Week 1: Wake Up Call

Hello.
Well, when the books said that India would overwhelm the senses there was no way for me to imagine how crazy it would be here. The first day was a wake up call most like a cold glass of water to the face.

So the flight from London to Mumbai went rather smoothly, and felt extremely fast. Ryan and I both had very little sleep over a period of a day and a half so arriving in Mumbai at midnight was a little rough. We walked right through customs and out into the warm, welcoming 30-degree heat of the night. At the time it was about the only good thing I was able to pick out from all the chaos. I had to use the loo when I got off the plane, and so began my first encounter with a squat toilet and beggars. The squat toilet looks much like they squeezed a regular porcelain toilet into a hole in the ground. There are footpads to stabilize yourself (I did quite well actually). There is also a tap and bucket for washing your hands...Here's the interesting part, in reality you are supposed to use your left hand to clean yourself after using the facilities and your right hand is reserved for things like eating and shaking hands. I chose to use toilet paper as this is one custom I refuse to take part in. But I know not to touch anyone's left hand now....

Okay so upon exiting the airport we soon realized that among the hundreds of people waiting to pick people up, my name was nowhere to be found. I accidentally booked the hotel for the 10th (because we were arriving at midnight on the 10th) but I should have booked it for the 9th. I later found out I shouldn't have booked that hotel at all, but Ill get to that soon. So we finally got a ride to the hotel after being hassled by greedy taxi drivers for an hour, at about 2 am. The drive was insane, even at midnight. We drove through slums, with wild dogs everywhere, and men sleeping in their streetside shops overnight.

Our hotel (Hotel Singhs Int'l) turned out to be in the north end of Mumbai, about 1 hour away from where smart tourists stay (which is Colaba, in the south). We were in a hotel that is has plywood doors and is literally falling apart. It is also right beside the train station, which makes it a challenge to sleep at night, even with earplugs. Luckily I brought sheets and a pillowcase, because everything about this place was dodgy. Let's just say it was a sleepless night for both Ryan and I, and I don't think the Malaria pills helped as I had some pretty ferocious dreams.

Daylight brought some solace and our stomachs stopped churning. We were switched to a nicer room (nice being relative, it still sucked but was livable) and we literally spent the entire day and night in bed sleeping, reading about Mumbai, and we ordered in room service (totaling about 5$ CAD for both of us). I must say, the food was pretty great, though I could have gone a whole day without eating I was so lazy. We wanted to catch up on sleep, refresh ourselves for our big day out in Mumbai (and we were both a little frightened to leave the hotel).

Today we got up later than we wanted to, but again, we needed sleep. Exiting the hotel was insane. People everywhere, garbage everywhere, and babies with (don't read this if you have a weak stomach) skin falling off and vomit all over their faces, practically abandoned among thousands of commuters waiting for a train. On the plus side, we took a train downtown from right next to the hotel and we haven't gotten lost yet. We have seen some beautiful things such as a cricket match outside the Courthouse which is stunning with enormous palm trees lining the maidan (quad), and the University of Mumbai. We had shopped a little, and I am getting ideas for gifts. I bought a notepad and Ryan bought a pillowcase. We will be shopping for a better and more central hotel today as well. I thought I'd stop in to a net cafe to let everyone know I am alive and well, and aside from that extremely overwhelming start, things are looking up and we're really beginning to enjoy ourselves. Ryan is great company and we are beginning to realize we are more similar than we thought.

Alright, thank you for sticking with me til the end. I will try to spice up my blogs more and add pics but we didn't have the cord with us today. I love you all and can't wait to tell you more...we're heading to Goa in a couple days, aahhhh beaches!

Leanne