Sweating it out!

It is absolutely no consolation that there are places in this world with worse weather, or that there are people on the streets right here who have no choice but to be walking the streets in this heat while I am at home, with the option of switching on the AC. I don't like to switch on the AC in the day because then I don't feel like stepping out of the room for anything, and it's something I don't want to get too used to. But of course, most of the days my resolve dissolves with the heat and humidity. Right now it's about 32 deg C outside and a humidity level of over 66%. No matter how many times you shower, by the time you put on your clothes, you are drenched in sweat again.

I was talking to my Mom the other day and we were discussing how none of the months of the year offers any respite from uncomfortable weather these days. Summer is too hot; monsoon is too humid, damp and dirty; winter is too dry and not cool enough.

Weather patterns are changing everywhere and not for the best. Rains are delayed, or they come too soon, or too hard. Drought situations in some parts, floods in others.

Normal is not something you can classify any more. Normal doesn't exist.

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2013

The annual Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is here again in Bombay. We parked at the Flora Fountain island then went straight for lunch. We were starving. The Pantry had received good reviews and was close by. Thankfully, we didn't have to wait for a seat. It is a fresh little place in the corner with a laid back attitude. Not the kind to be prepared for the crowds flowing in. It took them over 40 minutes to get our order. The food was delicious though, so we couldn't begrudge them the time it took.

From there we walked up to the Prince of Wales museum currently exhibiting Mummies (from Egypt) on loan from The British Museum. It was great to see Indian museums coming up to world standards, and people from all walks of life interested in Egypt's fascinating history.

The next stop was Rampart Row where the main event is held. We unfortunately went on a Sunday afternoon. Security checks meant standing in a long queue on a warm day just to get in. Once inside, we realised that visiting any of the stalls was out of the question - you just couldn't make your way through to the counter without sustaining (and possibly inflicting) a few injuries. We decided to just have a look at all the installations. Another bad idea. People seemed to be obsessed about having their pictures taken with the art works, rather than of the art. The place was so crowded that we could barely make out where the installations were. We saw what we could and retreated.

We took refuge in The National Gallery of Modern Art's auditorium where a play was scheduled in an hour. Since my uncle was the lead in the play, we got permission to sit inside and take up the best seats, instead of waiting outside like the rest. "Aao tanik prem karen" was a peek into a couple's life after 30 years of marriage - the trials and tribulations of each, and finally an understanding between them. It was nice watching a play after a long time. There were of course those who decided to walk off during the play, mostly those sitting at the very end of the room so they had to shuffle to get out of their seats, obstruct the stage, then finally leave.

It was after 9pm when we stepped out of the theatre and the lights and crowd at Kala Ghoda were still going strong. That's Bombay. We had a quick bun-omelette from a roadside stall and washed it down with some sugarcane juice.

Having walked the whole day, our bodies were screaming for some rest. All-in-all, it was a day well-spent.

The ghoda - Haresh Mehta

Radical Garden by Anne-Marie Twigge

Tarevarchi Kasarat - Sonal Jadhav and Nikhil Borhade

‘Make Me Rich’ by Hetal Shukla. She wants people to know that “The starving artist syndrome is outdated, boring and uncool.” Today’s artists want “change”.

Procession, by Paresh Maity has ants made of motorcycle fuel tanks and headlights

A wasp by Vespa Scooters. Vespa means “Wasp” in Italian

‘Kapala's Totems’ by Sukant Panigrahy. One of seven totems placed through Kala Ghoda, this one, like the others, is made of waste material. It's not all skulls and bones though - the butterflies are a nod to our fragile ecosystem.

The Arrival of Ganesh

When I was growing up, festivals were a time for families to get together and meet friends and neighbors. It was more about socializing than anything else.

These days it seems everything is more about the noise - How much louder and longer I can blast my music and fire crackers than the next building. Where I stay, every opportunity they get, they bring in the loud speakers and mic. There will be an announcer no one wants to hear and loud music. In case of the current Ganesh festival, also a group of very out of tune bhajan 'singers'. Our ears have been ringing with all the noise. Except for Eid. Nothing happens on Eid. There aren't enough people who celebrate the festival who want loud speakers.

