Mumbai goa train. All options for independent travel from Goa to Mumbai. Hindus - religion, habits, characteristics of the nation, rules of behavior

Flying a charter flight directly from Moscow to Goa Dabolim International Airport is not always convenient, so in this article I have collected all the possible ways to get from Mumbai to Goa...

From Mumbai to Goa by plane

International and domestic flights operate from different terminals in Mumbai, which are located at some distance from each other. You can get to the “domestic” from the international airport by prepaid taxi. It will cost 150-200 rupees, the ride will take 15 minutes.

Many Indian airlines provide their passengers with free transfers between terminals at Mumbai airport. So if you have a printed electronic ticket to Dabolim, then follow the signs for the shuttle bus and go to the “domestic” completely free.

If you don’t yet have a ticket to Dabolim, you can buy it right at the airport. Of course, this will turn out to be more expensive than buying an electronic ticket in advance, and even with some kind of promotion. In addition, there may simply not be tickets for the next flights, especially during the high season and on the eve of holidays and weekends.

Flights from Mumbai to Goa start at $50 one way and take 1 hour to fly.

From Mumbai to Goa by train

In India, it is almost impossible to buy a train ticket immediately before departure, so it is better to do this in advance on the official website of the Indian Railways. This task, however, is also non-trivial, since the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation website is specially designed to cause maximum damage to your brain. Entire Talmuds have been written on the Internet on the topic of fighting the IRCTC website - search and you will find.

Mumbai's main station is called Chhatrapati Shivaji Station, but is better known by its colonial name, Victoria Terminus, and is located in the very center of the city. Be sure to leave at least half an hour to explore the station - this huge Gothic-style building is so beautiful and majestic that it is listed as a World Heritage Site.

The train from Mumbai to Goa takes 10-14 hours, a seat in a 3AC or 2AC class compartment (our reserved seat with six or four shelves in a “compartment”, respectively) will cost you 20-30 dollars.

From Mumbai to Goa by bus

If you don't have train tickets, numerous travel agencies in Mumbai will be happy to sell you sleeper bus tickets to Goa. A sleeper bus is a regular long-distance bus with two-story berth-type shelves instead of seats. Single travelers, especially female ones, should note that the shelves in sleepers are double and at the same time quite narrow. So if you don’t want to spend the night in the hot embrace of some unfamiliar Indian, it’s better to buy two places at once.

Sleeper basses, like trains, are divided into several “classes”:

The most fashionable and decent buses bear the proud name “Volvo Bass”. Moreover, they can be of any brand; Volvo in India is a kind of symbol of reliability and a sign of quality (in Syria, for example, decent buses are called “Pullmans” in the same way). Volvo buses are always equipped with hellishly powerful air conditioners (don’t take a seat in the middle of the cabin - you’ll freeze to death), and they provide pillows, blankets, water and cookies on the road. Travel on such a bus to Goa costs about 1000 rupees, and it travels overnight.

Simpler and cheaper buses are simply called “AC” from “air-condition”. They don't give out any goodies, and most likely there won't be any mattresses on the shelves.

The cheapest buses do not contain any air conditioning, but this omission is more than compensated for by the ventilation holes in the falling apart body. But travel in such a tarantass from Mumbai to Goa will cost 400-600 rupees.

All buses from Mumbai usually go to the capital of Goa, Panjim.

From Mumbai to Goa by taxi

If you are in India for the first time, then we strongly do not recommend using this method of getting from the southern Indian capital to Goa. Taxi drivers all over the world represent a completely separate ethnic group with their own concepts of honesty and decency, but India clearly has the best representatives of this people.

Even at the exit from the Mumbai airport, you will be greeted by a polite and courteous person who will introduce himself as some “chief taxi manager” or “director of all Mumbai taxis” and offer to take you wherever you want for a modest fee. He will even show you your sparkling, polished car (which, after receiving money from you, is immediately replaced with an ancient Rydvan) and your freshly washed and combed driver (who, by a lucky coincidence, just needed to take his entire family to Goa).

Travel time from Mumbai to Goa by taxi can range from the promised 8 hours to infinity. The cost of such a trip is limited only by the greed of the driver.

The cost of a flight always depends on the time of travel. The chart will allow you to compare prices for air tickets from Mumbai to Goa, track the dynamics of changes in their cost and find the best offer.

Statistics will help determine the season of low prices. For example, in May prices reach an average of 8,453 rubles, and in September the cost of tickets drops to an average of 3,864 rubles. Plan your trip now!

We analyze this information and create charts to make it easier for you to plan your trips.

What is more profitable – to buy air tickets in advance, avoiding the general rush, or to take advantage of a “hot” offer closer to the departure date? The chart will help you determine the best time to purchase airline tickets.

See how the price of flight tickets from Mumbai to Goa changes depending on the time of purchase. Since the start of sales, their value has changed by an average of 66%. The minimum price for a flight from Mumbai to Goa is 48 days before departure, approximately 3,648 rubles. The maximum price for a flight from Mumbai to Goa is 9 days before departure, approximately 14,003 rubles. In most cases, early booking helps you save money, take advantage of it!

Mumbai to Goa airfare is not a fixed and constant amount. It depends on many factors, including the day of departure. The dynamics of changes are visible on the graph.

According to statistics, the most affordable option for flights from Mumbai to Goa is on Wednesdays, their average cost is 5,492 rubles. The most expensive flights are on Fridays, their average cost is 7,777 rubles. It is worth considering that flights on holidays are usually more expensive. We hope this information will help you plan your travels more effectively.

