Home Working, Walking Tour of South Bombay and Dinner with Leslie's Family Members

Friday, November 3, 2018
Bombay

Home Working, Walking Tour of South Bombay and Dinner with Leslie's Family Members

     Namaste from Bombay!
     Today was another day that got chopped up into segments to make room for many different activities.  However, I was determined to get those urgent items off my To-Do List after which I felt entitled to play!
     So I awoke, as usual, at 4.30 am and then at the advice of my friend Ninaz, forced myself to go back to sleep.  And so I did!--right till 6.30 am!!! Well, well, well. It was great and I felt hugely rested but I also felt as if I had lost valuable time...
     Anyway, I could not blog--all I did was read older blogs (which is great fun, by the way, as I am re-living my earlier times spent in London when I was on prolonged stints away from Southport, Connecticut). Next I washed, had a quick cuppa, dressed and left for the gym.  Three days away was more than my guilt-ridden mind could stand. I simply had to work out today--so off I went.  One hour-long workout later, I got back home for a nice bowl of birschersmuesli and a shower.

Watching Russel's Physiotherapy Session:
     Then Dad called to inform me that Russel's physiotherapist had arrived sooner than expected. I told him I would be at his in ten minutes as I did want to see how much progress he had made. Russel can now stand independently and we were able to induce him to take his first tentative steps using the walker. He was able to do so but with a lot of persuasion. Although he says he feels no pain, he is hesitant to go forward--we are not sure if he lacks confidence, is anxious about falling, does not want to make the effort or is in pain. The next few days will enable us to asses the situation better as Lenita makes further inner attempts to get him to walk again.
 
Back Home to Work:
      An hour later, I returned home to get back to finishing the items on my To-Do List. I still have email to respond to, but most of my work was done and I felt very pleased that I am now up-to-date and can start my next set of interviews.  And that was what I did.  I spent a while on the phone making new appointments for about 5 interviews that I will carry out in the coming two weeks. Most of these are with Theater Group folks as I have finished with the NCPA and am moving on to theater. These folks live in south Bombay in areas with which I am unfamiliar--it will be an interesting learning curve for me--in terms of geography of Bombay, if nothing else.
     I stopped for lunch at 1.00 pm and tucked into my new tiffin: beaten rice, dried baby shrimp with potatoes, cauliflower with peas and Goan shrimp curry. Everything was super tasty.  I had a sweet lime for dessert. I have to say that I am eating the kind of food I rarely eat at home in Southport and it is very interesting to introduce my palate to new foods.

Off to the City:
     My next appointment was in South Bombay at 4.00 pm at the Eros Theater where I was meeting my American friend Leslie Frost Mahtani who lives in Westport, Connecticut.  She had arrived in Bombay with her sister Beverly less than 24 hours previously at the start of a 3 week holiday in India that would take them to Rajasthan's Golden Triangle.  As Leslie is married to a Sindhi named Sunil whose family hails from Bombay, she had invited me to dinner at their place so that I would have the opportunity to meet them.
     For my part, I offered them a walking tour of downtown Bombay and, surprisingly, although I was afraid they would be plagued by jet lag, they took me up on it.  In fact, they had spent the morning shopping at The Bombay Store and other places, had nipped back home for lunch and had then come to our appointed spot. I nipped into a cafe called Marvins to pick up a Dutch Chocolate Truffle Cake for our dessert later that evening and then left it in the car. Because, yes, they had a car and a driver at their disposal and Pandey, was hugely astonished, when I told him to make himself scarce as we would be going on a walking tour of the city and would meet him two and half hours later at the Gateway of India!

