FOOD
1) I have a huge thing for Irani Cafes of Bombay (Also read The Diminishing Breed of Irani Cafes – Brittania & Co Mumbai ), i love Kheema Pav at Kyani & Co. and Ice Cream Sandwich at Rustom & Co ,also while you are at it don't forget to have Irani Chai with Brun Maska or you can try
(Kheema Pav at Kyani & Co.)
2) Another thing that amazed me is how people can have
PLACES
2) Dharavi, dubbed as Asia's largest slum generates whooping $600 millionrevenue each year.
3) Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus which is a UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE took 10 years to be build and is used by 3 million people each day. (Also read11 Crazy Facts of Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus )
4) The amazing Elephanta caves
SHOPPING
5) Nothing can get as intense as shopping at Colaba Causeway,linking road or Hill road
PEOPLE
6) The one thing that will amaze you in this is city is the spirit of the people and how warm and hospitable they are towards you.
ART
7) Well if you are art buff you can Learn to make Warli Painting or
ARCHITECHTURE
8) Go back in time and cherish the beautiful bungalows from colonial times - Khotachiwadi (Read more about it here Khotachiwadi - 200 Year Old Bungalows in Mumbai )
This are just few reasons as to why i am so addicted to this city!
I lived in Mumbai for 3 months and here is why it is cool:
- Widest options for food, ranging from Rs. 2000 a meal hotels to Rs. 8/plate at the roadside eateries. Whether it is dining at the Taj or your neighborhood Shiv vadapav, things are always good. You can get good food almost all day, for all budgets and everywhere.
- A lively city that never sleeps and never ceases to amaze.
- A working public transportation system. Once I moved from Chennai, I sold my car and almost entirely relied on autorickshaws and trains.
- Very accepting culture that welcomes people from everywhere in the world.
- Partying and options for hanging out.
- Nice work ethic where people are always running and busy. Also compared to Indian standards, people are quite punctual.
- Plenty of entertainment options around the city with nice beaches, waterfalls and hill resorts within 2-3 hour drive.
- The mouthwatering chats. Pani poori. Bhel poori. Yummy!
I am a year and a half old adopted Mumbaikar, who set upon Mumbai to live a crazy teenager life. It seems ridiculous for such a young person to summarize a city and name a 'coolest thing' whose history dates back to about five centuries back. The better would be writing on my reflected experiences during my roamabouts here in this wonderful city.
Two things strike me when I remember Bombay. The first one being Locals and the other being Dabbawala's.
It would be hard to imagine a Mumbai without Locals. Imagine, and I am sure, you are prone to goosebumps. Bombay has a natural advantage with it's demographics. It is a long city, unlike many Indian cities. Two lines, Central and Western cover the city along the two edges along it's length, with the Harbour line extending to the new Navi Mumbai. I couldn't comprehend for the first few months how could someone convince themselves of the suicidal act of sitting in a local which would have a density of 25 persons per sq.mts. at the peak times, especially if one has to change trains at Kurla or Dadar. But once I figured out ways to avoid the peak rush hour traffic and Kurla, I could only appreciate how fast the commute becomes. Moreover there is the added advantage of the service shutting down only between 1 am - 4:30 am.
A dabbawala is an employed person in a unique service industry whose primary business is collecting freshly cooked food in lunch boxes from the residences of the office workers, delivering it to their respective workplaces and returning the empty boxes back to the customer's residence by using various modes of transport.
Ask any student or young professional about the best they like about Bombay, the answer would be an unanimous 'Night Life'. Spending the night at Marine Drive with friends or going out for a cycle ride with friends, night is the most preferred time. Branded as a city that never sleeps, you can eat non-veg even at 4 in the morning at Bademiyan restaurant.
Bombay is also famous for housing people of different ethnicities, be it religion or region. Muslims and Hindus are the major religions with their respective festivals Dussera, Vinayak Chaturthi and Ramzan being celebrated with much fervour and enthusiasm. Christians and Parsi are also present to a certain amount. As far as region is considered, almost people from all states live here, either on a professional or educational reasons.Dadar has one of the busiest stations in Bombay. It is said that, on an average, people of15 states can be pointed out from a snapshot taken at Dadar Railway Station. Such is the variety of cultures across Bombay.
Safety, especially for women is something to boast about. A person new to Mumbai will be surprised to see a woman alone travelling in a local at 1 AM. The true independence which Gandhi aspired for is seen in Bombay. Nowhere in India is this possible. The eve-teasing is relatively low here compared to the rest of India, which re-iterates the importance the city gives to the other half of the humanity. I am convinced that there is no other city in India where I can
find such awesome autowallas as I did in Mumbai. You could actually get out of an auto paying 15 rupees to him. Moreover, you don't have to haggle unnecessarily with them, they always use the meter.
And then comes the Gothic architecture of South Bombay. The style would capture the hearts of people who are capable of admiring architecture. You never get a feel of Bombay by only roaming about South Bombay, a haven for pubs and executive buildings and skyscrapers.
Two things strike me when I remember Bombay. The first one being Locals and the other being Dabbawala's.
It would be hard to imagine a Mumbai without Locals. Imagine, and I am sure, you are prone to goosebumps. Bombay has a natural advantage with it's demographics. It is a long city, unlike many Indian cities. Two lines, Central and Western cover the city along the two edges along it's length, with the Harbour line extending to the new Navi Mumbai. I couldn't comprehend for the first few months how could someone convince themselves of the suicidal act of sitting in a local which would have a density of 25 persons per sq.mts. at the peak times, especially if one has to change trains at Kurla or Dadar. But once I figured out ways to avoid the peak rush hour traffic and Kurla, I could only appreciate how fast the commute becomes. Moreover there is the added advantage of the service shutting down only between 1 am - 4:30 am.
A dabbawala is an employed person in a unique service industry whose primary business is collecting freshly cooked food in lunch boxes from the residences of the office workers, delivering it to their respective workplaces and returning the empty boxes back to the customer's residence by using various modes of transport.
Ask any student or young professional about the best they like about Bombay, the answer would be an unanimous 'Night Life'. Spending the night at Marine Drive with friends or going out for a cycle ride with friends, night is the most preferred time. Branded as a city that never sleeps, you can eat non-veg even at 4 in the morning at Bademiyan restaurant.
Bombay is also famous for housing people of different ethnicities, be it religion or region. Muslims and Hindus are the major religions with their respective festivals Dussera, Vinayak Chaturthi and Ramzan being celebrated with much fervour and enthusiasm. Christians and Parsi are also present to a certain amount. As far as region is considered, almost people from all states live here, either on a professional or educational reasons.Dadar has one of the busiest stations in Bombay. It is said that, on an average, people of15 states can be pointed out from a snapshot taken at Dadar Railway Station. Such is the variety of cultures across Bombay.
Safety, especially for women is something to boast about. A person new to Mumbai will be surprised to see a woman alone travelling in a local at 1 AM. The true independence which Gandhi aspired for is seen in Bombay. Nowhere in India is this possible. The eve-teasing is relatively low here compared to the rest of India, which re-iterates the importance the city gives to the other half of the humanity. I am convinced that there is no other city in India where I can
find such awesome autowallas as I did in Mumbai. You could actually get out of an auto paying 15 rupees to him. Moreover, you don't have to haggle unnecessarily with them, they always use the meter.
And then comes the Gothic architecture of South Bombay. The style would capture the hearts of people who are capable of admiring architecture. You never get a feel of Bombay by only roaming about South Bombay, a haven for pubs and executive buildings and skyscrapers.
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