Bombay Day 1

September 5th, 2008- 9:55
India, Incredible India (so says the advertisement on the plane)… what an incredible shock to the soul. Even before we stepped off the plane I was overcome by wonder and anxiety. Flying over northern Mumbai I was awe-struck by the majestic mountains that reminded me of sleeping giants covered with a blanket of mist. I was slightly apprehensive at how calm and peaceful the countryside looked. This was not the Mumbai I had heard of or read about… where was the poverty? Where was the chaotic traffic filled streets, the pollution?

Then they began to appear, little blue specs that turned into blue plastic tarps safeguarding shantytowns from the rain. Hundreds of thousands of blue tarps covering makeshift scrap houses. The sides of mountains were covered with these homes. As we flew over the city I wondered what it had in store for us.

After safely landing and collecting our luggage we hopped into this incredible classic black and yellow taxicab, the 90 min cab ride to Bentley’s hotel would cost us the equivalent of 9 dollars. Driving through the mud-spattered streets we passed filthy children fighting over coins in the road and tiny toddlers carrying their infant siblings through the swarming streets begging for money. From the security of our leopard lined cab I felt nauseas seeing the great discrepancy of wealth. One storefront would have Lacoste clothing for sale, and right next door would be a homeless community trying to sell you pieces of string and good fortune. It made my heart wrench to watch a tiny dirty arm of a small child reaches into my window and grab my shirt sleeve- “please miss, please”. We drove past hundreds of Ganesha shrines- the god with the elephant head who represents new beginnings and persevering through life’s struggles. The cab paused only moments at stoplights before the children returned… eager for a small donation. Building after deserted building looked like it had been reclaimed by hordes of people looking for a place to rest their heads. It didn’t matter if that building were about to crumble into a large pile of debris people were still occupying every square inch, hanging laundry out of the windows almost as a poignant sign of their survival.

Lynn read me a statistic today that is truly astounding; 800 million Indians live on less than 2 dollars a day. Only 1/3 of the country lives on more than 2 USD a day!? Truly Incredible India.

This is definitely a city of emotions. One minute I am in awe of the beauty and color, and the next I am overcome by the multitude of people sleeping on the side of the road, partially hidden under plastic or newspapers. I couldn’t tell if I liked it and all of the energy inside of it, or if I felt like a sick individual for being a tourist here, a spectator to this calamity. I still don’t know how I feel about all this.