The cost of air tickets depends not only on the date, but also on the time of departure. An airline can operate several flights on one day, and they will differ in price category.

The graph shows the cost of departure depending on the time of day. For example, the average cost of a ticket from Mumbai to Goa in the morning is 7,570 rubles, and in the evening 7,062 rubles. Evaluate all conditions and choose the best offer.

The graph shows comparative prices for flights from Mumbai to Goa on the most popular airlines. Based on this information, you can plan your trip and buy flight tickets from Mumbai to Goa from the carrier that suits you.

Statistics will help you choose a flight based on your financial capabilities, as well as your wishes in terms of comfort and flight conditions. The lowest prices for air tickets from Mumbai to Goa are offered by IndiGo, the highest prices are offered by Jet Lite.

In the period April - May, our next trip took place, this time again to our beloved India. For Svetlana, it became a kind of anniversary - her fifth trip to this country. And since this is an anniversary, they decided to highlight it as follows - a minimum of attractions, a maximum of sea and beaches. We headed accordingly in GOA to search best beaches.

Before this, as usual, we developed a thorough travel plan. He was the next one - “we’ll see on the spot.” To be honest, our travel plans have been looking more and more like this lately. But if we usually outline at least a general line, then this time we didn’t even do that. The only thing we took care of in advance was to book accommodation for the first day of arrival. Here is a house in the garden, 30 meters from the ocean in the guest house Pele's Windsong Wood Cottage

As a result, we visited almost all the beaches of GOA, both famous and almost not visited by tourists, and visited several beaches in the neighboring state of Maharashtra.

There was an idea to visit again Gokarna and Hampi, but it was so hot (sometimes over 45 degrees during the day) that even despite all our love of heat, we decided to abandon this idea.

We really love warmth and can easily endure the heat, but what was observed here this April/May was not even heat, but real heat. By the afternoon, the water in the sea on some beaches felt not warm, but slightly hot; I think it warmed up to 40 degrees, no less. In short, they were lazy.

But we’ll tell you about everything in more detail later, and now we’ll just talk briefly about how much a 23-day trip to GOA and Mumbai can cost.

Travel costs

The search and purchase of air tickets was carried out through Aviasales two months before the trip. With the help of his new trick - Calendar of cheap air tickets, managed to get a ticket Moscow – Mumbai – Moscow for 20.438 rubles with Fly Dubai. Please note that it is to Mumbai, and not to Delhi.

Moving St. Petersburg - Moscow - St. Petersburg cost us 4,127 rubles. It could have been cheaper, but I really wanted to ride the new 2-story train.

They intended to travel from Mumbai to GOA by train, but it turned out that a month before the trip everything was already sold out. Without bothering, we used Aviasales again, and the flight Mumbai - Dabolim - Mumbai cost 5,509 rubles, carried by Air India.

Thus, adding up all the above amounts, we get 30,074 rubles per person. The dollar exchange rate at the time of ticket purchases was approximately 63 rubles, i.e. For two people the trip cost $950.

Registration of insurance

We always prepare it and advise you not to skimp on this, especially since it is not expensive. Everything is simple here - go to , enter the data (country, numbers and number of people), click find, buy the most inexpensive one offered. Our insurance cost 850 rubles for 23 days.

Cost of holidays in Goa and Mumbai

For everything else, by the time of the trip, we managed to collect another $950. This was enough for 23 days of vacation for two. This amount included everything: accommodation, food, taxi in Mumbai and Goa, rental of a Royal Enfield motorcycle for 19 days ($110), gasoline, massages, gifts for yourself, relatives and friends, etc.

Note that approximately $450 of this amount was spent on housing; if necessary or desired, these expenses could easily be reduced by 2-3 times. The fact is that Svetlana decided to celebrate this anniversary visit to India in a unique way - we are staying only in separate bungalows or houses, always with a view of the ocean.

Plus, we had absolutely no idea how much time we would spend in a particular place and agreed to rent for a maximum of 2 days, and this was immediately 20-30% more expensive than if we were staying for at least a week.

An example is a luxurious bungalow in Ashvem, we couldn’t resist ourselves, it’s not every time we manage to find something like this. When bargaining, they said that we were staying for a maximum of 2 days, and we managed to negotiate for 1,700 rupees. Although the owner immediately said, “let’s do it for at least 5 days, then I’ll rent it out for 1,400 rupees.” As a result, we lived there for exactly 5 days, we couldn’t bring ourselves to leave, every morning we were informed: “We’re staying for 1 more day and that’s it...”, accordingly paying 1,700.

This time we also ate something unusual. We often visited tourist cafes on the beaches - because of the same incredible heat, we were too lazy to get on a motorcycle again and get to real Indian cuisine. Accordingly, we believe that in the total bill and for food we overpaid by 2-3 times.

For example, Biryani rice with chicken in tourist restaurants - from 160 rupees, in local catering from 60 rupees, Palak Paneer - 180 and 50 rupees, respectively. But, for example, the menu of one of the local, non-tourist cafes in GOA with prices.

In Mumbai, we mainly spent money on housing and taxis from the airport and back. Accommodation in this city is not cheap, at least when booking online. Searching on the spot is a pity to waste time, of which there was very little. As a result, we booked the Traveler’s Inn Hotel - Fort guest, because... it was located near the main historical attractions and was inexpensive by Mumbai standards, plus free tea, coffee and cookies as much as you wanted. In short, for 2 days, it will suit unpretentious travelers.

