At the Gateway of India
We awoke this morning to the patter of rain. The monsoons have finally come! The only downside to this amazing place that we are staying at is that it is so far from everything else. We bought some snacks from the gas station, otherwise known as the petrol pump, and were going to have that for breakfast but Praj decided he wanted a heartier breakfast and asked the servants to make us breakfast. Then we hopped into a cab and headed towards The Gateway of India. The cab ride across town in the traffic took nearly 2 hours.
There isn’t much at the Gateway of India, it’s just a large structure, but it is a good reference point and probably the furthest tourist place from our hotel. Immediately we were accosted by people wanting to give us overpriced tours or to sell us trinkets. We decided that the cab ride had worn us out, we needed some lunch and we found out that a restaurant from Shantaram, the book I’m still reading, was close by, so we walked there to grab some lunch. Since my stomach is still not settled we ordered sodas instead of beers. At restaurants here sodas come in glass bottles and they give you straws to drink the soda out of. The problem with the straws is the hole is so tiny that if you suck too hard the straw collapses and you don’t get any soda at all. There must be a trick to drinking from them because the only way I can manage to get them to work is by sucking very softly and slowly and Prajwal always finishes his in a third of the time it takes me.
I ordered a gull order of Chicken Masala for Praj and me to share and it was a very large full serving. When the bill came the chicken was Rs 310, this is the proper way to say 310 INR and I will use this notation from now on. We were outraged, the menu said 120 for a half order, so a full order shouldn’t be this much. Then we calmed down and thought about it, Rs 310 is just over $6, not bad anywhere in the world for a nice sit down lunch.
Next we hopped onto a boat to Elephanta Island located 9km and 1 hour away. It is known for its carvings and caves. While on the boat it rained, when we got to the island it rained and when we returned it continued to rain. The rain didn’t stop our fun at all and I think it actually enhanced it for Praj. When we got to the island there is a small train that costs Rs 5 or you can take the 1km walk. We opted for the walk which was no way near 1km. The train basically takes you down the dock, and from where they sell tickets you cannot see the end, but it is just around the bend, a few hundred yards at the most. The island had lots of wild monkeys and dogs along with the cave carvings that were beautiful. Then we got back on the boat while it rained some more. When we returned to the mainland we went to the Taj Hotel for a cup of hot chocolate and to dry off. The cost to stay at the Taj Hotel is more than the average Indian makes in a year! Then we went to the hanging gardens, a beautiful garden path on top of a hill in a very nice neighborhood where rich people walk with their servants a few steps behind carrying their umbrella, towel and water for them.
I had to go the bathroom very badly and there aren’t many public bathrooms in India, besides peeing on the street as many people do. After walking around for some time I was finally able to locate a pay toilet. I handed the guy at the desk a 5 Rupee note and waited for change. He didn’t give me any and so I asked him for some and then he shouted at me in an unknown language and motioned that I would get my change when I came back out. Since they usually have different rates for squatting and a urinal, I decided that it wasn’t too crazy and to get my change on the way out. When I walked into the bathroom there were only four squatter looking doors and they were all closed. I pushed on the first one and it was locked. I repeated this on the second and third doors as well until finally the fourth door opened and inside there was a naked man taking a shower. This wasn’t a bathroom at all but a public shower. I apologized to the startled man and got my 5 Rupee note back.
Cave Carving
Hanging Gardens Park
Taj Hotel and Gateway of India
Island Monkeys
Leopold Cafe&Bar
So happy together
Inside a cave
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