On A Walking Tour of Downton Bombay:
     So here is where we went on our walking tour and here is what I introduced them to:
1. Eros Theater and the grand Art Deco architecture of the area--this included the theater itself and the buildings along Dinshaw Vacha Road leading from the Eros to the Cooperage alongside the Oval Maidan.
2. Oval Maidan.  We crossed the Oval Maidan on foot and I told them about the Eucharistic Congress of 1964 that was held there. We dodged enthusiastic batsmen as they wielded their willows in the many teams of cricketers who have used this maidan as a 'green' for decades.
3. Campus and Library of the University of Bombay. Alas, the vigilant watchmen at the gates of the University of Bombay did not allow us to go inside. They said that it was strictly for students with ID cards.  Thank goodness I was able to go in, a few weeks ago, to admire the grand architecture of one of my favorite Victorian architects, Sir George Gilbert Scott, who designed the fabulous library and the Rajabai Clock Tower.  
4. Convocation Hall. Designed by F.D. Wittets, this grand cathedral-like building, another example of Victorian Gothic architecture like the Bombay High Court Buildings that flank it, was where I received my Bachelor's degree, many moons ago. We paused to examine the details that reminded Bev of the French chateaux of the Loire Valley in France and, for the first time, I realized that the spiral staircase of the library building is, in fact, very similar to the spiral staircase in Chambord Castle that I had visited only a couple of years ago! It takes fresh eyes...
5. Bombay High Court. Next, we walked in the narrow lane between the Bombay High Court and the Esplanade Mansion which once housed the grand Walton Hotel and which is now in a very sorry state of disrepair following the collapse of one of its wings.  I hope that a thorough refurbishment will be carried out to restore it to its original glory.
6. Elphinstone College.  This lane led us to my own beloved alma mater, the oldest institution of higher education in the city, which began its life as a school in 1824 and joined the university of Bombay in 1860.  Designed in quadrangular fashion like the finest Gothic colleges of Oxford and Cambridge, I explained that the archives of the City of Bombay are held in this building. This includes the oldest documents pertaining to the East India Company's acquisition of the seven islands of Bombay. The alumni list reads like a Who's Who of the Independence Movement for it was once one of the best Liberal Arts institutions in the country.
7. The David Sassoon Library and Reading Room:  As my friend Leslie is a librarian (at our beloved Pequot Library in Southport, Connecticut) and was newly converted to Judaism, I was keen to introduce her to the most illustrious Jew who hailed from the city of Bombay, David Sassoon. However, although we discreetly found seats in the entry foyer of the building (a long way from the reception counter or the staircase leading upstairs), we were shooed off very unceremoniously, by a guard first and then by a female member. Again, I am so pleased that I was given permission to explore when I was alone, three weeks ago. At that time, I had the chance to go up to the library and take pictures at will and although I was not allowed to sit down, I certainly was allowed to have a wander.  I do believe it is a pity that such architectural gems of the city of Bombay are kept out of bounds of visitors who thrill in the history of such buildings...but who am I to argue with protocol?
8. The Former Army and Navy Building. Next, we visited another architectural gem next door to the David Sassoon Library--the Army and Navy Building.  The building was erected in 1897 and was used to stock army and navy surplus which British colonials, posted in Bombay, could purchase--hence the  name of the building as it housed the Army and Navy Stores.  Together with a similar building called Whiteaway Laidlaws, in which my Aunt Alice had worked before marriage, and which functioned as a department store for those colonials with slimmer wallets, this one was for the upper crust. Today, it houses an upscale department store called Westside. Bev needed the rest room and Les needed a drink and so we found our way to the cafe upstairs where I had a Thums Up and they had chilled bottles of water. About twenty minutes later, we resumed our walk.
9. Kala Ghoda. We talked about the ugly black statue of the horse that stands in a prominent traffic island that replaced the equestrian one of Edward, Prince of Wales, Victoria's eldest son, that was installed in 1879 and removed in 1965. I told them that it gives its name to the neighborhood and is now famed for a festival of arts and crafts held every winter in the city.
10. Jehangir Art Gallery: The Jehangir Art Gallery provided a good spot at which to stand to take pictures of ourselves with the grand facade of Elphinstone College in the background. I pointed out to them the classrooms in which my own undergraduate and graduate degree classes were held.
11. The Prince of Wales Museum. Just along the sidewalk is the main gate to what used to be known as the Prince of Wales Museum or, when I was a child, simply 'The Museum'. Named for the same Prince of Wales who became King Edward VII, it has since been renamed for Shivaji who is Maharashtra's best-known hero. The building, designed in Indo-Saracenic style, reminiscent of Islamic architecture with its glorious dome and twin side domes was what I glimpsed when I took French classes at Elphinstone as an undergraduate. I with I had been more appreciative then of the august views with which my college had been surrounded. It was already past  6.00 pm then and visitors were emerging from the museum to go home. Bev said that she is keen to see the inside of it and the sisters planned to return in the next couple of days before they fly to Delhi.
12. The CJ Hall (Now the National Gallery of Modern Art). I pointed out the building that was once the Royal Institute of Science and that functioned as the Science wing of Elphinstone College. I told them that it was converted into a museum to display contemporary Indian art only very recently.
13. Regal Cinema.  Crossing the crazy intersection from where many streets radiated, we arrived at Regal Cinema, also built in Art Deco style and, fortunately, still in business to screen films (unlike Eros which has closed down, for lack of business, and is all boarded up).
14. Dhanraj Mahal. We walked past more Victorian Gothic buildings in black stone with grey highlights to arrive at a stately building called Dhanraj Mahal where I had studied French at the Alliance Francaise de Bombay, many decades ago. Today, it houses a bunch of upscale boutiques and the showroom of the Bentley car company.
15. The Yacht Club. Across the street, I pointed out the Yacht Club which is a private club today but was once the haunt of colonial officers who were also sailing afficionados--hence the name. I also pointed out the nautical motifs used to decorate the foyer.
16. The Gateway of India. The piece de resistance of our walk was the Gateway of India. By the time we arrived there at 6.30 pm, the monument had been beautifully illuminated and shone in changing colors. It was packed to capacity with thousands of Indian tourists who arrive there in great bus loads. I told them that it had been erected to commemorate the visit of their majesties, King George V (Edward's son) and his consort Queen Mary, to India in 1911 to attend the Delhi Durbar and that it served as the monument through which they literally entered India after alighting from their luxurious vessel.  Modeled on the lines of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris or the Washington Monument in New York City, it follows the design of the Greek ceremonial arch.
17. The Taj Mahal Hotel. Of course, I could not leave the area without pointing out the best-known and most iconic hotel in India--the Taj Mahal Hotel of Bombay that was built by Jamshedji Tata because he was turned out of the Walton Hotel for having the wrong skin color.  He, therefore, resolved to build a far grander hotel in which everyone would be welcomed. The result was the hotel, completed in 1908, with its gorgeous dome and its luxurious appointments. The Taj Inter-Continental Hotel is its newer twin.