We spent mere pennies on food; it is inexpensive and tasty in Mumbai. We also got drunk on cane juice, unlike in GOA, where it costs from 10 rupees for a small glass (about 150 grams), here, as soon as you went a little deeper into the non-tourist streets, 0.5 liters were offered for the same 10 rupees.

How much does a holiday in Goa cost?

Total: total costs for two, for 23 days of vacation in Goa and Mumbai and travel amounted to $1,900, which in terms of the current exchange rate (approximately 50 rubles for 1 $) is equal to 95,000 rubles.

Let us remind you that we rented separate houses right on the shore with an unfailing view of the ocean and for a very short period of time, with hot water, Wi-Fi and, if possible, air conditioning - on average about 1,400 rupees per day. If rented for at least a week, the cost of the same accommodation could easily be reduced to 1000 rupees. If we had not been “posh” and rented rooms in guest houses, then even with such a short rental we would have easily agreed on 600-800 rupees.

Here's another example: our separate house (!) in the first line on Palolem (in the southernmost part of the beach) cost us 1,200 rupees/day. A similar house, but in a garden a hundred meters from the sea (in the central part of the beach), was offered for 400 rupees even without haggling.

A few words about the cleanliness of linen in Indian hotels

India is India, just in case we took bed linen and towels with us. Let's put it briefly - we didn't need it anywhere. Only once, during our next check-in, we noticed small stains on the pillowcases - we asked for them and had them replaced with snow-white ones without any problems. They cleaned everything according to your wishes - if you want it every day - just ask for it. If you want your towel changed, just say it.

A few words about Mumbai

We unexpectedly liked Mumbai, we regretted that we “fell for” the reviews from the Internet and spent only two days on it, we needed at least a week. There is a lot to visit and see, both in the city and around it. Unfortunately, they realized this only in GOA, when one Indian told us about it, and when they arrived themselves. Evening walks in old Bombay (we prefer this name) did not cause any problems, everything was calm and comfortable, no tension unlike at night Manila. It seemed that at night in old Mumbai, it was as safe as in the night Bangkok. Of course, a lot will depend on the place where you stay, if anyone is interested, then our recommendations for an inexpensive but good hotel .

During the day it’s generally great here. We didn’t notice much dirt, even going deeper into the small streets. Nobody pestered us with requests for money, to buy their goods or with offers of excursions. But they constantly asked to be photographed.

Here, you just had to allow one person to take the first shot, and a queue of other people would immediately form. A couple of times I had to flee. The thought of commercial activity arose - 2 hours of work, “a tenner for an order...”, that’s money for a day - a different life in India.

While searching for one of the temples, somewhere in the depths of the old shabby streets, we unexpectedly came across an Indian wedding - here we really barely escaped and it was here that we most regretted that we were flying away that night. If it weren’t for the need to return home, we would definitely have gone on a spree at this event, and maybe not for one day...))) We were so happy that in order to break out of the embrace of hospitality, we had to use force.

Well, that's all for now. Over time, we will definitely tell you in detail about each place and each beach that we managed to visit, i.e. about almost all the beaches of Goa. We are sure that our impressions will often differ from generally accepted Internet top opinions)))

Have fun traveling!

updated: April 10, 2017 by: Sergei

About, how to get to Mumbai on one's own, including from Goa, I became interested long before the trip itself. This place literally haunted me, I even dreamed about buying Moscow-Mumbai air tickets on aviasales, so one day I just decided: it’s time! But before that I had another journey ahead of me, and as a result everything worked out by itself...

Despite the fact that I came across advertisements about last-minute tours in Mumbai literally at every step, I, as a true traveler, prefer to move independently, without restrictions and encumbrances.

My journey to Mumbai(quite a huge city located on the shores of the Fravian Sea) began as suddenly as any other of my journeys. We were in Delhi, spending our vacation there, and definitely did not plan further travel in order to see something more unimaginable. I can’t say anything bad, but Delhi is not just the capital of great India, but also its official cultural source.

Having seen enough of all kinds of customs and cultural events, and generally looking at the life of the local residents, I thought that I knew India 100 percent. But a feeling of vague boredom due to the lack of learning something new took over, and in order to satisfy it, we chose a new travel route.

Besides tickets to Mumbai and back, we had only one backpack with all the things we needed for a quick trip. So welcome to Mumbai, India.

In fact, I didn’t know anything about this city. The only thing I knew was the name of the tourist area, the most popular in this city, so after arriving I ordered a taxi to my destination - Colaba.

The road from the airport to the area took about an hour, which actually did not have the best effect on my opinion of this city, since we got into a terrible traffic jam and stood in it for probably more than half of our journey.

As an experienced driver, I was extremely surprised by the local traffic rules and the taxi passenger service system in general. Even in order to leave the airport, the taxi driver had to issue a receipt for us with our initials on it so that we could show it when leaving the parking lot.

After arriving at our destination, we immediately began searching for suitable accommodation. Considering the fact that Mumbai has the highest real estate prices, we had to pay no less than $35 for a regular hostel, which is considered simply an incredibly high price for accommodation with a minimum level of comfort in India.

Again, since we were in only one tourist area of ​​the city, I will not tell everything that I saw on the way here (poverty, and extreme poverty). There is nothing surprising here, since a similar situation can be observed in other cities in India, and not only in India - just remember the situation with favelas in Brazil.

Of course, we were primarily interested in top attractions of mumbai. Therefore, after a short rest, we decided to start our excursion, without resorting to the services of professional guides.

So, a curiosity, like the good old days. The first thing that struck me in Mumbai was the predominance of the old English architectural style, which looks extraordinary against the backdrop of Indian culture. Even a not very attentive tourist will be able to notice English double bass on the roads here.

