m pleased we did it that way as it was quite authentic, but at the time
it was hot, sticky and long. At every
traffic stop, which was virtually all the time, the driver would jump out to re-tie
the roof or boot. The car itself was
knackered, and I am still amazed it made the journey. Despite being dark, the streets either side
were everything I had expected – slums, extreme poverty but at the same time
brightly covered fairy lights and music everywhere. With our windows open (to get at least some
air) and turning away numerous sellers walking down the road, the smells were
intense – traffic, sweat and sewage. From
reading this, it sounds horrendous - but it really, really wasn’t. After a slow journey, we arrived at the hotel
and experienced the full contrast that only India shows – from poverty stricken
streets to an extremely posh hotel – one of the smartest I’ve been in. We instantly felt under-dressed to the
extreme. The cars parking outside the
lobby went limo, limo, our shitty taxi, limo.
Amid smartly dressed men in black tie and women in evening dress, and
immaculate doormen (dressed in full Indian/Raj uniform), we literally fell out
of our taxi, dripping in sweat and looking a complete mess. No-one seemed to mind however and we checked
in with no problem. The rooms were
lovely, not massive but very comfortable and with all the usual luxuries. It was nearing 10 pm by this point, so after a
quick refresh, we popped down to one of the several bars and had a light snack
(albeit extortionately priced by anyone’s, let alone Indian, standards) and
fell into bed, exhausted.
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| Our hotel, the Trident |
Thursday 27
February
Although the room
was comfortable and extremely luxurious, by far the best thing about it was the
view that we saw properly first thing in the morning. From out of our 32nd floor window,
we looked out over the whole of Back Bay, following the Queen’s Necklace up towards
Malabar Hill, with clear blue sea and tiny fishing boats. Early in the morning it was still hazy but
that burnt off as soon as the sun came up.
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| Gateway of India |
After a good
breakfast of both Indian and continental food – made more exciting by a very
angry man shouting about something when we arrived – we left the hotel and
walked for about half hour towards the Gateway of India. The sun by this time was hot, but there was
plenty of shade from many large trees - meaning one minute we would be in
intense heat and the next pleasantly cool.
The roads and pavements were better than in Bangalore, but the constant
speed of cars and motorbikes made it an exciting walk at times. We found the Gateway, an impressive structure
resembling a little the Arc de Triomphe (only more Indian), and joined the
crowds of tourists in taking photos.
Like everyone else, we were constantly hounded by people selling
pictures or other tat, as well as a group of monks who gave us a blessing – but
then, of course, wanted money for it. After
a quick stroll along the harbour side and past numerous boats, small ships and
expensive yachts, we walked back inland and found Leopald’s, the café and
favourite place mentioned in the book ‘Shantaram’. It was a lively, busy place and perfectly as
described, and we enjoyed a lassi and a beer along with everyone else. The road outside was covered with market
sellers and, after buying some clothing, we had another long and hot walk to
the main train station, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST, formerly
Victoria Terminus (VT)). This was an
impressive Victorian building and a popular site among tourists. We carried on walking in a big loop back to
our hotel, stopping for a quick coconut water before reaching the beach
surrounding the bay. Before reaching the
sea however, we stopped for lunch in a nearby restaurant, enjoying a quick
snack of various vegetarian curries.
After a short walk back to the hotel, along the fairly smelly beach
front in the afternoon heat, we spent a relaxing afternoon sitting by the pool
in the outside area of our hotel.
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| Leopold's |
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| Chhhatrapati Shivaji Terminus |
After a good rest,
and a drink in our room watching the sunset, we walked out to find a restaurant
recommended by the hotel as traditionally south Indian. This was amazing – very busy and excellent
food, including Thali and non-stop endless vegetarian curries. Far too much, but all excellent. Stuffed, we returned to the hotel along
fairly busy streets, including a small funfair, and went to bed after a really
good day.
Friday 28 February
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| Crawford Market |
We awoke to another
bright hot day and, after another excellent breakfast, we again walked out,
this time heading north towards the Crawford Market.
