Entries about mumbai

Day 24:Santacruz, Mumbai 23/10/11

We arrive in Mumbai around half eight in the morning, feeling reasonably fresh as we step off the bus. Hail a rickshaw who has no idea where our hotel is. We ring the hotel and the native speaking receptionist does the trick with the driver.

We arrive at the hotel which is the most expensive by a long way. Also not the best by a long way but ok nonetheless. We make our way down to the Wankhede Stadium for the England India game. Take the train down there and after a fair bit of hassle getting into the ground, we eventually manage to buy tickets off a member of staff for half the face value. Very good seats they are too, right next to the press box.

Great fun in the ground and although England are disappointing the atmosphere is unbelievable and there is some good banter with the India fanatics surrounding us. The noise and heat were outrageous, leading to a well earned headache.

We take a walk to downtown Colaba for some food after the sweatfest in the stadium. A 20 minute walk in which we get slightly lost is well worth it as we see the Gateway of India, the contrasts between Mumbai’s rich and poor and some rather well fed rats on the street. We have great chicken kebabs from an outdoor street vendor, which seems to be a bit of an institution. The street is packed with people eating from here, some of them eating off their car bonnets with a bit of a party atmosphere in the air. Any comparisons between here and Kebab Elite must be quashed immediately.