I and my society friends along with a bunch of adventure seeking people went on to explore South Mumbai. We met near the 'Theobroma' a cafe in Colaba Causeway. All of us met there around 7 am and went to get bicycles & helmet rented from 'Happy Cycle' shop which was just a 2 minute walk from the cafe. We then started our ride. Our first stop was at the Gateway of India. It is an arch monument built to commemorate the 1911 royal visit of King George and Queen Mary to Mumbai. It is one of the most visited tourist spots as it is the unofficial icon of the city of Mumbai. It is the first structure welcoming visitors entering the city by sea. The gateway and its promenade affords a great view of the boat studded sea & is connecting point for boat rides to and from the famous Elephanta Caves
We then had an introduction session by the sea so that we could know our fellow riders a little better. Then we proceeded and our second stop was at the Asiatic Society of Mumbai's library. It is a library with treasures of books, periodicals, ancient manuscripts, painted folios, coins, artifacts, maps & prints. It was founded by Sir James Mackintosh - a lawyer, jurist and public figure in England who was also the Recorder for the King's Judge for Bombay. The library was formed with the intention of promoting useful knowledge. Opposite of the library was the Horniman circle park. It was named after British Journalist Benjamin Horniman who supported the Indian freedom struggle. The area is an art and culture hub of Mumbai city.
From there it was a long yet exciting ride. We went to our third spot via Nariman point. Our third stop was Marine Drive. It is a 3.6 kilometre long boulevard in South Mumbai. It is a C -shaped six lane concrete road along the coast, which is a natural bay. The road was constructed by philanthropist Bhagojisheth Keer & Pallonji Mistry. It is situated on reclaimed land facing west-south-west. A promenade lies parallel to this road. Marine drive is also known as the Queen's Necklace because if viewed at night from an elevated point, the street lights resemble a string of pearls in a necklace.
Our last stop of the ride was at Girgaum Chowpatyy. It is a public beach along the Queen's necklace adjoining Marine Drive in the Girgaon area of Mumbai. Never is the beach empty or deserted. You will always find one or the other person lazing around here or children lost in their world, blithely building sand castle along the shores, adults indulged in the street food. Girgaum Chowpatty offers fun, frenzy & delights all rolled into one and it is worth spending a few hours here free from the usually claustrophobic city. All of us played Kho-Kho at the beach and enjoyed it to the max. There was a beautiful wall painting on the walls which was picture perfect. We clicked alot of pictures there and then headed back to the cycle shop to return our rented cycles. Monsoon is the best time to go cycling around the city, unfortunately it did not rain on the day we went and the sun was shining bright.
After returning our bicycles we were hungry and decided to go have breakfast. Some of our fellow members had Non-veg breakfast at the Olympia Cafe near the Madras Cafe. I am a vegan hence decided to have South Indian cuisine. We enjoyed the delicious breakfast till our stomach and heart was full, shared our past adventure experiences with one another and learnt new things about places and people. We then bid goodbyes to each other with a hope of having many more new adventures.
