Madness in Mumbai

The fastest city in India, the city with a reputation for style, class and wealth, the economic capital in India-you must have guessed it, Mumbai!!

As a 21 year old girl who has been to various parts of the country, the Mumbai city had always eluded my itinerary due to unfortunate circumstances. The long awaited trip began with much fervour from the November 26^th,2014. It was to be a three day family trip with my father acting as the tour guide from years of experience. The trip had been long due so the requirement list was long and alarming (to my dad). :P

The Hussain-sagar express took us from Hyderabad to the Dadar station. Known for its crowd bearing capacity was surprisingly empty and clean. On registering a positive impression about the city, we headed for our hotel in a ‘Kaali-Peeli’ taxi; a yellow and black taxi. They are government registered and function on a metre. The hotel was at quite a distance from the station and we reached the hotel at 06:00 hours.

The hotel was situated in Malad and the name was ‘Greens Residency’. It was a three star hotel with extremely comfortable rooms and plush rooms. After completing our quota of sleep and washing up, we were ready by 08:00 hours. We had hired a taxi for the next 3 days to take us around the city.

The first destination was the world famous Siddhi Vinayak Mandir followed by the Mahalakshmi temple. The temples were moderately crowded and the darshan finished in a matter of couple of hours. After a sumptuous meal at Symphony’s restaurant in the heart of Mumbai city, we left for the famous Gateway of India and the Taj hotel. The venue was crowded and we also went aboard a steamer for a ride in the Arabian ocean. The evening air was salty and refreshing, making us all glow with happiness. The temperature was just perfect and the view was magnificent. Please don’t miss the steamer boat ride at any cost.

We then went back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep as we the weariness of travelling had still not deserted our bodies .Please make sure you leave for your destination as early as possible as the traffic jam in the city becomes unbearable during the peak hours of 18:00 hours to 22:00 hours.

The next day was set aside for shopping and the three ladies of the family brandished a list of their requirements which my father hesitatingly approved. :P

The shopping was done at Linking road and Hill road. Both destinations are renowned for street shopping and the perfect place to buy trinkets and night clothes. Lunch was an elaborate affair at ELCO restaurant. A foodie’s heaven, the chat and the desserts there are a must have. Please try the aloo tikki and the rabdi kulfi.

After lunch, we left for the Band Stand, a posh locality overlooking the sea shore. The place is known for the residence of famous movie stars like Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan.

We then went back to our hotel for dinner and sleep.

The next day, a plan was made for Kolaba and various other parts of the city that required no extensive amount of sight-seeing.

The railway station, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus was a wonder in itself with millions of people walking through it in a matter of couple of hours. We waited there for a couple of hours before boarding the train back to Hyderabad at 21:00 hours.