Day 9: The Cosmo Mumbai
Trip Start
Apr 14, 2006
1
12
30
Trip End
Mar 07, 2006
Mumbai, India
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Regal Enclave had Internet problem last night and promised to fix it this morning, but it was not fixed at 9AM. They then told me 11 AM it will be fixed. So I came down at 11 AM and still "not working sir". I demanded that they get someone to fix it and then called in someone who took 5 mins to figure what was wrong.
In the afternoon, I decided to be brave and walked out into the streets looking for some place to eat. Last night, I had dinner in the hotel so I wanted to try something different. I came across this restaurant called "Raaj Bhoj" a vegetarian Thali restaurant with unlimited Thali for 120 Rupees ($3.75 AU). I was not sure what unlimited Thali was until they kept serving me over and over again until I said stop (Actually they keep coming and asking if I want more of any of the stuff). I had a light meal and then headed back to the hotel. It was killing me that I am sticking to vegetarian food. I think in this whole trip in India so far, there was only 1 place at Hilton in Agra that I ate non-veg once. Other than that it has all been veg. Food is one of the best things in India but I want to be safe. Being Veg in India is a safe bet.
The other thing I have been constantly doing is ordering only bottled mineral water. I have been quite careful in checking that the seal has not been broken before I open it. I even use mineral water to wash my brush and mouth. Better to be safe than sorry.
After lunch I decided to go and check out one of the largest shopping center in Mumbai. (I am not sure if this is the biggest one in India). The lonely planet fails to mention this but I think it has to make the next edition. This mall is located in lower Parel and is called High Sreet Phoenix. It is about mid way between Bandara and Colaba.
Apparently Autos are not allowed to go into this area and beyond so I had to catch a taxi. The reason for this is autos cause lot of traffic jams. If you remember in my last blog I said, autos are way to go because they beat traffic jams! I guess by beating traffic jam, they cause chaos for others.
Once again he buses were on strike, so the streets were crowded. Full of autos and taxis. No matter what day or time it is, you can never get away from Mumbai traffic. What is worse again is the "honks"...I cant stress how much horns are used in India. It is insane. You can not drive a car without horns. If the lights on your car does not work, no problem you can still drive (even if the lights work, many drivers like to drive with them turned off) but if your horn does not work, park your car at home.
Coming back to High Street Phoenix, this place is huge. There are lots of construction going on around this area, so this will one day become one of the biggest shopping complexes in the world. It will be a shoppers haven. Already it is a paradise. You will see the cosmo side of Mumbai here. Everyone here are dressed up well (you forget you are in Mumbai) and spending big money. It's not that things are expensive but there are real good quality stuff for affordable prices. There is also a budget bazaar which has buy 1 get 1 free kind of deal too. Many of the international labels were also here.
After 3 hours in the mall, and few shopping bags later, I caught a taxi back to the hotel. And he did not know where my hotel was either. So I told him to go to the railway station and I will show him the way from there. I have been using my taxi and auto rides as my chance to practice my hindi. Even though I can understand okay, I don't speak that well. I speak in broken hindi. But I was proud of myself tonight when I was able to guide the taxi driver to my hotel, all speaking in hindi. I feel like I know my neighborhood now:)
Tomorrow my brother Vasee is arriving from London to join me and also my friend Arun (the groom) is arriving from US later tomorrow night. And I am going to be checking out of this hotel and move to south Mumbai, the tourist hub. I have had my relaxation and now it is time for some (as they would call it in hindi) masti!
Comments
Counterfeit items
I wonder, what percentage of the goods on sale are counterfeit.