Hi All,
This post is a combination of the evening I arrived in Mumbai and the following day's (Saturday) adventure.
I've arrived in Mumbai, India! Damn, I was warned it would be hot and humid, and was WAY overconfident that it couldn't be THAT BAD...well, I was wrong. My new standpoint- you don't know what humid weather is until you've been in Mumbai during the summer, especially (though I did not know this until the following day), during the heat of the day -mid-late afternoon- and in the sunshine! The hostel we are staying at is nice and our room even has a balcony! (sorry I can't upload pictures at the moment, I will share when I can next) Looking forward to a few hours of rest before hitting the town and shopping in the morning.
Well the day of shopping turned out to not be half bad! Mostly because I was ok with purchasing one-size-fits "most" items and only really shopped for the patterns I liked best. Today included a few very funny moments -the first was as group of 14 females, most identifying as white, we attract a lot of attention and therefore we were asked frequently to take a picture with various locals when we were in a tourist area posing for our own photos. Following lunch when we were deciding whether to take a midday break or to go shopping right away, one friend's comment was "I should go shopping now, because I'll be the meanest" (because she was tired and you have to barter and be firm on decisions when buying from street markets in India). Many street vendors don't have prices on their goods and will give you a price based on looks. So as a white person it is ESPECIALLY important to know the relative value of goods and to barter or walk away unless you are willing to WAY OVERPAY for most items. While out shopping, one white, young male a little older that us, made me laugh when he walked by because he yielded out - "WHITE PEOPLE" - as he passed the smaller group of about 5 of us. It was just ironic and funny because it was so random and the truth.
So today's takeaway: you can't hide/blend in as a white female in India, so embrace being different. It's not all bad to be white, after all we were not only asked to be in pictures, we were also asked to be in a Bollywood filming (too bad we had things on the agenda for the day)! Lastly, I will never drive when in India. As someone on the trip mentioned incredulously, "how do they drive without killing each other"?! Being a pedestrian was stressful enough to watch from the side walk because the traffic was utterly crazy (fast vehicles, no lanes, lots of people driving and walking, and horns honking constantly).
That's a wrap, Day 1 in India.
This post is a combination of the evening I arrived in Mumbai and the following day's (Saturday) adventure.
I've arrived in Mumbai, India! Damn, I was warned it would be hot and humid, and was WAY overconfident that it couldn't be THAT BAD...well, I was wrong. My new standpoint- you don't know what humid weather is until you've been in Mumbai during the summer, especially (though I did not know this until the following day), during the heat of the day -mid-late afternoon- and in the sunshine! The hostel we are staying at is nice and our room even has a balcony! (sorry I can't upload pictures at the moment, I will share when I can next) Looking forward to a few hours of rest before hitting the town and shopping in the morning.
Well the day of shopping turned out to not be half bad! Mostly because I was ok with purchasing one-size-fits "most" items and only really shopped for the patterns I liked best. Today included a few very funny moments -the first was as group of 14 females, most identifying as white, we attract a lot of attention and therefore we were asked frequently to take a picture with various locals when we were in a tourist area posing for our own photos. Following lunch when we were deciding whether to take a midday break or to go shopping right away, one friend's comment was "I should go shopping now, because I'll be the meanest" (because she was tired and you have to barter and be firm on decisions when buying from street markets in India). Many street vendors don't have prices on their goods and will give you a price based on looks. So as a white person it is ESPECIALLY important to know the relative value of goods and to barter or walk away unless you are willing to WAY OVERPAY for most items. While out shopping, one white, young male a little older that us, made me laugh when he walked by because he yielded out - "WHITE PEOPLE" - as he passed the smaller group of about 5 of us. It was just ironic and funny because it was so random and the truth.
So today's takeaway: you can't hide/blend in as a white female in India, so embrace being different. It's not all bad to be white, after all we were not only asked to be in pictures, we were also asked to be in a Bollywood filming (too bad we had things on the agenda for the day)! Lastly, I will never drive when in India. As someone on the trip mentioned incredulously, "how do they drive without killing each other"?! Being a pedestrian was stressful enough to watch from the side walk because the traffic was utterly crazy (fast vehicles, no lanes, lots of people driving and walking, and horns honking constantly).
That's a wrap, Day 1 in India.
What a change from the weather in Michigan! I remember when I was in China the group I was with was often asked to take a picture with random people, that will happen throughout you're whole trip I'm sure. I'm glad you're already learning the rules of bargaining as well!
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