Upon arrival home, I began a more detailed study of Mumbai, and, let me get ahead of myself, this is a former English colony, which to this day has left behind not only the most beautiful architectural creations, but also hundreds of English-Indians.

So, let's talk about local attractions. You ask what to see in mumbai? Ok, I'll tell you now. But, first things first. Considering that we settled almost in the center of the main tourist area of ​​the city, the first and most significant place to visit was the famous hotel under the fairly common name Taj Mahal.

I did not immediately notice some significant damage to it, which was definitely not due to improper construction. I later learned that this place was the epicenter of a terrorist attack that took place here in 2008, during which more than two hundred people died, as evidenced by the memorial located near the hotel.

About “close” to the building. There are tens of thousands of pigeons here! I don’t know where there are so many of them here, but I can’t imagine how the locals feed them. Local entertainment also includes decorative carriage rides on small horses.

It feels like demand outstrips supply because on the weekend we were there, about 60 percent of these carriages were empty.

The building itself is considered a real work of art, whose construction began in the nineteenth century, but during the events described above, it lost its authority. The number of celebrities who stayed here cannot be counted in ten minutes.

I wanted, of course, to plunge more deeply into the history of this place, but for this I would have to rent a hotel room, which costs about 400 dollars. So, after admiring its beauty, we moved on.

Our next destination was gateway to india. We have already seen something similar in Delhi. But, again, it’s like without the British. If in Delhi such an arch was built solely to honor the memory of the fallen soldiers of the First World War, then the local gate was built in honor of the visit of the then English king.

This place deserves a few photos and is considered the starting point to two other attractions in the city - Chhatrapati Shivaji Railway Station(the former royal station), as well as the port of Mumbai (the largest of its kind in India). We started with a visit to the station.

In fact, the station is a unique combination of the neo-Gothic style of inspired English architects and the influence of Indian culture, expressed in the form of domes and towers that are standard for these places. The structure was also built in the nineteenth century and is said to have undergone only minor changes and architectural modifications since then.

Have you seen the movie Slumdog Millionaire? It was filmed here. Most interestingly, the station is also listed as a World Heritage Site and is considered the starting point for the Mumbai International Port.

The port itself does not bear any architectural heritage, but every local resident is definitely proud of it (considering the annual financial turnover and taxes for the benefit of the city, I would be proud too). For the most part it is a cluster of large and small ships located on the pier in rather muddy water.

Another thing is the embankment located on the back side of the port. It is considered one of the most beautiful places in Mumbai and is distinguished by its length, which is no less than almost four and a half kilometers.

Naturally, you won’t be able to sunbathe or swim there, but you can take a nice walk and breathe in the fresh sea air. The sunset deserves special attention here, which is seen every day by dozens of local residents on this embankment.

The last attraction we visited as part of our tour of Mumbai was elephant cave. This Elephanta cave - that’s what it’s commonly called - is located on a small island near a city called Gahapuri. It has cultural value, for which it was included in the World Heritage List.

To get to the entrance to the cave, or as it is also called the “City of Elephants,” you will have to climb more than one hundred steps. Inside, of course, everything is incredibly beautiful, but it’s better to see such things with your own eyes. It is considered one of the main temples for worshiping Lord Shiva. Numerous drawings located on the walls of this temple tell about his life.

Why is this place associated with an elephant? Yes, because at the entrance to the temple there used to be a statue of an elephant of quite impressive size, which was moved to the Mumbai Museum about half a century ago. The tour of the caves itself is quite entertaining and lengthy, since the entire temple complex consists of seven caves.

In general, I cannot call Mumbai a tourist destination city, I can only award such a title to the corresponding tourist area of ​​the city. In fact, there is a lot to see, visit and photograph here, as the rest of the city resembles a third world country that tourists would be completely inappropriate to visit.

If you are in India and plan to visit more than just one of its cities, then you can definitely put it in third place after Delhi and , so don’t pass/drive/fly past :).

Much water has passed under the bridge since I invited Mikhail Shmakov to write a report on his travels in India. Our author has gone wild and has already published 11 parts of fascinating stories about this wonderful country, about the resorts of Goa and Kerala known to Russian tourists, about trips around the Golden Triangle, about the sights of the state of Karnataka. Then I did not imagine that I myself would become so interested that I would organize an independent trip around Hindustan in the fall of 2015. But I am more attracted to nature, and Misha is more attracted to the historical and cultural sights of India. A month before Katya and I left for vacation, he again chose Indian soil for vacation: he organized the first large-scale trip as a savage.

A total of four chapters with Mikhail’s report will be published: 1) a story about a walk around Mumbai, again in places described in the novel “Shantaram”; 2) review of the excursion to Elephanata Island; 3) how he and his wife visited the Mumba Devi temple and had an unsuccessful trip to Bollywood; 4) how we relaxed on Palolem beach in South Goa. Reviews will alternate with my travel reports in India and the Urals, so you will have to be a little patient until we see all the photos and read all the interesting stories.

Instead of a preface to a story about a trip to Mumbai

We did not plan to visit India this year. But it so happened that our country was punished with sanctions. Oil fell catastrophically in price, and the ruble fell into the abyss, familiar things began to cost indecently, including the services of tour operators. And you can no longer sit at home - traveling has become a way of life in recent years. What could be done in such a situation?

The decision (fortunately, there is an example before our eyes, here on the pages of this blog) came naturally - to go on vacation on our own, and for the first experience choose a country that is well known to us.

