July 26th 2009

My bed is a couple small mattresses stacked on top of each other on the floor.When I wake I roll over and take a look out the window to see what the day is going to be like.This is a completely fruitless exercise, because no matter how nice it may seem, it is a matter of time before it begins to pour.This was the case for today… it looked nice so we decided to bite the bullet and go in to town, although it ended up raining sporadically all day.

I've been told that it is a necessary experience to try out the Mumbai rail system, so we set off to catch a train for Bandra - which is a more urban part of town from where we are.While I am not new to rail travel, in the past we have taken long train journeys, it has been a few years and we are now more likely to fly than to travel by train.As it turned out, the trains are not running due to rain!So we backtrack from the station and catch an auto.

The trip to Bandra is enjoyable, due to heavy rain it isn't as dusty and gritty here when you travel in an open auto (compared to Delhi) and there were some interesting sights along the way.Next time I plan on keeping my camera handy to capture photos of the skyline as you cross from one island to the other.

The stop for today was Linking Road - a renowned street market which is known among other things for its shoes.The savvy shopper knows to look at all the options before buying, so even though I fell for a pair of awesome wedges at one of the proper shops in the area, I waited till I looked around first before deciding.The prices in the open outdoor market are around Rs. 100 - Rs. 300… the roommate scored a pair of gladiator sandals for about $3 and a pair of more rain appropriate flats for the same price.The closed in shops have shoes ranging from Rs. 500 to upwards of Rs. 3000, with my wedges which I bought after all costing Rs 1195 = $27.While seemingly pricey when you compare to the stylish shoes for $3, the odds of the street shoes lasting more than a couple months is highly unlikely.I was torn over the idea of disposable fashion and the waste of buying and then throwing out shoes, but then realized that the wear in tear of life in Waterloo is nothing compared to India - and so on my next trip to Linking Road I will be picking up a couple pairs of everyday sandals.

After looking at every shoe Linking Road had to offer, we headed off to another part of Bandra for an early supper, at a veg restaurant recommended to us by our other roommate.I had the pao bhaji which is a staple in the Mumbai diet, and thoroughly enjoyed it.I have been eating much better since coming to Mumbai, whereas in Delhi I was seriously under eating due to heat and feeling very weak because of it.I happily indulge in an extra serving of the butter soaked bread that comes with the meal.

Thoroughly full and tired of shopping, we decide to head home.In order to catch a ride, you flag down an auto and ask them if they are willing to go to your area.We are staying in a part of town where the auto-walla may not be able to get return fare, so many refuse to go.We told one guy that we wanted to go to a nearby area - Chembur in order for him to agree, and while he was fine with going to our area of Govandi - he became hopelessly lost as we circled our apartment block in the dark trying to find a road leading inwards.He also drove like he had no regard for his life, or ours… which is quite possible.

So that was the first outing in proper Mumbai, one of many to come I am sure.