Hi everyone!
I'm writing from Delhi now ... my long weekend in Mumbai has sadly come to an end. It was a lovely four days spent with wonderful people.
The city itself was not what I was expecting. It's India's largest so of course some things I could expect: expansive, bustling, trash, lots of people, lots of traffic, etc. I thought maybe going to such a big metropolis would be a shock after being in a small city like Udaipur, but it was honestly just what the Doctor ordered. Udaipur is absolutley lovely, but it gets a bit dull sometimes, especially since the summer program has died down and my research project is done with. I found Mumbai to be quite pretty. There's something about it that is just enchanting. Like I said: not at all like what I was expecting!
I spent a lot of my time in Mumbai hanging out with my friend from summer school, Ubaid. He also introduced me to some friends from his master's program over the course of the weekend, all of whom were super sweet to me the whole time I was there. I also attended a party on Friday night for the "freshers" (incoming 1st year grad students), which was awesome. The girls wore traditional sarees and performed a dance, one girl sang, another guy played two different flutes, and there was more games and fun to be had. This all followed by dinner and dancing - it was quite fun!!
My friend Imari also came down from the city of Pune (also in Maharastra state) and spent the better part of Saturday exploring the city with me. He is originally from Durham and we went to Europe over 9 years ago (where we first met). It's always fun to meet people from home in foreign places! We mostly hung around South Bombay where we visited the Gateway of India, Taj Hotel, and a large market area. My favorite part of that day was going and sitting on the wall next to Marine Drive and chatting with him will looking out at the city. We must have sat there for the better part of two hours, if not longer. We also met up very briefly with another friend from summer school, Kinjal. Later on Imari introduced me to his Indian hosts, a lovely young couple living in Mulund (near the Powai neighborhood I was staying in). Anyways, Imari and I had a great time catching up with each other. We also managed to take almost every type of public transport possible while together that day: taxi, bus, train, and rickshaw - it was a crazy day!!
Other highlights of the trip included a dinner and a lunch in the very posh Hiranandani neigborhood of Mumbai. Also, sitting at the boat house on Lake Powai and chatting with Ubaid. OH, and we can't forget tiffin (aka: tea time), my favorite part of the day. I'm obsessed with chai if you guys didn't already know. Tea time has become one of my favorite times of day ... a habit I must continue upon returning to the states!
All in all, I had a wonderful time. I never once felt unsafe or even uncomfortable. Mumbai is actually known as one of the safest cities for women in India and I can say for certain that I did not receive any harrassment or surprisingly, many stares at all!! Some men did ask to take a picture with me, but when I said no they just said "okay, thanks" and went on their way. In Udaipur they would try to argue with me or just start clicking my picture anyways.
So, I arrived to Delhi this afternoon and I am staying in a nice neighborhood in a guest house with my girlfriend Daniela for the rest of the week. We will celebrate my birthday here on Wednesday and hopefully meet up with other friends before going on a weekend trip. We were originally planning for Jaipur but now we are talking about going north to Palampur and Dharamsala for a more relaxing break. We shall see by tomorrow I think ...
Anyways, here are some pictures!
I'm writing from Delhi now ... my long weekend in Mumbai has sadly come to an end. It was a lovely four days spent with wonderful people.
The city itself was not what I was expecting. It's India's largest so of course some things I could expect: expansive, bustling, trash, lots of people, lots of traffic, etc. I thought maybe going to such a big metropolis would be a shock after being in a small city like Udaipur, but it was honestly just what the Doctor ordered. Udaipur is absolutley lovely, but it gets a bit dull sometimes, especially since the summer program has died down and my research project is done with. I found Mumbai to be quite pretty. There's something about it that is just enchanting. Like I said: not at all like what I was expecting!
I spent a lot of my time in Mumbai hanging out with my friend from summer school, Ubaid. He also introduced me to some friends from his master's program over the course of the weekend, all of whom were super sweet to me the whole time I was there. I also attended a party on Friday night for the "freshers" (incoming 1st year grad students), which was awesome. The girls wore traditional sarees and performed a dance, one girl sang, another guy played two different flutes, and there was more games and fun to be had. This all followed by dinner and dancing - it was quite fun!!
My friend Imari also came down from the city of Pune (also in Maharastra state) and spent the better part of Saturday exploring the city with me. He is originally from Durham and we went to Europe over 9 years ago (where we first met). It's always fun to meet people from home in foreign places! We mostly hung around South Bombay where we visited the Gateway of India, Taj Hotel, and a large market area. My favorite part of that day was going and sitting on the wall next to Marine Drive and chatting with him will looking out at the city. We must have sat there for the better part of two hours, if not longer. We also met up very briefly with another friend from summer school, Kinjal. Later on Imari introduced me to his Indian hosts, a lovely young couple living in Mulund (near the Powai neighborhood I was staying in). Anyways, Imari and I had a great time catching up with each other. We also managed to take almost every type of public transport possible while together that day: taxi, bus, train, and rickshaw - it was a crazy day!!
Other highlights of the trip included a dinner and a lunch in the very posh Hiranandani neigborhood of Mumbai. Also, sitting at the boat house on Lake Powai and chatting with Ubaid. OH, and we can't forget tiffin (aka: tea time), my favorite part of the day. I'm obsessed with chai if you guys didn't already know. Tea time has become one of my favorite times of day ... a habit I must continue upon returning to the states!
All in all, I had a wonderful time. I never once felt unsafe or even uncomfortable. Mumbai is actually known as one of the safest cities for women in India and I can say for certain that I did not receive any harrassment or surprisingly, many stares at all!! Some men did ask to take a picture with me, but when I said no they just said "okay, thanks" and went on their way. In Udaipur they would try to argue with me or just start clicking my picture anyways.
So, I arrived to Delhi this afternoon and I am staying in a nice neighborhood in a guest house with my girlfriend Daniela for the rest of the week. We will celebrate my birthday here on Wednesday and hopefully meet up with other friends before going on a weekend trip. We were originally planning for Jaipur but now we are talking about going north to Palampur and Dharamsala for a more relaxing break. We shall see by tomorrow I think ...
Anyways, here are some pictures!
Dunkin Donuts with Rakesh (center) and Ubaid (right)
The girls performing a Bollywood dance in their sarees
Lovely flute playing
Yasmeen and I
What a fun group!
In front of the Gateway of India
Gateway of India
Taj Motel
Looking down from the wall on Marine Drive (aka "the queens necklace")
City view from Marine Drive
Imari and I
One of the many amazing meals - this was at a french cafe
That's all for now. Will update from Delhi in a few days!
xoxo,
Alec
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