Carpet bargaining. Even if...
by Pierre_Rouss
Carpet bargaining. Even if you don't want a carpet, you might leave with one anyway, otherwise the salesman might cry. Take your time even if you see less things.
Little plug for Jamal Carpet (suggested by my driver, he assured me they were not related ;-) )
Linden House, behind the Taj
Apollo Bunder, Bombay - 400 001
tel: 22-2020399, 22-2844216
I manage not to buy a carpet, but left with Pracmina scarves and cachemire sweater. The food... it was great and varied. Do watch for what you eat, but you are often better off with indian food than occidental food cooked by an indian cook.
TOILETS AND SAFETY ON TRAINS IN INDIA
by Amitu
TOILET
The toilet on most trains is an experience. They are cleaner these days than in the past, but the floors are often wet (and slippery) from leaking water. Most toilets are squat type and are preferable to the western style ones because you don't want to sit down on anything in a train bathroom. However, be careful, because with all the lurching and shaking, if you drop anything it's gone down that little hole in the floor. Actually using the toilet on the train is an acquired art. The floor is slippery and the train is lurching. Hang on to something. For many it will prove the biggest challenge they have faced since early childhood potty training.
SAFETY
Personal safety on trains is not a serious problem but it's worth keeping in mind. There are a few dangers you won't encounter in Western trains where most ways of harming oneself have been eliminated for the benefit of the foolish. Not in India. If you want to hang out the train door, no one will stop you. If you want to race down the platform and swing aboard at the last minute, you can. In the absence of restrictions, you must learn to operate with a lot of common sense.
Some visitors discover the pleasure of sitting in the open doorway of the carriage watching the country side go by, smelling the wood smoke from village fires, and listening to the bird calls over the clatter of the train. It can be dangerous, and is not recommended. Don't jump from a moving train. If you have a more serious problem, try and contact either the Ticket Collector or a member of the Railway Police who may be posted on the train. Otherwise, enlist help from fellow passengers. Many will be interested in assisting you.
The Hindu King Jadav Rana of...
by o00o
The Hindu King Jadav Rana of that time, CE, granted them refuge in his kingdom. He gave them fertile land to live on and the Zoroastrian pilgrims called their new abode Sanjan, in memory of the place they originally came from in north-west Khorasan. These Zoroastrian immigrants came to be known as the Parsees.
Fishing and the Kolis
by keeweechic
Mumbau was once an archipelago of several islands and inhabited by the Kolis. These were the tribal fisherfolk who still exist today and live in native villages and fish in the traditional way in small wooden boats. They have their own customs and speak in their own dialect. The Kolis used to call the city Mumba after Mumbadeva (Goddes of Water) and that is where the city takes it name Mumbai from today. There is a 600 yr old Kolis fishing village at Worli where you can not only see but smell fish drying as well as see the colourful Koli women.
WHAT IS BOLLYWOOD?
by Amitu
At this stage it's worth mentioning yet another incredible Indian institution: the Indian film industry.
Bombay is the official centre of Indian film, so much so that the films are known as 'Bollywood' movies (which is unlikely to change to 'Mollywood' with Bombay's rechristening as Mumbai). Bollywood churns out twice as many films every year as Hollywood, and where the average Hollywood blockbuster clocks in at about 90 minutes, Bollywood epics run to an exhausting average of two-and-a-half hours. Each movie has at least five sing-along dance routines, and every type of film genre - action, romance, thriller, crime, musical - is packed into the celluloid equivalent of bubble and squeak.
To a Westerner the films appear incredibly crap, but the figures point to an industry that is far from unsuccessful. Bollywood blockbusters, of which there are more than 800 produced every year, have million-dollar budgets, produce over 100 million ticket sales every week, have huge advertising campaigns (the posters mount up on walls and telegraph poles, only to be nibbled off by passing goats and cows) and have made a lot of Bombay residents very rich indeed.
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Taj Mahal Palace and Tower
The streets of Mumbai
Motorcycle rickshaws (Tuk-Tuk's)
Send flowers to Mumbai
