Mumbai by Night


After an uneventful flight from Delhi, we found ourselves in Mumbai.  Time and again we have proven that there is nothing like seeing a city through the eyes, or with the assistance of a local.  Mumbai was no exception!

We met Utkarsh and Sejal during our cruise in December by chance while trying to arrange a taxi from the port in Ephesus.  We knew they were a couple after our own hearts when, as Katina was negotiating the price for the taxi, they were happy to walk away when the price wasn’t right!  As we were traveling together we got to talking and soon were discussing our Global Fieldtrip.  When we mentioned that we were going to India, Utkarsh insisted that we come to Mumbai and to contact them when we arrive…and so we did!

Yummy times at Chockpatty Beach with Utkarsh and Sejal.
Yummy times at Chockpatty Beach with Utkarsh and Sejal.

We were given the royal treatment!  Utkarsh and Sejal picked us up at our apartment and we were whisked downtown.  On the way, we crossed a fantastic bridge called ‘the Sea Link’ and got a stunning view of the Mumbai skyline.

 

Our first stop was a Krishna temple, which was very interesting to see.  We had seen a Krishna temple in New Delhi, but this one was a bit different.

There was an open courtyard where the faithful were chanting, praying.  As we walked through, I suddenly felt someone grab hold of my hand in a vice-like grip.  Looking down, I saw a monk dressed in orange garb begin pulling me to where there was much singing, chanting, and – my favourite – dancing!  Though I wasn’t exactly ready to join in, I saw I had no other choice and went along for the ride.

Eventually they lost interest in the “big foreigner with no rhythm” and found another guy walking past unawares, and soon he was dancing and chanting with everyone else.  I politely excused myself and sought out the rest of my group!

From the temple we made our way downtown, and in stark contrast to the everyday people at the temple, we saw the house of the richest man in India, Mukesh Ambani.  This 27 story apartment building is the private residence for him and his family, and is valued at about $1 billion USD!  I always wondered what a $1B building would look like…

Billion Dollar Home!
Billion Dollar Home!

Soon, we made it to Marine drive, which is a 4 ½ km roadway and pedestrian walkway along the bay.  It reminded me very much of the boardwalk down at the beach in Toronto.

The Queen’s Necklace

It is also called the “Queen’s Necklace” because at night when it is all lit up, from above it looks like a necklace going all around the bay.  This was a lovely area with people walking along, vendors selling everything from bangles to roasted corn, and street performers – including monkeys.  You could even take horse-drawn carriage rides, with the carriages all lit up with a variety of lights and other decorations.

From here we went to Chowpatty Beach, which is about 2 km away.  By this time it was dark out, and I was shocked to see that the beach was packed with families!

Also here was an outdoor food area with “chaat”, which are basically savory snacks off of food carts!  We started with Pani Puri, which are basically deep fried hollow dough balls with a hole in the top.  The ball is then stuffed with different things (chickpeas, onions, cilantro, yogurt, etc.) and then spice added.  I decided that if I was going to eat street food, I was going to spice it up!  It was good.

We then had Dosas, which are something like a savoury crepe that is stuffed with a mixture of potato, peas, and spices.  Again…yummy!  (Note: we also had dosas in Jaipur, and have added a recipe to our Jaipur blog post which we received from our very friendly host Shveta at the Jaipur Friendly Villa!)

Next, we had Papri chaat, which were a whole new level of delicious!  Similar to nachos, this chaat is built in layers.  The bottom layer contains the papri, which are crispy wafers of a sort.  On top of this comes a mixture of chickpeas, potatoes, yogurt, onions, and of course spices!

Screen Shot 2015-02-19 at 9.28.04 AM

Next (yes, this was a chaat eating fest!  By the end of it we were feeling very “chaaty”…) we had Pav Bhaji.  Pav means “bread” and Bhaji means “vegetable dish”.  Essentially, what you have is a spicy gravy-like vegetable curry which could include cauliflower, eggplant, green peas, tomatoes etc.  all blended and cooked together.  To eat this dish you use your bread to scoop up the bhaji, sprinkle a bit of onions on it and a squeeze of lime juice.  Again, feeling bold, I asked to have this done up spicy!

Check out the extra hot chili sauce with the onions! Yes! My lips almost caught fire…

Finally came dessert.  The girls each tried a kulfi, which is a frozen milk-treat, and Katina and I shared a Falooda, which is a type of milkshake that has milk, ice cream, vermicelli noodles, and basil seeds!  It was a very refreshing dessert, and the vermicelli noodles really added a neat consistency to the drink.

As we were leaving, we looked around and noticed that we were the only foreigners eating here…it was all locals.  We both looked at one another and silently hoped that we didn’t just introduce ourselves to a whole new world of pain Dehli-belly style.  24 hours later…no problems at all!  Phew!

Totally worth it!

Thanks to our most gracious hosts, Utkarsh and Sejal, we once again had the opportunity to live life like a local.  On our own, we would have been less likely to experiment with all these different type of street foods, but with their guidance we had a fantastic “foodie” experience!


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Comments

10 responses to “Mumbai by Night”

  1. Hi Oliver – I am in India this week and next … Will be in Mumbai Tuesday evening feb 24 if you are still there let me know ! Maybe I could see you and meet your family 🙂

    1. Hi Pierre!

      Long time no see! Sorry that our paths didn’t cross in Mumbai…maybe we’ll find a way to reconnect in Toronto or Ottawa!

      All the best,
      Oliver

  2. I cannot believe they made you dance and there is no video record of it……or is there? Perhaps the girls will choreograph a dads dance?

    1. Nicole, if there was video of this you can be sure that there is no way it would see the light of the internet! 🙂 “Fortunately”, there were only the still shots, and even those are quite enough as far as I’m concerned!

  3. It was indeed great meeting you guys (Global Citizens) , you are truly an inspiration for all .. The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page .. Wish you happy journey , Enjoy….

    1. Hi Utkarsh, thanks so much for making our trip to Mumbai memorable! We really appreciate all you have done to enhance our trip!

      All the best, Oliver and family

  4. Hi, Oliver and the Gang, I am way behind with my reading, sorry. I enjoyed this posting very much and of course the photos are great to get a more informed picture. I like it especially that you post a photo with your hosts, and all of you smiling and happy. And a walk along Marine Drive sounds and looks lovely. It’s just great that you try all the different foods. Do they use totally different spices in Mumbai compared to Delhi or Jaipur? Lots of hugs to all

    1. Hello Oma,

      I’m glad that you enjoyed reading about our adventure in Mumbai. Our night tour was a great introduction to the layout of the city, and you’ll see in follow up blog posts about other things we saw. As for the spices, I’d say that the same spices are generally used throughout India, but each area has it’s specialty foods. For instance in Amritsar the specialty food is called Kulcha which you can read about in Katina’s blog post http://www.globalfieldtrip.com/kulcha-fan-klub/

      In the south, the specialty is Dosas, and I’ve added the recipe to our Jaipur post here: http://www.globalfieldtrip.com/jewel-called-jaipur/ Scroll to the bottom and you can see the dosa recipe under the heading of “Bonus Material” !!

  5. Hi Oliver,
    I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful photo of your host Utkarsh, Sejal and yourselves! The photos of all the tourist attractions are wonderful!! What does a billionaire live like in a 27 storey high building? That certainly is a beautiful boardwalk, and the food you ate sounded and looked scrumptious! Love, Baba

    1. Hi Baba,

      I”m not sure what life as a Billionaire is like, let alone living in a 27 storey building! And what about the cleaning? 🙂 Our time in Mumbai was very enjoyable, and it was nice to see the city through the eyes of Utkarsh and Sejal!