Mumbai hit me on face as soon as we came out of the flight onto the long walk to Immigration. The old airport has remained old. Outside, dugged out roads everywhere. Its some epxerience to see and feel how developmental work on building flyovers, mono rails, connectors in allready very congested and fragile infrastructure is being tried to be cranked up for tommrrow. Once my friend asked, 'where does all those come from in the Indian cities?' Indeed, the exteriors of the hotels like Leela and Intercon stand as testinomy to that reality. Inside the hotels though it is a different make reality. Nowhere I have gone I have found confluence of such contrast as I can find in Mumbai and mnay other Indian cities.
A big hotel would be manned by well groomed girls in their front desk. However, not very uncoomon to find not so friendly young men doing the job in the front desk in even hotels like Intercon and Marriot in Mumbai. Does it say something about anything?
Intercon the Lalit. I realised when watching the hotel channel that the The Lalit is no other than Lalit Suri. I saw firsthand an effort on how legands are born. In the documentary, Lalit epitomised subtle power, fair play, giving to society. I remeber newpapers from yesteryears he being involved in many of the controversies! Well, hostory is what histories make it to be!
Had a long walk the first evening around dugged Andheri(E) insearch of a place to buy food. I missed the 7/11s and couldnt buy anything from those environments.
Realised how much I have missed the pav bhajis and Chole Baturas after hogging them everyday these days. But cannt fail to realise again how different and unhealthy Indian food is as compared food in Asia pacific where now we have spent more then four years of our life. Will the soil and air and the sky over Thailand and Philippines remember us that we were there, lived, breathed, dreamt, felt vulnerable, felt happy and dealt with uncertainty? Bit of those places and memories of our days in these place would forever be etched in our mind and we will be what we would be future influenced by our living in these places.
The Olive was full and had people waiting even at 11pm on a thrusday night. The young crowd was no different from what could be seems in Leeds or Manila. There is a different Mumbai hidden inside the Mumbai that one sees everyday and the trick is to land oneself in that inner Mumbai though no one can escape the Mumbai that thrust itself to everyone there.
Some improvement in traffic management was obvious. By that it is meant that expected to have more traffic congesion but it was mot much worse than what I had seen before.
Whats is it that sometimes while chanting in Iskon Temple in Juhu that tear drops comes down naturally? Is it the anfuish deepdown that gets a outlet or a sign of submissiion in his feet. Being near the Radha Krishna, the shower of the holy water was experienced first time. Later in the Clipper lounge in the airport would meet Partha Banerjee by chance who would assure that he would be able to help for admission in any school in Mumbai. However, the uncertainty would continue since Sewri could be the Minburi of Mumbai. Planning seems to be becoming something to give up trying.
Things move amidst chaos in Mumbai banks. Modernisation seems to require lot more discipline and it becomes that much more difficult if one stays outside India. The cheque books are sent now by mails and take more than three days where as earlier it would just take 30minutes to get it from any of the branches. Yet, I got it still this time.
Stale air of food at different stages of being cooked pervaded the air around RNA Heights. Do one get used to it while living in the same place everyday?
The posh malls of yesteryears now seem to have become the haunts of masses and more elite malls have cme up somewhere else. The march of time seem to promise to make them haunts of masses sometimes down the line too.
The meaning of anything could be different depending on the relevant perspective and lenses being used to gauge it. So Mumbai was different this time than in the past when we were merely on holiday there.
A big hotel would be manned by well groomed girls in their front desk. However, not very uncoomon to find not so friendly young men doing the job in the front desk in even hotels like Intercon and Marriot in Mumbai. Does it say something about anything?
Intercon the Lalit. I realised when watching the hotel channel that the The Lalit is no other than Lalit Suri. I saw firsthand an effort on how legands are born. In the documentary, Lalit epitomised subtle power, fair play, giving to society. I remeber newpapers from yesteryears he being involved in many of the controversies! Well, hostory is what histories make it to be!
Had a long walk the first evening around dugged Andheri(E) insearch of a place to buy food. I missed the 7/11s and couldnt buy anything from those environments.
Realised how much I have missed the pav bhajis and Chole Baturas after hogging them everyday these days. But cannt fail to realise again how different and unhealthy Indian food is as compared food in Asia pacific where now we have spent more then four years of our life. Will the soil and air and the sky over Thailand and Philippines remember us that we were there, lived, breathed, dreamt, felt vulnerable, felt happy and dealt with uncertainty? Bit of those places and memories of our days in these place would forever be etched in our mind and we will be what we would be future influenced by our living in these places.
The Olive was full and had people waiting even at 11pm on a thrusday night. The young crowd was no different from what could be seems in Leeds or Manila. There is a different Mumbai hidden inside the Mumbai that one sees everyday and the trick is to land oneself in that inner Mumbai though no one can escape the Mumbai that thrust itself to everyone there.
Some improvement in traffic management was obvious. By that it is meant that expected to have more traffic congesion but it was mot much worse than what I had seen before.
Whats is it that sometimes while chanting in Iskon Temple in Juhu that tear drops comes down naturally? Is it the anfuish deepdown that gets a outlet or a sign of submissiion in his feet. Being near the Radha Krishna, the shower of the holy water was experienced first time. Later in the Clipper lounge in the airport would meet Partha Banerjee by chance who would assure that he would be able to help for admission in any school in Mumbai. However, the uncertainty would continue since Sewri could be the Minburi of Mumbai. Planning seems to be becoming something to give up trying.
Things move amidst chaos in Mumbai banks. Modernisation seems to require lot more discipline and it becomes that much more difficult if one stays outside India. The cheque books are sent now by mails and take more than three days where as earlier it would just take 30minutes to get it from any of the branches. Yet, I got it still this time.
Stale air of food at different stages of being cooked pervaded the air around RNA Heights. Do one get used to it while living in the same place everyday?
The posh malls of yesteryears now seem to have become the haunts of masses and more elite malls have cme up somewhere else. The march of time seem to promise to make them haunts of masses sometimes down the line too.
The meaning of anything could be different depending on the relevant perspective and lenses being used to gauge it. So Mumbai was different this time than in the past when we were merely on holiday there.
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