Now I don't have anything against people celebrating. I in fact have nothing against anyone doing anything as far as they are not infringing on someone else's space. I will also tolerate fire crackers for a day if required. But unfortunately that's not what usually happens. The 'celebrations' go on for a few days consecutively. That means you don't even get time to recuperate from the headache you got last night.

There is absolutely no consideration for people who don't celebrate the festival or for those who prefer to do it in a quieter fashion.

How I remember the festival is the colony getting an idol on day one; then every evening at the pre-fixed time everyone would gather around it and sing hymns (without mics); then on the eve of the idol immersion, there would be an entertainment show with residents dancing or singing. A procession would be taken out the next day to take the idol and immerse it in a water body. Plain and simple.

You know you're getting old when you wish for 'the good old days'. Sigh!

The Indo-German Urban Mela

I've had my youngest sister staying with me for the last few months while she learns German to be able to apply for college in Germany. I've been able to explore a bit of Bombay with her without Husband who's been quite busy. Recently, we went to the Indo-German Urban Mela held at Cross Maidan in Mumbai.

The weather was breezy and the set-up was spectacular when we reached there the evening it opened. The pavilions were a piece of art themselves, although they showcased businesses which didn't hold any interest for us. However, the food section was closed off for VIPs for the day so we had to go hunting for food, and the concert we came to see had finished by the time we got back.

However, it was a nice evening out. This sculpture was right at the entrance and all of this was designed by Markus Heinsdorff.

The pavilions were stunning as well. We didn't make the trip again for the other workshops and performances they had during the week, nor for the German beer, strudel, and black forest pastry at the food stalls. Maybe next time!

  

 

Also, since we were on that side of town already, we didn't want to give up the opportunity to explore a bit.

 

This time, we went in search of food, not clothes (because the stalls were closed). We asked around for the Kala Ghoda Cafe, and we were thrilled with our find. Out of all the 'hole-in'the'wall' places we've seen so far - this was the best! Not only have they made great use of the space, but the food was super. Out of the limited menu, we had the chicken sandwich (yum), Rasta sandwich (super), and the Grilled sweet potato and pumpkin salad (super dooper). An evening well spent.

Aksa Beach at Sunrise

I know you don't get to see the sun rise over the horizon in the West coast but you do see it rise somewhere, which was why we wanted to reach the beach in time to watch this daily miracle. That, and to avoid the Sunday morning crowds.

We had been looking for a place to take Rummy for a good run off-leash and Aksa Beach seemed like a great place, it being so near to where we live. We were at first apprehensive about letting him off since there are quite a number of stray dogs around, but we didn't see any aggression on either side so we took off the leash. And boy, did Rummy run - and make the rest of the dogs run too. He wasn't too keen on going in the water, even though the other dogs were. We were so thrilled that he came back running to us every
time he was called.

 

As for us, the breeze was nice and cool in late February without the humidity. The sun rose from the other end of the beach and lit up the sky spectacularly. The beach was relatively clean - another advantage of reaching early I guess...the crowds had not had a chance to litter it yet. Other early risers here included morning walkers, dog walkers, and guests of one of the resorts on the beach.

We were there from about 6:30 am to 8am. As were leaving, the crowd were slowly starting to trickle in. The only downside to getting here so early was that none of the food/tea stalls were open. It was also getting too hot to be eating outside, and with Rummy in the car we couldn't stop at a restaurant. We then drove to Sai Veg near the Goregaon Station (east side) and packed some good Indian fast food that we had for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Daman - the Poor man's Goa

We had been planning a trip to Daman for a while now, but it kept getting pushed. For one thing, there isn't much info on the Internet about it except that it has cheap alcohol (no taxes). I gathered what information I could, booked a room in one of the hotels, and we set off on a Saturday afternoon from Bombay.
It is just about 170kms from where we are and the roads are good - National Highway all the way. There are no signboards till just when you are reaching Daman, so don't worry - you are on the right track.