In this article I will talk about the first independent tour to India taken from October 4 to October 23, 2015 along the route Moscow - Mumbai - Palolem (South Goa) - Moscow. I will also try to summarize our entire Indian experience.

A little about the weather in India in October

So much for “with the air of a certified expert, ... the period from October to May,” I sneered to myself, sitting in a cafe on the roof of a Mumbai hotel, sweating from head to toe, trying to see the city through the haze that enveloped it.

The irony came later, but at first I was a little scared: maybe what’s wrong with the heart? I can’t remember sweating like that: there were streams of sweat from my temples, and I could even wring out my T-shirt, and that’s not a figure of speech.

Absurd! I drive away these thoughts. Of course, my lifestyle is not ideal, I don’t play sports, I smoke a lot, but I can’t complain about my health: I go up to the fourth floor, loaded with bags, without shortness of breath.

In my head again: “The season for travel is from October to May!” So then trust the guidebooks and “experts”! Including me.

Well, let's try to fix it: humidity 96-98%, temperature 32-35 degrees Celsius in the shade, almost complete absence of wind, the sun and sky are hidden by a glowing gray veil, and the city is shrouded in a whitish haze. In the evening there is usually a short but heavy tropical downpour. It’s the first days of October 2015 and, as you already understand, we are in Mumbai, and a mistake with the weather is not the first and not the last mistake in planning an independent trip to India. To summarize, I’ll call them in one word – low season.

If in Palolem the “off-season” brought a peculiar charm to a beach holiday (deserted beaches and relative silence, for example), then in the capital of Maharashtra, which in the Indian tour was supposed to become not only a starting point, but also an educational part, the “off-season” confused all the cards . The fact is that after visiting India four times, living for a total of about eighty days, visiting a couple of dozen cities in five states, there was a huge hole in our knowledge about the country - culture. By this word I mean theater, with its tradition of classical Indian dance, music and cinema. This is the gap we hoped to fill on this trip. But, everything is in order.

Organizing a tour to India yourself

Before you could end up at the rooftop café at Mumbai's Chateau Windsor Hotel, you had to make a reservation, just like booking a room at the Palolem Inn resort. Buy plane tickets, get visas, take out insurance.

Tickets and reservations are the simplest part in organizing a trip and, thanks to the author and owner of this site, Sergei Lakhardov, I am spared the need to go into the technical details of booking and listing sites designed for this purpose - just read any article from the “Independent Travel” section . I will only note that the choice of hotel, air carrier, flight and number of transfers on the route is limited only by the personal preferences of the traveler and the fullness of his wallet. But the nuances of independently obtaining an Indian visa deserve a few words, here our experience with Sergei differs.

We, residents of Moscow, formally had a choice of two options: a personal visit to the Indian Visa Center, located on Novy Arbat in building No. 2, or, using the official website of the Indian Ministry of Tourism, to apply for an electronic visa. In fact, there was nothing to choose from: all roads led to the official website of the Ministry of Tourism, since you must first register for an appointment at the visa center by appearing in person, and always with a completed application form, and it can only be filled out on the above-mentioned website.

We decided to immediately issue electronic visas. A seemingly simple task turned into agony: you can’t make mistakes and you can’t correct them, since you have to go back to the beginning. We fought for half an evening, once we got to “upload a photo”, and the profile froze!

Irritation grew into indignation: at each other, the Internet and the “world behind the scenes”. The matter was aggravated by the fact that documents for a visa can be submitted no earlier than a month before the intended visit to India. Bureaucratic experience, rooted in our consciousness for decades, whispered: “We won’t make it!”

There is nothing to do: we print out old paper forms left over from previous trips and fill them out. The next morning, I take the entire package of documents (application forms, photographs, copies of passports and passports, copies of plane tickets and hotel reservations) to the Indian visa center.

The next part of the story “About a visa” should be in verse - no sarcasm! Before I could enter, they took me under their white hands, asking only about the availability of foreign passports, and took me to the window, where a wonderful young Indian accepted the documents, filled out the forms and gave me a receipt for payment for Indian visas and services of the center.

The whole visa miracle: four days, 4,380 rubles for both visas, SMS notification and polite smiles on the faces of the center employees. The approximate savings (usually the travel agency charged us $70 per person) from applying for visas on our own is $70 for two. Agree, a nice bonus for independence.

Road to India

The journey has long become familiar to us: an evening flight, a transfer at one of the airports in the United Arab Emirates (this time Abu Dhabi) and a night landing in India. The route is well-tried, long due to transfers, but not as tiring, in our opinion, as a direct flight.

The popular wisdom “you cannot enter the same water twice” was confirmed here: both airports have changed. The air gates of the Emirate have somehow “aged”, the size has become less intimidating, and the passages are not so long and confusing, however, the comfort has remained the same, and free Wi-Fi is available everywhere. Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Airport has changed its interior design: Bollywood heroes have been replaced by art installations that symbolically, with a touch of irony, tell the story of the true soul and heart of the metropolis.

A short delay at the picturesque installations turned into languishing at the tail of a huge queue at passport control.

Money to take with you to India and transfer to a hotel in Mumbai

Finally, the formalities are completed, the luggage is received - all that remains is to change the money and take a taxi to the hotel in Mumbai.

The Internet convinces us that the currency legislation in India is liberal: without declaring, you can bring 2.5 thousand dollars per person into the country, and exchange them for rupees - in any bank, if you have a foreign passport and a valid visa in it, or through an ATM. You cannot take rupees out of the country, but you can exchange the remaining local money for foreign currency before leaving, having in hand a receipt for the previous exchange, and only 25% of the amount indicated on the receipt. Our companion on the Golden Ring, Ajay Singh, said this: “If you brought $100 into the country and spent only $90, then we guides are not doing a good job!”

