Bombay - Thoughts

Bombay is a crazy crazy city. You can't be here more than 5 minutes before it starts to affect you. Physically you know you are in Bombay because your eyes water with the pollution, you can feel it in your lungs and even the inside of your nose turns black. After walking around for a full day you can scrape your skin and a fine black layer comes off. Mentally, at least as a visitor, Bombay is an exhausting city. Cab drivers try and rip you off all the time, touts are clamoring for your attention, beggars are following you around and there are an innumerable number of people *everywhere*. There doesn't seem to be any escape from them no matter where you go or what time it is. Sometimes this builds up to ridiculous levels. We rode the Churchgate line at rush hour and it was a battle getting on and off the train, you literally had to fight your way on and off, and if you were in the wrong place, as I was once or twice, you were just pushed off by a sea of people. I can't imagine that many other cities need warnings not to ride on the top of the train during peak hours, 4000 people are killed every year in Bombay from train accidents. After seeing the trains this does not surprise me at all.

It is possible though to live a life in Bombay sequestered from much of this. There are American style air-conditioned malls, great restaurants, great bars and exclusive areas. I saw this side of Bombay when I couch surfed with Ashish and Swati, who were great hosts. It is amazing though that you can turn a corner around by one of these malls and suddenly be at the entrance to a slum. We walked through the edges of a slum and it was a complete contrast. The number of people packed into such a tiny space was just incredible (also some of the smells.)

Even given all of the downsides to Bombay, I'd have to say that I really liked it. The city has a crazy energy to it that you wouldn't find in many places in the world. It really is a "Maximum City" (highly recommend that book.)

I don't have the energy or time to write about all the travelers and locals that we met in Bombay, or to write about some of the great experiences. So I'll just list a few here - Chowpatti Beach at night, Dhobi Ghat, great chinese food, riding the trains hanging off the side (my favorite), insane taxi drivers, transvestites on the trains, money sucking temples, pirated book stalls (Deva's favorite), slums, CST at rush hour..