This was quite a long walk, along some rather scary main roads, and we survived, just, working our way along narrow streets - all stuffed with tiny shops, stalls and open air stores, selling a variety of things from electrical appliances to fresh fruit to lingerie - and finally reaching the large covered market. This wasn’t as busy or hectic as we had expected, and it was certainly quieter than the African market we had experienced in Kumasi. It was still large, however, with a bewildering choice of stalls selling spices, vegetables and clothing. There was also a large animal stall, selling everything from chickens (presumably meant to be eaten) to cats, dogs and birds (presumably meant as pets). We spent an interesting hour or so browsing, and after buying a load of spices and looking at the various birds in cages, we left the market and started the long walk home. We went the same way as the day before, this time stopping at a row of food stalls and trying some excellent street food - bread, and a tomato and lentil based bhaji. It was packed with people, most of whom (perhaps unsurprisingly) had never seen a party such as ours, least of all braving street food, so we received a fair amount of attention while we ate, perched on the side of the pavement.
After that brief
intermission, we carried on walking, stopping for a beer almost opposite where
had had lunch the day before. The bar,
named Gaylord, also looked like a nice restaurant, so we booked a table for
later. We spent another pleasant
afternoon back at the hotel, sitting around the pool in a surprisingly strong
wind and deciding not to swim because of the breeze. We also looked around the hotel’s shopping
mall, buying a couple more scarfs and pashminas. The mall was quite different to the ones at
home, being a long narrow corridor with each shop hidden away and a man in the
doorway trying to entice you in. Some
were quite pushy. 
Saturday 1 March
The last day, and
yet another long flight awaited, so spirits (at least mine) were not high. After quite an early start and a quick bit of
packing, we went down for our final Indian breakfast - Indian for me, and more westernised
for the others. Breakfast was lovely,
with me having a Masala Dosa and Judi and Amy having boiled eggs. Have to say, we were all quite impressed when
the waiter produced another boiled egg from under each egg holder.
After breakfast we
did a final bit of packing, before loading up our taxi ready to leave by 10 am. We had asked the hotel to arrange a car this
time, so waiting for us outside was a large, modern, air-conditioned people
carrier – nowhere near as exciting as the journey to the hotel, but much easier
and less scary. Dramatically different
to our taxi to the hotel, we were relieved not to have to tie anything to the
roof, nor worry about the taxi breaking down.
Traffic to the airport was heavy but not as bad as 2 nights ago, and it was
really the first time we had fully seen the slums, having driven into Mumbai in
the darkness. The slums appeared much
more civilised and organised than images we see about Indian slums (mostly at
school).
The drive was
thankfully uneventful and we arrived at the airport in good time, getting to check-in
within the hour. Thankfully the check-in
through security was considerably easier than it had been at Bangalore, and we
were quickly through to departures. We’d
all saved some money to spend getting some last-minute gifts and tat, however
we soon realised there were only about 2 shops that would take our rupees (the
rest trading in dollars). Basing
ourselves in these shops, I bought some bits and bobs and Amy got a few scarves
and a little elephant statue. Shopping
complete, we headed to the street food café for a quick bite to eat. This in itself was a bit of a fight, with the
airport café staff clearly used to stroppy tourists and were therefore stroppy
themselves. After several attempts at
getting food, we finally succeeded. After
a lot of waiting and running out of different meals, I ended up with a mystery
meal and Amy had her final samosa. With
full stomachs, we started the hike to the plane. The queue onto the plane was quite difficult,
due to everyone trying to pile in. However,
we finally got to our seats.
The flight itself
was long but uneventful, and we passed the time reading, eating, dozing or
watching a movie. After a smooth
takeoff, we were offered a drink and then a meal of (what I think was meant to
be) roast chicken, so slowly getting us adapted to Western food again. It was a bit of a let-down, being my first
non-Indian meal in almost 3 weeks, so was remarkably bland and dull. But it was edible, at least. Whilst long and dull, the plane journey was
fairly smooth, and having watched a film and played with the entertainment
system, we were then offered another meal - which, this time, was somewhat hard
to identify, just being described as ‘Chinese chicken’. I think it was chicken in a sort of sweet and
sour sauce.
After food, and
roughly 9 hours after leaving, we landed at Heathrow at around 6 pm local time,
and were told it was 4°C outside. As
feared, walking out of the plan was very unpleasant - an average of 30oC
in India to suddenly close to freezing.
But we survived. Having located
our bags, we then sent Tony off to find the car, whilst we braved sitting
outside departures. To our relief, it
didn’t take too long for Tony to find us, and the drive home was
very simple and stress-free (in comparison to all the driving we’d experienced
in India). Finally home,
after a long day of travelling, began the dull task of unpacking. Obviously we were all tired, but pleased that
it had all gone so well. Farewell Mumbai...