Our previous experience suggested that there is no need to rush to exchange currency, and even less so at the airport. However, it was night outside, and we had to pay for taxi services, arrange early check-in, and we didn’t want to start the morning with running around exchange offices. From the same past experience, we knew that offices with the inscription “Exchange” were not at every step in Mumbai, and more precisely, we did not see them at all. We changed it at a hotel, in a jewelry store, there was a case - with a street money changer in Mysore (I really liked it - you can bargain, and my intransigence saved us a decent amount), we changed it with a guide. Not once at an exchange office.

We decide, change dollars at the airport - 200 USD. A long procedure followed: checking passports, visas, hotel reservations, issuing a receipt, and repeated recalculation by typewriter and manually. Maybe we didn't like our faces? A very unfavorable exchange rate: with an average price of 64 rupees per $1, they exchanged it for us at the rate of 61 rupees per 1USD, and they also charged a commission of 5%. There is an ATM next to the exchange office, so it makes sense to use an alternative.

Taxi in Mumbai. Typically, when traveling through a travel agency, transfer from the airport to the hotel is included in the package. Only Ganesha knows how the price of such a service is formed. Once they charged us $300 (!) for the trip from Trivandrum to Kovalam (14 kilometers) and back. From a short independent trip to Istanbul in June of this year, we learned: there are no problems with transfers in major cities of the world, there are taxi stands in the building of any airport, the fee is fixed.

Mumbai is no exception. Moreover, taxi companies offer a wide selection of vehicles: from tuk-tuk to minivans and executive cars, with corresponding tariffs. We learned about this feature later, this time we simply went to the nearest office and became passengers in a miniature old Suzuki. Black and yellow, ancient Suzuki and Fiat cars are a historical heritage of the city, like the neo-Gothic style in the architecture of Colaba.

The driver took the “short” route through the city, bypassing the Bandra Worli See Link, the toll for which is paid separately at the road terminal (Rs 60). If you want to take a quick ride and see the bridge that claims to be the “longest in India”, the price is quite reasonable.

Any city at night is an amazing sight, delightful and mysterious, night Mumbai is doubly so. The black bottomless sky, the yellow, dim illumination of the streets, the light of lanterns is often hidden in the dense foliage of the trees, deep shadows hide the details of the gray, slum-like houses of East Bandra with black spots of mold. In the warm, humid air there is a mixture of aromas of a seaport, a spice shop, flowers and a cowshed. It’s five in the morning, but the city is already waking up: greengrocers are rolling their carts, blocking the roadway, rickshaws with huge bales and baskets on the frames of antediluvian bicycles are winding and huddling to the side of the road, heavy Tata cars are throwing out clouds of black stench on the rises of overpasses, taxi drivers under They rub the windows of their cars with the arch of the overpass. This is in Bandra, and in Colaba it is still night, with rare passers-by only in the area of ​​the Victoria Terminus station.

Here is the hotel, the taxi driver does not want to take money (at the taxi office a receipt is issued with a detailed breakdown: mileage, availability of air conditioning, comfort of the car and the total cost of the service, payment at the destination) until he is sure that they are waiting for us here. Arriving at night has its own disadvantage: they usually check into the room after noon; in each country and in each hotel, the solution to this problem has its own price: in Istanbul - $20, in Dubai - $50. At the Chateau Windsor Hotel it turned out that it was enough to pay for the night.

Walk along the routes of Linbaba from the novel “Shantaram”

Note from S.P. Lakhardova: Linbaba is the main character of the exciting novel “Shantaram” by Gregory D. Roberts.

If you want to see the real Mumbai, then you won’t find a better guide (the lack of historical references does not help the novel as a guidebook) than this work. We had to wander the same streets as a year ago, not out of love for literature, but due to the lack of a clear excursion plan; the reference to the “off season” only partly justifies our lack of preparation.

Map of the route for a self-guided walk around Mumbai based on the novel “Shantaram”. Report on a trip to India on your own.

We were supposed to spend three days in the capital of Maharashtra. The preliminary plan was as follows: the first day, it fell on Monday (Monday is a non-museum day all over the world) - “sighting on the ground” and sightseeing of the city; second day - excursion to Elephanta Island (full day); third day - a visit to Bollywood (taking into account the road and the unknown duration of the excursion - for the whole day). Evenings - theater, concert, cinema (whatever happens).

At home, such a program seemed comprehensive and harmonious, however, I was confused by the fact that on the Internet I found only six events that somehow corresponded to my ideas about a dance theater or a concert of Indian music. Remembering my trips to Prague and Dubai (at the hotel reception there was plenty of information of this kind), I reassured myself that the hotel would help and advise.

They suggested: it turned out to be the off-season, or, more precisely, the off-season. All announcements with this kind of information pointed to dates much later than our stay in the city.

But it turned out in the evening, and in the morning, or rather, after we woke up, closer to eleven o’clock, we, dripping with sweat, stood on the roof of the hotel, waiting for breakfast, and discussed the route for a walk around Mumbai.

