Mumbai, India

WOW! Had a wonderful couple of days in Mumbai. The first day we went on an excursion with Shore Excursions called the Slum Dog Millionaire tour. I was a little concerned about this tour because I didn’t want to be involved in anything that seemed exploitive but having used Shore Excursions in the past I did trust that if they were offering this tour it was likely to be ok. We both left feeling hopeful and impressed with the entrepreneurial and community spirit that exists in this area as well as the evidence that we can all make a difference for this planet we call home. Slum Dog Millionaire is a movie which was filmed in part in this area of Mumbai. It is an area that takes up 2.5 square kilometres of Mumbai and yes it is considered a slum. The official population of this area is 1,000,000 people – unofficially it is more likely 1.5 million and growing (Mumbai’s total population is approaching 22 million). The name of the area is Dharavi. We visited the commercial area first. The main industry we witnessed was recycling – they recycle everything – plastics, metal, aluminum, paper and likely more. These people work very hard and long hours. Many sleep on the floors of the businesses as this is one of the benefits of employment. We were told if they could work 24 hours a day they would in an effort to make money to help support their families. We also had first hand experience with a company called Dharavi which makes designer bags. They used to make them for other big name brands but now they make them under their own name. We rested at the Dharavi store for a few minutes – we needed the air conditioning they provided to cool down after walking through the area for an hour at the hottest time of the day. If you do happen to use handbags, wallets and such check out www.dharavimarket.com.

Next was the residential area. Our guide Rakesh provided us with some needed info – the passages are narrow – walk single file, no stopping, no photos, it’s ok to glance in the doorways but try not to be too obvious, protect our belongings, carry bags and packs in front of us, be careful of uneven and narrow walkways and watch for low hanging wires and pipes – finally some areas would be very dark. It made me think of a Seth Godin quote – “If it scares you it might be a good thing to try.” It was dark and narrow and uneven. Our small group began calling out to the people behind to warn of steps up or down and uneven pavement – and that helped. The other thing that helped were the children in doorways that would call out hello and wave to us as we passed. It was around noon when we walk through the residence and who knew how dark midday could be – it was like walking through tunnels. Happy to say no-one got lost. Rakesh did warn us that there was no GPS and it was a maze.

After the residences we went to the retail market area – this is where the people of Dharavi shop. Everything they need was available here in little shops that lined the street. Food, clothing, supplies they seemed to have it all. It was a 4 hour tour (2 of which was walking) in torrid conditions but well worth it.

The second day in Mumbai we arranged a private tour with our guide from the day before. I like private tours because we can arrange to do some needed errands as well. We started at 9 and were back on the ship by 1pm. We visited Victoria Station, the Crawford Market and a fruit and vegetable market close by. At the Crawford Market we also went to a pet market. Lots of puppies, kittens, birds and other animals. All seemed well cared for and in clean environments. I did wonder about whether they were all mill animals as there were so many. After the markets we went to the Gandhi Museum – it was quite interesting. We drove along the marine drive and stopped for some photos. Then it was off to the Hanging Gardens – which weren’t hanging. They are actually hanging above the water – so it’s a garden built above an aquifer. As I said nothing special. From there we went to a laundry – the largest outdoor laundry in Mumbai.  People live and work here – children play here.  One of the photos is of a couple of children swinging amongst the laundry.  Our last stop was the Gateway of India and the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.  It was Sunday morning and this was obviously a loved spot of the locals.  Many families out for their walks.  Ian and I did stick out from the crowd.  Very friendly people – some wanted their photos taken with us.  We saw lots, our guide was very informative and our driver was great – the heat – not so nice.  We were relieved to get back to the ship.