Municipal Corporation BuildingAlmost at a kissing distance from the Arabian Sea lays the economic capital of India, "Mumbai". Popularly known as the "New York of India" or Bombay; this city believes in a fast paced life and the word "slow" is non-existent in its dictionary.
Mumbai is the perfect face of the new India, and is all ready to show the world, that India is not a place full of snake charmers and elephants, but a place which is full of economic and strategic developments, more importantly it is a place which is full of fun.

A little Bit of History

If we pre-date Mumbai's oldest stones, then also we will find that this area was always under some form of trade and business.

The oldest known history of the city is of during the Stone Age, and there also the 'then people' were heavily into fishing. The city was always a combination of a sum of islands, and with gradual developments, the city was transformed and all the islands were joined dynasty after dynasty. Mumbai was under all the major Indian dynasties like, "Ashoka the Great", the, "Chalukyas" and the "Yadava dynasties".

 

The Muslim emperors were more keen on Mumbai and later annexed the costal city to the neighbouring sate of Gujarat, in the mid 14th century, but by the middle of the 15th century, the city was handed over to the Portuguese, who in time, made the biggest developments in the city, and tried hard to establish the costal area as a trading hub. Then comes the biggest dowry of mankind, when the city was given to King Charles II, by the king of Portugal as a dowry for his sister's marriage. The king however didn't find much use of the city, and gave it on lease to the infamous "East India Company", for a meagre annual rent of 10 pounds. The Company slowly but surely understood the importance of the city, and by the end of their tenure, they had moulded and matured the city, into of the most important of India. Once the British Empire took over, Mumbai had become an important trading port for them, and was of the major revenue maker city of the nation. Even after independence, Mumbai continues to prosper India single handed, and is more than ready to look any major city of the world in the eye.

Arriving to the coast

Mumbai is very accessible to the world, and I do not think there is any international airport in the world, from where flights do not head for Mumbai. Mumbai has huge air traffic, and because of this it has planned to open up another international airport, just to support more air traffic route. Mumbai's international airport known as the Sahara airport and is being transformed into one of the classier airports of Asia. Mumbai is a head of most of the things in India, and is also subjectively the head of the western railways, and if you are in some different part of India, reaching Mumbai easily is very much on the cards for you. Another way you can reach this magnificent city is by waterways, where you can book cruises to reach
Mumbai, and in the mid way can enjoy enthralling sites with luxurious accommodations. All major highways in India also connect Mumbai, so if you are the more adventurous types, you can drive from any selected destination in India to Mumbai.

Travelling in the city

It is a fact that the city is really big, and it takes hours to reach from one corner to the other corner. The city's heart lines are the local buses and the local trains that travel from one nook to another in quick time with negligible amounts. But it's always better to take in as a guide while travelling the city, as the routes and ways can become confusing for someone who's travelling for the first time. You will find a million yellow black taxis that run on meters for roving long distances in the city, and small auto rickshaws for the shorter distances. You will also find air conditioned buses and cabs as options for moving in the city. Even if you rent cars, it's very necessary to carry maps, when travelling this super large city.

"Bindas" Mumbai

The term bindas in Hindi, means care free, and that's what the city is all about. There won't be a single minute in the city where you will feel lonely, or bored. Everything's very charismatic of the city, and the pinching part will be that you will see 'not almost', but all realities of life in the city of Mumbai. There's so much to see, in the city, and no one who stays in the city or has travelled the city can tell you to start exploring the city from a particular point, as every site the city houses has equal importance and more importantly all of them are fun.

To begin the exploration of the city, the area in which you stay will play a big factor because of the mammoth size of the city. If you want to start off with heritage sites, then probably the "Gateway of India", is probably the best bet. The beautiful edifice was built during the British regime to welcome British monarchs in the year 1911. It still stands tall, and is one of the major highlights of the city. It is right in front of the Hotel Taj, which is one of the best hotels of Mumbai.

From the Gateway of India, you can access different types of ferry rides suiting your pocket and comfort ability. These rides take you to the famous "Elephanta caves" based on the Garapuri Island. These caves are one of its kinds, and the sculpting is one of the finest and oldest of this planet. It's a great heritage and architectural site for Mumbai is a definitely must see.

The "Mahim Church" located in Mahim is one of the oldest and famous churches of Mumbai, and is considered of the prestigious institutions for the Christian community of the city. The whole of city, you find a surprising blend of ancient British architecture with building reaching the nauseating sky limits. You will also find the place known as "Mani Bhavan Mahatma Gandhi Museum", which was actually the epicentre to remove the imperialist British Kingdom from India. This exact location is the place, where the massive Quit India movement begin, which was a major turning point in the Indian history. The edifice lately transformed into a museum was the location where Mahatma Gandhi used to conduct a lot of his important meeting and decisions. Now it houses a decent collect of Gandhian Stuff.

Another museum worth a mention is the Prince of Wales museum, which showcases the different empires that have been on the subcontinent. The city also has a big Ben of its own, in the form of a clock tower having a height of more than 250 feet. This clock tower is known as "Raja Bhai Clock tower", and is sidelines of the city, so anytime you are in Churchgate, do make it a point, to see the time in this old but huge time piece.

Mumbai has got its own set of beaches, first is the "Juhu Beach", which is located in the posh area of Juhu. This beach is though not the cleanest of all, but there are so many activities to do on this sand turf, that you can easily bypass the day. The other beach is known as the "Chowpatty beach", which has been a favourite for couples since decades, and though the beach is getting receded, but it still hasn't lost its charm.

