Strolling Along the Legacy of British Empire in Mumbai (India; 26-30 March 2011)

When people asked me what's the biggest religion in India, I used to say "Hinduism."
Well, I was wrong. I should have said "Cricket".

Yep, I got that answer when I visited Mumbai last March. I have never seen so many cricket channels on TV ever. To make it even worse, it was the time when India was the host of Cricket World Cup. Not enough? ...... India went to the semi final! (Later they won the Cup). So you can imagine the euphoria. Hindus, Moslem, Buddhist, .... all praise for the game.

The rich and the poor. One taxi driver turned me down because “Sorry Madame, I have a big game to watch” ... it was time for India versus Pakistan.Thanks goodness I finally found a taxi who was willing to take me to the airport. However I had to be happy listening to the game from the taxi radio. Loud and clear .... all the way to the airport!

Not just that, when I stop at the ATM, the security was busy listening to the game too.Checked my way in and heading to the airport business lounge. There was many business men, with their ties and jackets, staring at the wide screen, jumping and screaming in excitement whenever the player hit the wicket ..... I guessed I just had to wait until arriving Singapore, didn’t I?

Well, I might not get cricket, however there were many heritages from the British Empire that I enjoyed during my stay in Mumbai. I had one day free only, so I decided to stroll along the Colaba area and catch a bajaj to take to Victoria Terminus (Also known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus).

I started my day very early to see the sunset at the Gateway of India which located near the hotel where I stayed.
Gateway of India was built to celebrate the arrival of King George V. You know, he was the father of Colin Firth, whoops ... I mean King George VI.

In the opposite of the Gateway, there stood Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.In 2008, some terrorist attacked the hotel causing many victims.Then I walked back to the hotel for breakfast. I stayed at Gordon house, a small boutique hotel. Very nice and I loved it more as there was an Asian restaurant in its ground floor. Kind of healing my appetite after three days of curry! ... (I like curry, but for three days in a row is too much for me. My great grandpa may came from India, but my tongue is very much Indonesian ... :) )

On the way back I took some nice pics. The water next to the Gateway.An old building.After breakfast, I took a ride to Victoria Terminus.I could not believe that the beautiful building was actually a train station!The sun rose up and I could see how crowded Mumbai traffic was.Everybody was busy...Even the bulls .....I continued my journey to the Old Mumbai University.After a quick lunch, I went to the Prince of Wales Museum (Also known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya). Many artifact from Mohenjo Daro times to and traditional art works were displayed there.

Carving of Brahma at the museum.From the museum, it took only five minutes walk to Colaba Causeway. We could find many souvenirs stalls and shops in cheap price.I checked the time and realized that I had been traveling for over eight hours. Nothing can’t beat a cold drink and a slice of apple pie! Yup, I got them in Leopold Café. So yummy!Leopold Café was an early site of gunfire and grenade explosions during the 2008 Mumbai attacks by terrorists. The restaurant was extensively damaged during the attacks.* However, I did not see any remains of such devastation. In contrary, it was pact with guests and serving good food.

Well, I just have a day free in Mumbai, so that was all I could see. I am sure there are more in India than just cricket and old buildings from the British era. Of course, India is a huge country!

*)Wikipedia