Breakfast in India is, rather, a burden on a hotel room (I explain to the younger generation of readers and foreigners: “load” is an imposed service). I'm not a gourmet and breakfast is for me - it's just a morning meal. If it’s different for you, then I advise you to try to refuse this option of Indian hoteliers, and have breakfast in numerous cafes and restaurants in the cities, or in Shacks on the beach. Cheaper is unlikely, but the breadth of choice is guaranteed. Taking into account Sergei Lakhardov’s experience of traveling around Hindustan and problems with food, I’ll make a reservation that my advice applies to the coast, the large cities we visited (Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Trivandrum), the cities of the “Golden Triangle”, the resorts of Goa and Kerala. In the future, I will have to start talking about food more than once, so I will not put this story in a separate chapter, but will move on to non-museum Monday.

The day museums are closed in Mumbai

We didn't make any special plans for this day. Find out the schedule of ferries running between the pier at the Gateway of India memorial and Elephanta Island, look around and, since we are heading towards the Taj Mahal Palace, go to the Leopold Cafe - one thing from the main settings of the novel "Shantaram" and our omission from last year's Mumbai visit. Towards evening – the island mosque of Haji Ali (another toponym from Roberts’ novel).

From the very first steps along Veer Nariman Road, where our hotel is located, I was surprised by the unusual appearance of the streets of Mumbai. It’s difficult to immediately determine what has changed - it’s like a game of “find ten differences.” There are also a lot of people, but there are no foreigners at all, it’s not dirty, but there is more garbage (traces of the past monsoons and last night’s rain). At intersections, an amazing thing is blue towers for traffic controllers. The feeling is that the city has gone through a siege (we did not see India during the rainy season, but I think such a metaphor is quite appropriate).

Another sign is people sitting, and, intuitively, living on the sidewalks. But they cannot be called beggars. Some sell some food prepared here, while others offer flower garlands, the making of which is occupied by the whole family. Children - yes, they extend their hand, with the usual obsession, but somehow cheerfully, or playfully, or something.

Having reached the intersection with Mahatma Gandhi Road, at the Flora Fountain, we deviated from the route and took a left along Dadabhai Naoroji Road - the street leading to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Central Station, we decided stop by the post office and send a postcard home.

The postcard was not sent, for the umpteenth time, but quite unexpectedly we found ourselves in the Museum of the Reserve Bank of Mumbai (not to be confused with the Museum of Money, it is nearby). Perhaps this event would not have been worth mentioning, but the museum was open while other similar establishments were closed for the weekend, and laziness that got in the way of exchanging currency in this bank (we had to go back to the second floor) added poignancy journey, and an instructive story for this story. I’ll keep the intrigue – I’ll tell you later.

The museum's modest exhibition is located in two rooms on two floors. Here you can see everything that is inherent in banking: from the time of the churning of the milk ocean by the gods to the present day (weights and measures, seals and keys, abacus and adding machines, huge barn books and check books, banknotes and coins, a gallery of portraits of the main bankers of Maharashtra and a series paintings depicting views of Bombay from different years). The most interesting exhibit, in my opinion, is the autograph of Mahatma Gandhi. A document hidden under glass indicates that on January 17, 1944, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi received 10,500 rupees in cash (if I understand the expression correctly: check for Rs. 10,500 on ourselves and cash). For many Indians, this is still quite serious money, and in 1944 it was a fortune (if anyone doesn’t remember, Gandhi wore glasses with iron frames, walked in only sandals and wove linen for his clothes). 🙂

Having left the coolness of the air-conditioned halls of the bank, now without delay, we go to the Apollo embankment: along the Mahatma Gandhi Road, past the Wellington Fountain and the Prince of Wales Museum to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Marg, facing to the monument.

Here, next to the most remarkable square in Mumbai, another sign was discovered that did not immediately catch the eye: the absence of armored vehicles, which we saw in February 2014 at many government institutions, including at the intersection between the Taj Mahal Palace and "Gateway to India".

Having passed the turnstiles with metal detectors, we were attacked by a friendly flock of Indians doing their own small business selling tickets, postcards with “views,” city maps and souvenirs. Having found out that we were experienced tourists, they abandoned their attempts to sell us something and explained in detail: Monday is the day when museums are not open, and Elephanta Island (Gharapuri Island) is closed, you need to come tomorrow at nine o’clock in the morning, steamships depart from the pier every half hour, the last flight from the island is at 17:30, spending the night on the island is prohibited (a sacred place), and the ticket office is in front of the turnstiles on the right.

Photo No. 14. In front of the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai. How we went on holiday to India on our own to see the places described in the novel “Shantaram”. (24-70, 1/400, -1eV, f9, mm, ISO 100)

Photo No. 15. Two Indians in front of the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai. Walk through the places of “Shantaram”. Independent tour to India. (24-70, 1/200 , -1eV, f9, 38 mm, ISO 100)

Next stop is Cafe Leopold. I mentioned it briefly in a previous article about an excursion to Mumbai to the places described in the novel “Shantaram”. But I think it deserves an extra couple of lines.

Photo No. 17. In front of Cafe Leopold in Mumbai. Greetings from India to fans of the novel “Shantaram”! (24-70, 1/100, -1eV, f9, 65mm, ISO 100)

I admit, I expected to see something different. Reading the novel, densely populated with characters, like the Hindu sky with gods, replete with action and intrigue, I imagined “Leopold” - one of the main stages of “Shantaram”, a kind of caravanserai, with many tables laden with drinks, drowning in human hubbub and tobacco smoke .

19. Bullet trail. Cafe " f8="" mm="" iso="" src="https://img-fotki.yandex.ru/get/27579/43041190.6d/0_e9521_7c1ada6b_orig" alt="19. Bullet trail. Cafe" width="1400" height="933">!}

19. Bullet trail. Cafe "Leopold", described in the novel Shantaram. Review of a trip to Mumbai by savages. Interesting places in India (24-70.1/80, -1eV, f8, 70 mm, ISO 5000)

Again we exchange the coolness of the room for the stuffiness of the street, our path lies further - along the Causeway (current name - Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg) to the Colaba market for fruits.

