Tayzwi

humid and sweaty, macro and micro socities, pretty girls and hizdas, friendly and intimidating etc etc.....but what i felt when i landed and now even after two days of roaming around is that, its a great place to get lost in........the anonymity, the feeling of being an alien yet with a subtle hindi speaking confidence, I am having a ball.....

the train journey was usual, food, sleep, read, wonder, stand at the door, get out at all kinds of wierd stations and finally land in bombay.......stuff all my luggage into an auto (against all odds) and arrive at BARC (great campus, a must-visit for the tired mumbai-kar ;-> ). Got my mobile soon (09819295879)......had the police tow our vehicle away......ate vada-paav....got stuck in the oh-so-unpredictable rain........and then, finally slept after one hectic day.......

got up at 6.....went over to mankhurd railway station.....and btw, local trains are a concept in bombay, a phenomenon, its just fantastic, their speeds, their co-ordination, and surprisingly, their reliability, and consequently, their being mumbai's spine.......its awesome.......got the local train to VT (Victoria Terminus) a.k.a CST (Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus)........and landed in the grandest railway station of them all.......its ancient, its colonial heritage is striking, the grandfather clock is precise, and the stained glass is still all intact......beautiful......and imposing.......and very majestic from outside........and very very british.......

downtown mumbai is zero-activity during weekends........kids playing football and cricket on the streets, which are wide, treelined, and flanked by victorian/gothic buildings, giving you a very very non-indian look.......downtown mumbai is sober and very british..........

and guess why i went there, my cousins wife was taking a test conducted by infosys!!!.....whoa.....i cant seem to escape the bangalore ghosts.......so, off we went to some college near marine drive......and as she wrote her tests, i spent my time walking with the piegons on marine drive, wondering about the people who live in those incredibly expensive apartments off the drive........went over to VT again, had some vadapaav, walked to metro theatre, caught a local bus to regal theatre, and walked to the gateway of india........erected to commemorate the visit of their majesties, king george the fourth and queen elizabeth in MCMXI.......impressed?

oppsite the gateway is the taj, and opppsite the taj was this sev puri waala who served us some delicious sev puri for rs 5/- and then, we made our way inside the taj to find the cake shop, where they served us some delicious pastries for rs 55/-........bombay's distincitive feature is the contrast between the rich and poor.......we took rides in taxi's that were driven by 70 year old men, beggars everywhere, and i had the rare chance to see the rs 6 crore maybach.....its just awesome........bombay i mean......

saw the mumbai university, which is huge and in the middle of downtown, saw a lot of roadside books, and then, made our way to some restaurant......had some great food, got back to VT.......bought a mumbai map, and now, back in BARC........didnt expect to visit downtown the second day of my trip.......blame it on infosys.......hehe......

will be off to IITb tomorrow, get my hostel room, shop for some basic things, and start the orientation next day.......

Labels: bombay