Mumbai, a city of contrasts

To put it simply, Mumbai is a crowded metropolis, and like many large cities there is large economic variability. I think of the Chicago that I am familiar with, from the South Side to the Gold Coast, and the differences in population of these two areas. However, I think the size of Mumbai and the growing economic prosperity of the 'upper' and 'middle' classes here provide a stark contrast to the hard reality of poverty that millions in Mumbai live in.

Previously, there was a smaller subset of Mumbai that lived in the money, mainly the Bollywood elite and business moguls. Now with the burgeoning middle class that has more disposable income the look of Mumbai is changing. Nowhere is this more evident than my in-laws own little neighborhood. Mumbai is divided into neighborhoods similar to the way Chicago is, but then these neighborhoods are divided even further.

My in-laws live in Ghatkopar West, a run of the mill area of Mumbai; nothing special or outstanding about Ghatkopar until a few years ago. You walk out of their building and you have roadside stall selling everything from vegetables to underwear. There are also several small stores selling everything from milk and dry goods to jewelry along with some store front doctors offices. The beginning of 2009 brought big change to Ghatkopar and really put it on the Mumbai map, R City Mall opened up. R City is now the biggest mall in India with four floors of stores including a large food court (KFC, Subway, Dominos, and more), a 9 screen movie theater, an indoor 'ice rink' (actually some sort of tile that you can skate on), and an arcade that has a 6 lane bowling alley. This is a mere 5 minute rickshaw ride from my in-laws.

However, just outside kids are begging, people are living in shanty houses, and others live in a pile of garbage and 'pick' what they can use or resell.

Like I said, a city of contrasts.

Mumbai traffic

This, my friends is a TYPICAL street in Mumbai (Bombay). THIS is why I will never drive here and I think those that do (including my beloved FIL) are crazy. The basic rule is if the vehicle/person fits, that's the way they go. Now granted, there are some roads that have actual center dividers and some sort of order to them, but those are the main roads, not the millions of miles of side roads in the city. The average speed is SLOW. If my FIL happens to be driving and gets the car above 30 km/hr (18mph) she is pleading for him to slow down that he is going too fast.

I will admit that when I first started visiting here, the disorder and congestion of the traffic would drive me crazy and leave me with a sore jaw. You see, I did not want to appear to be visibly stressed and have a death grip on that little handle thing above the door, so I resorted to constantly moving my right foot (imaginary break) and clenching my back teeth. Over the years I have learned to relax and could even fall asleep in the back of the rickshaw if tired enough.

Regardless if you drive a Honda Hero (popular motorcycle here) or a BEST bus (city bus) one thing you have to be aware of is every last inch of your mode of transportation and just how close you can get to the next guy (usually within 6 inches) without hitting him. Rickshaws are a very cool mode of transportation as they are cheap, you can usually find one to take you where you want to go, and they are small enough to maneuver through traffic/people. Despite their small size, we can easily fit our family of 5 in the back of one. However, my real respect and admiration goes to the BEST bus drivers who drive all over the city on streets large and small. You could not pay me enough to drive a bus in Mumbai!

Independence in India

I think that one of the hardest adjustments that I have had to make in all my trips to India is the loss of independence. In the US I am used to taking a walk if I want to take a walk, going to a local store when I feel like driving there and being able to take the kids to the local park if the weather is nice and I feel so inclined. Here in India, things are different. Mumbai is a densely packed metropolis of more than 20.5 million people, very few road signs, lots of nooks and corners, and in this area of the city no a lot of pale folk like me, in fact, I think I am the only one for miles! And I don't know Hindi.

Because of my in-laws being very protective of me I would often feel claustrophobic when I would come to visit. Going outside required somebody else to be with me, even if is was just for a walk around the building.

I have slowly been able to emerge from this cocoon and venture out on my own. The breakthrough came on my third visit here. We lived with my in-laws in their 2 bedroom flat for 5 months the beginning of 2009. At that time Josiah was 2 1/2 and Lydia was only 3 months old. During this stay here I would go to the opposite corner from their building and buy diapers by myself. The owner of SK knows my FIL well and I was easily able to communicate my diaper needs to him. This gave me a nice 5 minute walk about 3 times a week as Pampers there were sold 10 to a package. I would also walk Josiah to and from his little preschool that he had for 2 hours every day; this was only 2 buildings down. I also started going for morning walks on the street in front of their building. Basically I would walk one block down, turn around and walk one block back. While it doesn't seem like much, I was grateful for every opportunity to get out without feeling like a burden to others.

Today I had an Indian independence breakthrough. There is a large mall a couple of blocks away that opened up a few years ago. While technically it is within walking distance, walking on the streets of Mumbai is an activity I choose not to undertake. Having to dodge rickshaws, bicycles, scooters and motor bikes, large city buses, people who live on the street, and chickens, donkeys, goats and cows is not my idea of a leisurely walk.

Well, today various circumstances had me with the kids at the mall. They had just gotten there with Jeneson who was going to see a movie with his niece and nephew.  The rest of us had just gotten done doing some shopping and were heading home. Since, the kids don't get out too much, I decided that I would just stay at the mall with the kids for a while walking around. I got many questioning looks wondering if I could handle getting a ride back home.

Catching a rickshaw does require some element of skill and luck. The rickshaw drivers stay in certain areas of the city and if the fare will not be worth it, often turn down requests for rides. I know that the trip from the mall to home is less than lucrative for them as it only costs 11 rupees (as a point of reference it is about 50 rupees to $1 US). The first driver asked must have thought I was stupid, desperate or both as he wanted to charge me 50 rupees. I crossed over the busy street (with three kids in tow) and was able to find a rickshaw in about 5 minutes. I think I was a pity fare. But, hey we got home safe and in one piece. It may not seem like much, but is certainly an accomplishment!

Leaving on a jet plane

Well, in less than 24 hours we will be embarking on a trip to India to visit with Jeneson's family. Let's just say that I have many filled in lines on my TO DO list, but here I am blogging. I am a last minute packer. I do have the majority of clothes packed, but will wait until tomorrow morning to pack the finishing touches. Just not that motivated to pack right now. So instead I will offer a little insight as to what international travel is like with a 5 year old, 3 year old, and 17 month old.

In an effort to save a little money on tickets we are flying a Middle Eastern Airline. I have flown ME airlines before and lets just say that they take good care of their passengers. Much better than any US based carrier that I have flown. However, the downside is the flight times. Usually when we fly to India we use European based carriers. This makes for a great split in flight times, generally 8ish hours to some place in Europe, then another 8ish hours to Mumbai. With this carrier, our first flight is 14 hours long!!! I am praying for lots of sleep time for the kids and us and lots of grace from the flight attendants and fellow passengers.

I think the key to flying with kids is to not over pack. Yes you read me right, I am not the mother that you will see trudging through the airport with 10 checked bags and 5 carry ons (technically our allowances on this flight). We will have 4 checked bags (all under the 50 pound weight allowance) and one of them is the box with the pack and play for our youngest, so really only 3 bags. We will have 2 real carry ons plus the older kids will have their little backpacks with their essentials.

I highly recommend a household with no TV or electronic type games, this makes the novelty of the in flight entertainment much more entrancing. The biggest struggle is keeping their earphones on their heads.

We do bring some toys and coloring books on the flight, but not a million small toys that easily get lost between and under seat. Snacks, however, are a must, but drinks not (there is plenty to drink during the flight).

Thankfully, our 14 hour flight starts at 8pm, so after the take off and initial round by the flight attendants we will put the kids in their PJs and snuggle them in for the long flight and hopefully a good night's sleep. If that doesn't happen, there is always the Benadryl back up...