India Mumbai Blog #1 🇬🇧

A contrast. I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced a bigger contrast in my life in terms of city experience. From Amsterdam to Mumbai… Yet it feels good. The child in me would have experienced this as a huge shock, and I go back to that thought of visiting cities like Barcelona and Milan, where I would hang on to my mother’s leg and feel scared. And yet, the Stan of today walks through it with confidence and just does it.

Why that child, you probably ask yourself? That child has always felt deeply and has always been someone full of emotion. That hasn’t changed. What has changed is the experience and self-confidence to take on this adventure. Of course it’s new, and yes, even now it’s exciting. Such a busy city — I walk out of the airport and immediately everything starts happening with that feeling and your senses. A strange, clammy warm blanket covers you with a scent that isn’t unpleasant and still unfamiliar. The smell of food that instantly makes you want to eat.

I walk to my Uber, got help with my backpack, and step in. Shortly after being on the road, pouring rain… am I prepared for that? Not really. The thick rain drops slide down the windows, and so does the thought slide down whether I was prepared with my clothes for this weather — it all just slides down just as the rain drops.

The taxi is heading south towards Colaba. It’s 1:00 AM and the roads aren’t busy. The architecture stands out in the dark: big buildings next to metal shacks, four floors high, tied together with rope and tarpaulin. Everything seems possible here.

I arrive at 1:30 AM at my accommodation. The building looks a bit run-down and grimy from the outside. Am I worried? Yes, I am curious about my room. After stepping in I am warmly welcomed. People are helpful — or is it because I’m constantly smiling myself?
Inside, the building isn’t glamorous either. The room is fine; I test the bed — nice and firm. The fact that my legs already stick out from the calves down is something I’ve experienced before in faraway countries.

Still, I go out to explore the neighborhood. Adrenaline is keeping me awake, after all the messages I got before my trip. Also a new environment and experiencing it for the first time is holding that adrenaline. I decide to go out for a drink… not so easy at 01:30, since most places are closed. I walk from alley to street and already lose count of the number of rats. Yes, this is a city where hygiene isn’t priority number one. So what is the priority in this city? I feel that I’ll find that out here soon.

After 300 meters, I come across a kind of large grill house that’s surprisingly busy. On one side, big grills and fires with pans and personnel; on the other side the restaurant, which is packed!

And yes, then comes that same big smile as I step inside. I walk to a table in the back corner. Perfect — in the corner, having an eye on everyone. The opposite was true as well: I was being watched too. Fascinating to see people are eating with their hands and enjoying being together. Food is a connecting factor that brings people together.

It takes two minutes before a group of students laugh, and I feel it’s about me. Of course, I stand out — so I smile back. They invite me to join them. Under the motto “yes man,” saying yes to many things, it feels fun. We joke around, the mix is nice. I get some tips on places to visit, and those head wiggles after every sentence are such an endearing gesture!

I let them integrate me to India, my first dish I eat with bread and yes, with my hands. Very tasty, flavorful, and a true experience. I skip the cutlery when the waiter serves me.

My first impression really is about contrast. That’s what makes Mumbai and India so impressive already. And yet, I soon think of that quote: “What is your favourite place? I don’t have a favourite place. I have my favourite people. When I’m with them, it becomes my favourite place.”

Those favourite people aren’t around me here. But it’s still the people who make all the difference — not only here, but in life in general — and they do it with a smile. That takes you very far and so do I smile.

Back at the hotel, I step into the shower, which doesn’t get warm. Luckily, the water — and that thought — slides down me just as easily as the rain did earlier in the taxi drive. In bed, I can’t fall asleep easily. I want to share some of my experience first.

Seeing things creates an image and expectation. Experiencing them creates a feeling. A feeling of just having met and laughed with strangers, and then heading to bed alone. Wonderful.

A beautiful first few hours and great acquaintance. This is just the beginning.