The night tour was very relaxed. We walked to the Regal Cinema which took around 25 minutes and took a couple of pictures along the way. These very ornate horsedrawn carriages were everywhere in the Centre of Town last night
Then we were met by our guide and a driver. There were eight 'tourists' on the tour so we were split into two groups and whizzed off to the Marine Parade promenade (nicknamed the Queen's necklace) which runs from outside our Hotel along to Chowpatty Beach. We opted to walk for a stretch along the promenade with the hundreds of Indians who were enjoying the slightly cooler night air.
Our hotel, the Oberoi, is the middle (short) one it the group of 3 to the right
Chowpatty beach is a lovely sandy stretch which is well maintained and clean ... although the sea (like most in the Mumbai area) is not safe to swim in because of pollution/contamination. Lots of people were paddling though. There is a food stall section where we tried the most delicious little 'nibbles' called cold
Pani Puri basically they were crispy dumpling/pastry like balls with a central bowl which the vendor filled with a few flavoured chickpeas and some tamarind paste then a scoop of 'gravy' - this had to be downed in one go .... they were gorgeous and something we'd never have eaten without being guided by a local.
and some slum dogs enjoying a kip on the beach in the cool air
Then by car to Banganga Tank which is a 12th Century tank surrounded by Hindu temples and where the water is believed to have healing powers so there were a few devotees bathing by the steps - its also full of very large fish and has plenty of ducks/geese around! I didn't like to take many photos, or use flash photography, whilst devotees were bathing so this is a bit gloomy
We whizzed through the Red Light district which is very sad as we were told most of the 'ladies' were entrapped by promises of good jobs in the city, or were 'sold' to slavers by their impoverished families. They have to work off their purchase prices by which time they are no longer accepted back into their family groups so are committed to this lifestyle - although they can then work independently. Unlike 'hookers' in the Western world, these ladies are all dressed very demurely although most wear slightly more make-up than is normal in India (no photos of this street, we were warned against it)
Then we visited a Jain Temple briefly - beautifully ornate and built from marble. We weren't permitted inside the 'praying area' but this is a view of part of the outside
and a stop off to view the Antilia Building which is a $1 million monstrosity house built for business tycoon Mukesh Ambaru 6 years ago. It has 27 floors, 3 helipads and 6 car parks but the family won't stay overnight in it as its considered unlucky because it has no East facing windows and has fallen foul of 'vastu shastra' a Hindu version of feng shui. The lights were blazing inside when we viewed it and we were told that although the family don't stay there - 200 staff inhabit the place to keep it maintained. Seems totally obscene to me .. but money can't buy taste obviously
A quick stop off at the Hanging Gardens which are high up and have a lovely view of the Chowpatty Beach and the Marine Parade Promenade stretch
I didn't have a monopod with me so these night shots are a bit shaky I'm afraid
Then finally we went to look at CST railway station where a lot of Slumdog Millionaire was filmed and which was one of the places which suffered during the terrorist attacks of 2008. Its based on St Pancras station and looks very similar. It is supposed to be floodlit at night but was in darkness for some reason yesterday
Then we were met by our guide and a driver. There were eight 'tourists' on the tour so we were split into two groups and whizzed off to the Marine Parade promenade (nicknamed the Queen's necklace) which runs from outside our Hotel along to Chowpatty Beach. We opted to walk for a stretch along the promenade with the hundreds of Indians who were enjoying the slightly cooler night air.
Our hotel, the Oberoi, is the middle (short) one it the group of 3 to the right
Chowpatty beach is a lovely sandy stretch which is well maintained and clean ... although the sea (like most in the Mumbai area) is not safe to swim in because of pollution/contamination. Lots of people were paddling though. There is a food stall section where we tried the most delicious little 'nibbles' called cold
Pani Puri basically they were crispy dumpling/pastry like balls with a central bowl which the vendor filled with a few flavoured chickpeas and some tamarind paste then a scoop of 'gravy' - this had to be downed in one go .... they were gorgeous and something we'd never have eaten without being guided by a local.
and some slum dogs enjoying a kip on the beach in the cool air
Then by car to Banganga Tank which is a 12th Century tank surrounded by Hindu temples and where the water is believed to have healing powers so there were a few devotees bathing by the steps - its also full of very large fish and has plenty of ducks/geese around! I didn't like to take many photos, or use flash photography, whilst devotees were bathing so this is a bit gloomy
We whizzed through the Red Light district which is very sad as we were told most of the 'ladies' were entrapped by promises of good jobs in the city, or were 'sold' to slavers by their impoverished families. They have to work off their purchase prices by which time they are no longer accepted back into their family groups so are committed to this lifestyle - although they can then work independently. Unlike 'hookers' in the Western world, these ladies are all dressed very demurely although most wear slightly more make-up than is normal in India (no photos of this street, we were warned against it)
Then we visited a Jain Temple briefly - beautifully ornate and built from marble. We weren't permitted inside the 'praying area' but this is a view of part of the outside
and a stop off to view the Antilia Building which is a $1 million monstrosity house built for business tycoon Mukesh Ambaru 6 years ago. It has 27 floors, 3 helipads and 6 car parks but the family won't stay overnight in it as its considered unlucky because it has no East facing windows and has fallen foul of 'vastu shastra' a Hindu version of feng shui. The lights were blazing inside when we viewed it and we were told that although the family don't stay there - 200 staff inhabit the place to keep it maintained. Seems totally obscene to me .. but money can't buy taste obviously
A quick stop off at the Hanging Gardens which are high up and have a lovely view of the Chowpatty Beach and the Marine Parade Promenade stretch
I didn't have a monopod with me so these night shots are a bit shaky I'm afraid
Then finally we went to look at CST railway station where a lot of Slumdog Millionaire was filmed and which was one of the places which suffered during the terrorist attacks of 2008. Its based on St Pancras station and looks very similar. It is supposed to be floodlit at night but was in darkness for some reason yesterday
The temple is quite stunning Sue. I'm guessing the tasteless house is the one all lit up in pink?
ReplyDeleteNooooo its worse than that Di. The pink house is beautiful by comparison. The monstrosity is a tower block (looks like something built in the 1960s on the outskirts of London. Just a concrete skyscraper. Apparently its fantastic inside with everything you'd expect to find in the most expensive house in the country (possibly the world).
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