We reached Daman in just under 3 hours. It wasn't tiring and we were able to find our hotel on Devka beach without a hitch. The advantage of a small town is everyone knows everything about the place and you don't need to go far even if you've lost your way.



We had booked a room in Cidade de Daman (had to pay a 50% advance through electronic transfer before we came here). We got the Sea View Deluxe room - fancy name, but don't fall for it. First of all, the beach is nothing to look at - it is rocky, has black sand and is littered with garbage all over. The room seemed clean but looked old and not properly maintained. Don't be fooled by the pictures on their website...heavily photoshopped I would think, or taken when it was brand new. [I had wanted to book another hotel (Mirasol Lake Resort) but they had no rooms available - there was a Harley Davidson biker group in town and they had occupied it.] And even though the check out was for 12 noon the next day, they started calling us 30 minutes before to pack up and leave - it wasn't as if there was a rush to occupy the room after us either. Just bad hospitality.

It's sea-view restaurant is a bit better than the rest of the hotel. Of course, the beach itself is quite a disaster so don't expect much to begin with. But the breeze was cool, not humid and sticky, and food was decent. The main attraction here is obviously the alcohol. We could only see Indian brands on offer though. Most people just come here from Bombay or Gujarat (which is a dry state), get sloshed, pick up a box of booze bottles (which is illegal, but not everyone gets checked at the borders), and leave. We thought we'd take in some sights as well.

We drove around the town for a while to get a feel of the place and bumped into the gang of bikers a few times. First on our agenda was the fort at Nani Daman, or the Fort of St. Jerome. It's not much of a fort as it is an enclosure by the sea. There is a church inside, but it was closed in the afternoon. It opens in the morning at 8 (mass in Portuguese) and then at 6 in the evening (mass in English). Nearby is a Jain temple which was also closed. So we went back to the hotel for a quick nap and returned in the evening.

The inside of the church wasn't as extravagant as even the smallest one in Goa, but the place has its own charm. Since people don't come here for tourism, we were about the only tourists around. Parking was easy, roads were practically empty, no loud chatter anywhere, and no queues. We walked up further to the jetty for the sunset, but the smog covered sky swallowed the sun without any fanfare. The Jain temple was our next stop. There was only a guard at the entrance chatting on his phone so we were left to our own devices. The inside was lit by lamps, which gave the place an ethereal feel but we couldn't make out the beautiful frescoes and other details in the dark. The exterior walls are lined with beautiful carvings of dancing women and Lord Mahavira (in a glass enclosure). The moonlight just added to the drama. It was worth coming back for this.

Dinner was at Mirasol's veg restaurant - a much classier affair (still cheap according to Bombay standards though). Here we saw the Harleys lined up - about 50 of them. The empty streets and the dark, quiet roads seemed unnatural after having been in Bombay for so long.

The next day we ventured out on the 'beach'. First you need to navigate through the garbage, then the rocks, then the clay to get to the muddy waters. It was quite a dampener and we didn't feel like going to Moti Daman and its fort after that. Instead, we went to Veera da Dhaba which was highly recommended for lunch.

It is a kind-of roadside eatery, done up a little bit with traditional cots you can recline on. The food was great - we just stuck to starters of tandoori and kebabs of various kinds - paneer was the only disappointment. The Port wine we ordered wasn't chilled so the server suggested some ice. Somehow, it seemed like the obvious thing to do over there. So, for the first (and probably the last) time ever, we had wine on the rocks. We spent a leisurely 2 to 3 hours here. Even though it was hot outside, the breeze was cool and in the shade, you really didn't miss having an air conditioner.

That was probably the most fun we had in Daman - so I guess the town lived up to its reputation of good (sea)food and alcohol. I doubt if there will be a next time - maybe to Diu which is much further ahead.