Forgive the frantic blogging of late, we are fed up of talking to each other and have resorted to any other means of communication. Only joking, it’s just been a busy few weeks and our rather surreal pit stop in Mumbai warrants a mention.

Following the epic train journey we arrived bang on time at 4.35am and staggered off the train into the bustle of the CST terminus, which was even at that hour littered with sleeping bodies (a fixture I guess), commuter trains and chai sellers. We didn’t have the energy to face the taxi drivers so we whiled away two hours drinking tea and people-watching. As the station began to fill up I realised it was one of the scenes of the terror attacks in November and tried to imagine the chaos of all these hundred of famileis suddenly starting to run in all directions under hails of bullets: it was a really, really unsettling thought.

So began a very long and action packed day which included keema mince and fried egg for breakfast in a greasy little Muslim cafe, a visit to the magnificent Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, a trip round a cathedral (lots of British relics in the bayside area) and the piccies! There was a wonderful art deco cinema opposite our hotel which was showing Slumdog Millionaire and we jumped at the chance to see it in its home. I came out of the cinema an emotional wreck although there was some light entertainment when the film was interrupted for an interval which consisted of a series of quick-fire public service messages by the Mumbai Police – here’s a small selection (paraphrased but rleatively accurate):

‘Keep the peace – don’t honk horn.’

‘In event of explosion, follow instructions from staff.’

‘Always report suspicious opjects or persons.’

‘Wearing helmet saves life.’

Terrorism and traffic violations: the scourge of Mumbai.

That night we went out for a few beers on Colaba Causeway but sadly couldn’t afford the cover charge for the bars where the Bollywood Glitterati hang out. The next day though, we did get the chance to see how the other half live by visiting a former colleague (our old big, big boss) at the glittering, swanky new HQ of Vodafone India. Kyle was on very good form and the air conditioning was just out of this world.

Generally speaking we both far preferred Mumbai to Delhi althoughwe seem to be in the monirity on this, and we can’t really be fair to Delhi until we go back for longer. I’m very glad we stopped by though, being one among 18 million people in a city which should really hold about 4 million is quite exhilarating, and it was nice to hear and see how thoroughly it has bounced back from the most recent atrocity it’s had to face.

Next stop Jaipur, a mere 18 hour train ride away.