The smartest thing would be to return from the market to the hotel by taxi, but what kind of travelers are we in that case? We decide: we go to Back Bay, and from there along Madame Cama Rd. to Marine Drive and our hotel - just a stone's throw away.

22. Back Bay in Mumbai. Walk through the places described in Roberts' novel "Shantaram" in Mumbai. Reviews of a trip to India (24-70, 1/320, 0eV, f10, 37 mm, ISO 100)

Haji Ali Mosque in Mumbai

Twice at night on the way from the airport we drove along the shore past a mosque glowing with a pale green light and reflected in the water, twice the thought flashed: “We need to take a picture. Come in the evening, wait for twilight, illumination and... General admiration!” The plan came true, but the result was far from ideal; the light of the sun, which had set behind the horizon, reflected from the cloudy sky, painted the sky, sea and mosque in an unnatural yellow color, giving them some kind of unrealistic appearance.

The law of the genre requires consistency in the narrative, but I would like to first correct one inaccuracy that many descriptions on the Internet suffer from.

It is alleged that the narrow path connecting the islet to the shore is flooded at high tide, making the mosque inaccessible to visitors. This was the case until the 80s of the last century, when a dam was built on the site of a stone-filled path that had existed since the 40s (even earlier, you had to get there by boat), raising the road by one and a half meters. Nowadays, if the road floods, it is only during the peak of the monsoon (and then with waves of a storm) - then the gates of the mosque are closed.

The mosque was built on the burial site of the saint Syed Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari, revered by many Muslims, in 1431. It acquired its current appearance in the 19th century. The white marble mosque complex includes: a mausoleum with the tomb of Haji Ali, the mosque itself, a 26-meter minaret and Quwwali Khan - an open space for pilgrims.

There are many legends about the life of Saint Hadji Ali, I don’t know which one is more plausible, I will retell one that seems to me the most reliable.

The wealthy merchant Sayeda Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari was from Bukhara (judging by the last of his names, author). He traveled a lot and made a pilgrimage to Mecca (as indicated by the name Haji, author). At some point, he settled in medieval Mumbai, which at that time was an archipelago of seven islands under the control of the Gujarat Sultanate. During his lifetime, Haji Ali was considered a holy man; he performed miracles, which are still legendary, and gained followers.

In 1431, having distributed all his property, Haji Ali went on the second hajj, but on the ship he fell ill and died; the disciples accompanying him lowered the rak (dargah) with his body into the Arabian Sea. After some time, the followers discovered that the ark with the remains of the deceased saint had washed up on the shore of a tiny island and they, considering this a sign from heaven, decided to bury it here.

It remains to add that Muslims in India honor the memory of the saint; thousands of believers visit the mosque every day (and on Thursday and Friday - up to 40 thousand people). To be convinced, just look at the road leading to the island, filled with people.

At this point I can finish the story about the first day in Bombay, but I promised to return to the topic of food in India.

It had long since gotten dark when we took a taxi back to the hotel. We decided, without going up to our room, to go straight to dinner at the cafe on the embankment closest to the hotel with the simple name “Pizza By The Bay”.

Mumbai is a modern multicultural Asian metropolis that annually welcomes crowds of foreign tourists. Finding an establishment here with cuisine familiar to a European is not difficult, so our choice of restaurants in Mumbai on both trips was determined only by proximity to the hotel, reasonable economy and democratic atmosphere.

In the Gateway of India memorial area, we went to Le Pain Quotiden Colaba, Pizza Express Colaba and Alibaba BBQ and Sea Food. Don’t be confused by the word “pizza” in the name: in addition to this dish itself (vegetarian or with chicken), there is a fairly long menu. And in the Marine Drive embankment area, in addition to the above-mentioned “Pizza By The Bay”, there is also “Shiv Sagar Restaurant”. Dinner at all these establishments cost us a little over a thousand rupees for two. More expensive if you took alcohol, fresh juices or natural coffee. Coffee in India is a luxury.

What kind of food? Soups. In India they are prepared differently than we are in Russia; here you won’t find the cabbage soup we are used to, but chicken soup, mushroom soup, fish soup, cream soups, or just broth seasoned with vegetables are served in any establishment. You can try lentil, but it is not as tasty as they cook in Istanbul. You can also find meat in Mumbai. Most likely it will be buffalo or lamb, but it is easier to order chicken or fish. Side dish – rice, potatoes or stewed vegetables. But we must keep in mind that an ordered dish of, for example, fish, already requires the presence of a side dish and chopped fresh vegetables. The serving size is large for our appetite.

By choosing local cuisine, you can be sure that your insides will not burn from too much spice. Let me make a reservation once again - Mumbai is completely unlike any other Indian city due to its cosmopolitanism.

This concludes the first in a series of reports by Mikhail Shmakov about his trip to Mumbai on his own in October 2015. It seems to me that this time Mikhail has made very noticeable progress in photography; I found it very interesting to look at the pictures. I ask you, if you also liked the story, photographs, write a couple of sentences in support of the author. It’s always nice for a person to hear feedback about his efforts!

Next time we will look at photographs from an excursion to Elephanta Island in Mumbai, and learn an intriguing story about the dangers associated with exchanging large sums of dollars in the gangster city in which the events described in Shantaram took place. Subscribe to blog article updates and stay in touch.