In the car, the first question is asked my guide was, "why are people sounding their horn every other second?" In Mumbai, a horn sounds off every other second - it's pretty chaotic on the road! He said, "horn is compulsory in Mumbai, it is to alert the vehicle that you are approaching." And after saying that, he sounded his horn 2 more times when we saw this big blue vehicle that was in front of us. "You see! He asked to be horned at." My guide said as I snapped a photo of the blue truck. It actually says "horn please". HORN PLEASE!?! I told my guide, in Singapore, most people detest being horned at - including myself.
Our first destination was Dhobi Ghat, Mumbai. Here is where clothes are sent for washing. The guide mentioned that a usual washing process takes about a day to wash, another day to dry and deliver. It's no easy life for the people in Dhobi Ghat. The place is hot and smokey and imagine the amount of clothes one employee has to wash per day!
Along the way to our next destination, I couldn't help but notice the intricate architecture of Mumbai. Sure, there are ruins, slums and abandoned buildings but nevertheless, at this road junction, I managed to get a shot of this. Beautiful isn't it? No photo editing was done for this. Just the sun, the buildings and the roads (without any markings).
The next few destinations brought out the essence of grand-ness in Mumbai. The Taj Hotel, Gateway of India and also Victoria Station. Out of all these places, we spent most of our time at the Gateway of India. Being one of the major attractions in Mumbai, the Gateway of India is filled with security, tourists, DSLR cameras and with beggars too. Kids looking as young as 5 years old approached my friends and I for money to have a meal. I was tempted to give but held back because I knew that I would attract many others who are in need of help too. And once again, the evidence of social divide was apparent. The Taj hotel, the biggest and most expensive hotel in Mumbai just sits beside the Gateway of India. I'm not saying that I can do anything about it or have any ideas to improve the situation. But it is just heart wrenching to see a situation like this.
We also saw the 24 Storey building owned by an oil magnate. Believe it or not, my guide told us that there are only 5 people living in there. Great place to play hide and seek IMO. It'll take about a month to find your other 4 companions.
As we headed back to the hotel, we were greeted by the breath taking scenic view at Marine Drive. It is somewhat similar to East Coast park in Singapore but here, the sunset is amazing. Te aren't many bicycles going around, just couples, friends and family sitting along the road barrier to enjoy the lovely sunset. We stopped for a moment to take a few shots of this beautiful place and I could see that within a city of hard labour and chaos, one can find serenity every sunny evening at Marine Drive.
No comments:
Post a Comment