India travel notes (22) Mumbai – the most modern and most romantic of India

Take off for half an hour later, this is our travels throughout India, the aircraft was delayed a minimum of time. After two and a half hour flight, fast 11-point in the evening, we arrived at the West Coast is known as India's most modern and most romantic of cities – Mumbai.

Mumbai has two English name, Bombay Mumbai, formerly known as the colonial period was known as Bombay, India Government and change it back to Mumbai, while you read what names India people can understand what you say is the city, but Bombay locals prefer to call their city to Mumbai [mu: nbai].

Because the experience of the first three cities give us the impression more of a worn, dirty, lack of order (of course, India's monuments and landscape also let us enjoy), on the plane, we can't imagine Mumbai's so-called modern what should be.

Mumbai Airport Hall orderly, no signs of confusion, as is comfortable.

Airport Hall decoration style more contemporary, bright lights, electronic signs are very clear, staff clothing neatly, surface clean bright, seat is very new, world famous advertising light boxes produced very pretty, has a modern taste. We are very easy to find a hotel reservation service, just point to the reception desk, reception staff very polite and I say hello and then ask me to five-star or four star, want to live in the vicinity of the airport or in town. I asked airport far away from the city, he said that about 30 kilometers (subsequently proved that the concept of distance in India is not a particularly strong, the actual distance 17 km or so), I chose the city, taking into account the fact that foreign travelers in Mumbai is the gathering place, which is the so-called metropolis, possible consumption levels higher, hotel prices are more expensive, I directly asked about 1000-1500 rupees. Soon, he was found to meet the requirements of the hotel, and was made a telephone reservation and deposit on your part. We asked the town's fare, car rental, go straight to the Mumbai city.

And we arrived in Calcutta in sharp contrast to that, although it is midnight, but from the Mumbai Airport on his way to town always brilliantly illuminated, the road on both sides of the shop are open, all colors of light boxes are very conspicuous, and storefront signs and advertising content almost all are in English, giving a very cosmopolitan impression.

Along the way, it is difficult to distinguish between rural and urban. Taxi approximately 17 km from side-street became a seaside coconut groves (should be the Arabian Gulf Beach), street lights, there are a lot of people in a leisurely walk, many Westerners, and certainly not sold, to the other side of the road is very westernized building, decorative lights and neon lights reflecting full view, bar the door still hilarious, glass curtain wall of the large Windows show up as coffee people, it seems that the people here have not the time to rest. Watch out, here's a great life style, plus the Western movie rendering, so many people just hear the name Bombay feel the petty bourgeoisie the mood.

The car turned a corner, full of lights and neon street scene rendered immediately, the moment, Shanghai Bund of illusion.

Of course, two days after we leave Mumbai, Mumbai has been recognized as India's Shanghai, mostly because she is India's most important commercial and port city, and Shanghai again, architectural characteristics of the traces left by the obvious colonial and have the Western tourists more agreeable ambience of the petty bourgeoisie, but modern standard and the overall look and Shanghai city should be at least 10 to 20 years.

We stay in the hotel called the Causeway, in a not very wide streets, many taxi on the street, seem a bit messy, but, from time to time in the air of stink of drifting away, may be the place is near the shore of the bar.

Hotel Menlian small to less than two metres wide, side-by-side with luggage into both some of the crowd, and a layer of two-story seems to be also does not belong to the hotel, the reception is located on the fourth floor. It is not much of the hotel, up to a hotel. We cannot help on here have had to worry about accommodation. Elevator to the fourth floor, let's slightly relieved, and in Calcutta, this small hotel is outside the rough diamond, reception hall layout for compact and methodical, decoration also quite fastidious, but, there are several western travellers in the Office. See the room condition is good, we live in.

Into the room the first thing is to see the power outlet, sorry, no match.

There are only four sections in Calcutta Street bought battery, up to the top half a day. Immediately called the waiter, ask him the next morning to help buy a conversion plug. May encounter such problems visitors more than me, waiter's full of promise, but because India shop around 10 points are generally open the door, so he said that the best you can buy 10 points. Later we learned that India is around the power plug and colonial United Kingdom used the plug is consistent, but because there has been no improvement, even if the United Kingdom to travel, his electrical plugs on is not matched. Suddenly thought, in fact, even the railway system of transportation system is so important, India who have not been, how can transform into any socket. This shows that India infrastructure has been established in colonial United Kingdom leave things in this regard, India to done plenty.

Clean the parity to the help desk: here can provide Internet access conditions, only hourly to 100 rupees, dial-up Internet access, 3-5k/s, and the starting price is per hour worked, is a bit expensive.

This is known as second only to the United States software powers and to pose as the country in the world of Office, the Internet use such inconvenience, incredibly, not to mention the fact that it is in this country the most modern cities. Later and India people exchanges that India's Internet access conditions is really not very good, and Internet access costs for ordinary people in India are too expensive. You want to try at home through icq or msn and India were contacted, will find that most of them are in the Office on the Internet, rarely at home on the Internet, and we in India Street is also very rarely seen Internet cafes such as the Internet access service. But in any case,Here you can go online, while the computer is fully installed on the English Windows98, but does not allow you to download the language pack (sounds a bit too internationalization).

In the reception hall, met a Australia to travelers, he and his wife to India fast for a month, in Mumbai have spent three days, he felt India in food and drinking water have extremely large improvements, travelers are already having to eat bad stomach too worried about that and universally English ability on the traveler is also a great help, from this point, the western travellers to India to feel easier than in Chinese.

Because we know Mumbai no famous monuments and heritage, from Mumbai near Ajanta caves are famous acoustic Fei world cultural landscape, Mumbai 400 km south of Goa is also a tourism city of Portugal style, but unfortunately we have only one time in the day to arrange travel to Mumbai. This is our current India tour of a regrettable. Therefore, consult this earlier than us to three days of Australia who Mumbai city is anything worth visiting, he told us the Elephant Island, the station and Bombay Crawford market (Crawford Market) is worth seeing, and praised the market. In this way, our second-day itineraries also has a goal.