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Since we all wanted the new couple to finally have time for themselves, the day after the party Prithi picked me up to take me to downtown Mumbai. We took a riksha to the train station where we boarded a train to downtown. The distance I would say is like from Darmstadt to Frankfurt, with no open spaces in between. The trains are open-doored and only make about a 30 sec. Stop. If you don't get off or on right away, it just continues on. If Carsten had been with us, we would have had to ride in the men's section. Being women we could ride in the women's section where absolutely no men are allowed. At first we had to stand, but then we found a free place to sit. And you better know where to get off because there are no announcements and you can't usually read the signs in time! As the time for our stop neared, we stood next to the door in order to be able to get off. The trains conductors take no considerations of anyone, whether young or old, you better be ready when your stop arrives!
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We walked a bit till we got to the waterfront of the harbor. It had started to drizzle and we had both forgotten to bring an umbrella with us, but we didn't let that bother us. There we saw the "Gateway of India", a monumental, solid stone structure at the harbor entrance to Mumbai (formerly Bombay), a metropolis of about 12 Million people. It was built in 1926 and is 24 m high.
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Then we went to see the Rajabai Tower (78 m high) at the university library. Very British! Afterwards we got on a bus to see the Haji Ali mosque, located on a small island in the harbor. You have to walk a small pier to get to it. There are no guard rails on the pier and the stony walkway was quite slippery. A big wave hit it and we got almost drenched, but that didn't stop us. The warm weather dried our cloths pretty fast. This is a bought picture, just to give you an idea....
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And of course we got pictures of us while there.....
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Afterwards we again took a bus back home. The buses, like the train, only stop a few seconds, then drive on. I was afraid that either Prithi would get on and I'd be left behind or vice-versa! That's how short the stops are!
Before returning to the hotel, Prithi and I did some shopping at the basar. There I picked up 3 beautiful sahri's for myself. At the hotel we found Carsten still suffering from very bad stomach problems that he'd been having the last days (nerves? J ).
The next day we packed up our suitcases and went for some last minute shopping. Now we had our monsoon rain showers! Our planes didn't leave until around midnight, again I flew with Air France and Carsten 2 hours later with Lufthansa.
My flight back wasn't so nice. The plane was full and I had a man sitting next to me who slept during the whole trip!. Being courteous, I didn't want to disturb him so I didn't get to walk around and stretch my legs. The seats on Air France are extremely close together (what about the reports about thromboses??). I'm quite small but it was tight even for me and my legs started cramping by the end of the flight. Before arriving in Paris I felt feverish, but thought it was just tiredness. After getting home, I discovered that I did indeed have a fever! It was gone by the next day otherwise I would have gotten worried!
The nicest part of the return trip was flying over Frankfurt at 36,000 ft. and seeing the Frankfurt airport from that high up! That was cool! But it was also funny, flying past my final destination!
Regina was waiting to pick me up, so I didn't have to take the train. That was nice! And I must admit, as exciting and interesting the trip was, I was glad to be back home! |
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