Bombay and Goa

Bombay:
We’ve spent only two days in Bombay and that was just enough to have a good feel for it and see all there was to see. It is really a city of extremes… Chowpatty beach is said to be toxic so swimming is not allowed, but people living in slums along the sandy shore are not bothered about this. People live in tents made out of ragged old rugs and any scrap they find. Just behind them, on the horizon, huge skyscrapers show signs of wealth. Without any concern for their surroundings, the slummies do their toilet wherever they are taken by the urge. This is apparently due to a general shortage of public toilets in the whole country. It’s a bit shocking to see crouching people on the beach, by the main road, on railway tracks… Oh well, what else to do when nature calls??
Bombay had some lovely buildings, but most of them were built by the British, so these buildings are not included in guided city tours unfortunately. The train station is one of these marvelous buildings, but that one is difficult to miss anyway, once you get here by train.






















Goa:

This is a 2 weeks stop in our trip. We visited Colva Beach for two days, but it was quite boring there so we moved to Vagator - Anjuna which is in North Goa and is much more exciting with all the hippie visitors and the huge markets full of intriguing goods on offer. There are parties every day, the food is delicious everywhere you go, the sea is warm, the sun is hot. There are cows everywhere, even on the beach. These are posh seaside cows, they are much better off than the city cows… I guess :)
We are residing at a lovely place called Paradise on Earth. It consists of many bamboo huts arranged nicely in a well maintained green garden. I picked a hut which wasn’t as wonky as most of them so that’s our home for now. I like waking up in the morning to see the sun penetrating the woven bamboo walls and casting sunny spots all over the interior. These are morning awakenings I will always remember. Goa is a place I will always think fondly of, because the people and the atmosphere makes me feel at home. I feel some sort of fulfillness and peace within, which I never felt before.

Here in Vagator all tourists ride motorbikes. We hired one as well, so it's easy to get arond. Here we don't wear helmets and can ride with just a thin t-shirt on. You can barely imagine how hot it is. :)

Leaving Aurangabad

We've been in India for almost 2 weeks now. Visited Delhi, Jaipur, Agra and are now in Aurangabad. This is an amazing place compared to what we've seen before. There is a place called Lucky Fruit Juice very close to the station. Yummm! I wish I could pack up the whole shop and carry it with me for the rest of my life everywhere I go. You must visit this place if you come this way, but not only because of the delicious milk shakes and food; Aurangabad is close to Ellora and Ajanta which is a must to visit when in India. Accommodation there is too expensive so most travelers chose to stop here and go on day-trips to see the caves in Ellora and Ajanta.
We are taking a night bus to Bombay tonight at 10:30, so we have some time to waste until then (no wonder I started a blog now)
In Bombay we will spend one night only, after which will head straight to Goa. That's where we will camp down for maybe 2 or 3 weeks. From there we will be able to visit Hampi and other wonderful places.

On a personal level:
I have withdrawal symptoms of dehuggidness. I miss the warm hugs of my friends, so I went back to my old ways of hugging trees. Indian trees are surprisingly good for hugging. I feel closer to my loved ones when I hug the trees that suck on the same earth my friends are treading on. :)

I'm also fed up with washing our clothes by hand every day. Zoli has injured himself quite badly when the train window has fallen shut right onto his middle finger. His nail went black straight away and will probably fall off withing a few days, so he can't wash his own clothes and probably wouldn't anyway... Last night I realised that I spent most of my time in the bathroom in this hotel, so next time I'll chose accommodation more carefully. The bathroom is priority from now! Also last night I realised that I don't have to HAND wash our clothes... I'll just put them in the bucket and I'll keep treading on them for an hour if i have to. While treading I can read a book. It's much better this way.

I'm off to have my last milk shake in this town!