The Shifting Sands

It is easy to feel out of place in India.  Compared to life in Australia there are a far greater number of differences than similarities.  I know fella's, its hard to sleep in Mumbai with all that noise I was riding the Vespa home one night when I turned a corner and I thought I saw two Emus in a temporary cage in Khar fishing village. I rode on a little to try to convince myself that my eyes were deceiving me.  I then turn around and sure enough there were two juvenile Emu's in a temporary bamboo cage on a busy street on the edge of a slum in Mumbai. I hope they didn't end up a main course at a wedding feast I passed by the the next day and took a better photo, noting to myself that I should call the Consulate to check the legality of owning protected Australian species in India. However, by Monday they were gone and only the cages remained. I am sure the Emu's felt more out of place than I do.

The first of the ladies in question For sometime I had been keen on getting an Apsara to add to our Buddha.  Apsaras are beautiful, supernatural beings and are skilled dancers and musicians and are often depicted dancing or taking flight to act as messengers to the gods. There are two   types of Apsaras; Laukika (worldly), of whom thirty-four are specified, and Daivika (divine), of which there are ten. Apsaras are also common in Khmer, Indonesian and Malay culture where they are the wives of the devout in the afterlife. They are similar to the muses of Greek mythology. The lucky lady! The process of obtaining  my Apsara was kind of like an Indian arranged marriage.  I was sent photos of large number of suitable ladies complete with information on where they were from and their background and some insight onto their substance, well the type of rock from which they were carved. I then organised to meet two of t...

The kayak prepared and ready for a first light launch After the crystal clear waters of Sri Lanka and the clean water of Goa and Alibaug, I was back to a morning coffee run in the latte colored waters of Mumbai.   The photo is a trick,  the water was filthy A friend who had moved to the north of the City had told me that Marve beach was very clean and he had started fishing there of a morning.  A clean beach in Mumbai was like being told a bout a sighting of a white whale so I organised a Sunday paddling trip from the clean beach of Marve to Vasai to finish up at an old Portuguese Fort. Sunup on the water, where else would I want to be? I arrived before dawn to launch at the ferry landing at Marve on the romantically named Mud Island.  The beach was clean but the water in the river mouth was filth.  The tide was ebbing and the current was strong so I am sure that they contributed to the detritus floati...

The start of our 4th year in India As we embarked on our 4th year in India, it became obvious to Kate that I hadn't been sightseeing in South Mumbai in a coordinated fashion.  Yes, I had traveled down from the suburbs to see particular sites but I was yet to just lounge around with no particular agenda or timelines.  In an effort to change this, Kate had booked a room at a new boutique hotel in Apollo Bunder called Abode for a NYE night away. Ahhhhh a bath. Lizzie, an expat of 4 years, along with her architect boyfriend, had renovated a grungy hotel located behind the Taj Hotel and near Gordon House.  They gutted the building, removing they layers of false walls and ceilings and rebuilding the facade and opening up a central lounge and reception area.  The result is an attractive loft style space.  The now large rooms were fitted tastefully decorated with just enough Indian flavour but not too much to put off the long term expat who is wary ...

I have said before that it is hard to take a bad photograph in India and In Mumbai there is a real concentration of things to photograph. Kate and I had been to Dadar on a number of occasion but had never set some time aside to visit the flower markets.  This weekend we were Christmas shopping at J.J. Mheta, our camera shop at Dadar and we committed to walk through the flower market. Squeezed in between a road flyover and the Dadar train station is stall after stall of flowers ranging from Roses to Lotus flowers and everything in between.  It was colourful but, best of all, fragrant in a good way!

No doubt, life in Mumbai and in India has its frustrations and challenges.  Sometimes the small difficulties pile up and it all seems insurmountable.  However, sometimes, it all comes together and last Sunday was one of those days. It started with 13 km run through Bandra it was steamy but not unpleasant. But the exercise box was ticked off early in the day which is always good. I returned home to pick up Alistair, our resident English back packer, for the regular Sunday game of touch Rugby for about an hour.  Most weekends outside of monsoon a group of Non- Resident Indians (NRIs) and Expats get together for a social game of touch rugby. The rules are loosely applied and we all have some fun. For some, it is a chance to run the alcohol from the night before out of their system. For others is is a chance to get some exercise.  That said, some get more exercise than others! A great backdrop for international 7's Rugby We returned back to the apartment t...

Ganpatti is an annual religious festival celebrating Ganesh, the elephant headed god much loved in Mumbai.  Many families and societies, sometimes referred to as Mandals, bring Ganesh, in the form of a statue, into their home or into a temporary shrine or Pandal that often takes up half a lane on the street.   The Ganesh nearest to the office... Ganesh is hosted for a 1.5, 3, 5, 7, or 11 day stay with a senior family member required to stay in the home to host Ganesh. For many of the Ganesh sponsored by Mandsls, they are hosted  by small boys who work in shifts. These lads seem very impressed with their important role in the community.  .... and his security detachment While Ganesh is in the house, Pooja’s are held and offerings are made.  Bringing Ganesh into the home means significant commitment.  Once started you need to invite Ganesh into your house for the next 5 years, the statue must never get small...