If you are travelling through the coveted regions of Worli, do make it point to see the "Worli Sea face", it's not the most exuberating site of the world, but here you will be able to see the sea hitting real hard on the rocks, and occasionally wetting the pedestrians on the pavement. Particularly in the night, there won't be any romantic place like the "Marine Drive". This is a beautiful stretch of road, seems illuminated and is parallel to the sea and is one of the most awe striking sites of Mumbai. If you are driving in this place, you are bound to kiss your mate, as this is the place where most of the cupids are sitting with their bows. It is this Marine drive, where in the very early mornings; you will find Lamborghinis and Ferraris, along with other popular sports cars, pushing the to their limits.

Mumbai also has its fair share of amusement parks, and if travelling with kids, these parks are the best bets. Though not up to the standards of the Disney theme parks, but amusement parks like "Essel World" and "Water Kingdom", are the chaos starters for kids and adult sin the city. Both the parks are side by side, so you can actually end up spending your whole day, with a lot of dizzying rides and the parallel water slides. They're also other small time amusement parks in the city.

The city has got a couple of religious places, like the famous Mumbadevi temple. This is the goddess on whom the city has its name today, or you can also visit the famous Siddhivinayak temple of Lord Ganesha. People of Islamic faith, can visit the famous" Haji Ali dargah". This edifice is built on top of the sea, and is of the holiest place for the Mohammedans in Mumbai. The city also has got its own share of wildlife, which can be seen in the National Park situated in Borivalli. This park has a huge collection of wild animals for the western frontier, and has a picnic garden adjoining it. The "hanging gardens" of Mumbai is also a site worth seeing, and taking pictures.

The city has a huge appetite for entertainment, and that is why a huge no. of entertainment zones has cropped up the city. There are a no of places, where you can do the usual spin of the arm, and bowl. These alleys are world standards, and these bowling alleys are all filled with standard crowd of Mumbai. My favourite however is "Strike 10" of Mumbai. This is a place, which is an absolute bowling alley, and in most cases you will find the local celebrities playing next to you. There is a no. of places where you can 'go cart' too, but the most all the rage type is "Hakone" situated in hiranandani Complex. Here you will find all the building being built on the architectural lines of Greece and Rome.

If you like to see horse racing and you like to place your bets, then do visit the "Mahalakshmi race course". Here you will find bets being placed of the highest order, and will see people laugh off even when they have lost a huge amount of their dough.

When you are in Mumbai, make sure if you can visit one of the film studios, can watch a Hindi movie being made, as you will be witnessing an industry that is bound to overtake Hollywood by 2020, as stated by a CIA report. There is a place called "Dharavai", which is supposed to be the largest slum of Asia, here a reality tourism goes, where foreigners are shown around the slum, but it is better to avoid such shows, as on the pretext of watching the other side of the coin, you might end up hurting sentiments of the poor people dwelling there. There is no. of things in the city that need to be explored, and even if a million people visit the city, all will tell of different places and different experiences.

Fun Places around Mumbai

It's practically the whole of India, that can be explored form this location. The major advantage is though it's on the western coast, it is somewhere in the western centre of India, making travelling other directions not that difficult. Moreover, there is no destination in India or abroad from which a conveyance of any form doesn't move. You can travel to the city of "Pune", via the express highway. The whole highway has barricades on both the sides, making it impossible for pedestrians or animals to wade in; also bikes are not allowed on this highway. So it's more like pick up a stone and put it on the acceleration, and sleep, until the destination arrives. Another popular getaway from the city is Goa, the city of sand, beach and beautiful babes with the local made drink known as fenny.

Shopper's Paradise

There's absolutely nothing on this planet that you cannot get in Mumbai. Right from international designer brands to street garments, the city is filled with shops and malls. So be ready to use your plastic money to the max, as you are in for a lot of treat. There is a market known as "Chor(Thief) Bazzar". Here you will find right from a screw of Mercedes to the massive doors of ancient forts. All the items are here for a huge bargain, but expect no guarantee on anything you buy from this place. There is also a market that opens up only after midnight, which is known as the "Daed (one and half) gali", here you will get the best quality foot wears at the lowest of prices, but bargaining is necessary.

Foodie Mumbai

The city is filled with chow centres, and all the delicacies are made available here. So it doesn't matter which part of the world you are from, if you feel like having your local cuisine, you won't need to hunt that hard. Being a coastal city, the seafood, is very fresh and if eaten at the right places can be very appetising as well. The favourite snack item of all Mumbaikars is "Vaada Pav", a local version of the burger, which comprises of the sandwich bun, and potatoes, with chutneys and sauce.

The city never sleeps

Mumbai houses one of the best pubs, bars and pitcher centres of entire Asia. You will find particular music type discos at almost stone throw distance form every location in the city. Couple entries are necessary in good night hangouts, but if you are single, you don't need to worry, just ask the singles of opposite sex standing outside these discos to go in together for an entry.

Let's go

Mumbai is not only a hot destination of Asia, but of the entire world, so you don't need to worry when you are travelling to Mumbai. This is one city in the entire world where you can travel for business, pleasure, vacation all at a same time.

Credits:

Article written by Siddharth Sule

India (Eyewitness Travel Guides) author: DK Publishing asin: 0789483955

Lonely Planet India (Lonely Planet India) author: Sarina Singh asin: 1740596943