Off for Dinner:
     We were right on track for it was exactly 6.30 pm when we spotted Pandey who had brought the car round for us as instructed.  We piled into the cool air-conditioned interior and made our way to Leslie's husband Sunil's mother's place on Napean Sea Road which we reached on our drive past the gorgeous Queen's Necklace of Marine Drive to arrive at the swankiest real estate pockets of South Bombay.
     In a really fabulous apartment that was decorated better than many five-star hotels, I met Leslie's married family members--her mother-in-law and her brother-in-law Narain. In-between we were treated to glimpses of little people--grand children and more relatives. Narain's daughter Aradhana also joined us. Sadly, Narain's wife, Nina, is in the States and was sorely missed; but we hope to hook up again when she is present.
     It was at this point that Leslie handed me the items from the States that Llew had passed on to her to carry for me--my supplies of decaf beverages--tea and coffee--because they are not available in India. She also sought me a spare pair of clip-on sunglasses and Tarn-X, the silver polish that I require to keep my sterling silver tea set that I use daily in sparkling condition. You will be shocked to see what a number the salt sea air of Bandra has done to it! To thank Leslie for doing me such a great favor, I presented her with a bracelet that I hope she will enjoy using.
     We made ourselves comfortable with drinks--a gin and tonic for me and gin and vodka for them and the most delicious nibbles: cheese tikkis and chicken kebabs. On the dining table which had a lovely Lazy Susan, were piled even more delicacies: hot rotis fresh off the tava, dahi vadas, chicken tikka masala, a roasted noodle salad with peanuts, more chicken kebabs. There was so much to eat that I felt full merely looking at the spread.  Needless to say, everything was scrumptious. For dessert, there was my Dutch Chocolate Truffle Cake and Kulfi served with rabri! How decadent could you get???
     Conversation flowed around the table and spilled over late into the night. It was about 10.45 pm when I said I would need to leave.  Narain hospitably insisted on putting me into an Uber on his account even though I had the app on my own phone.  He also tracked my progress very diligently back to Bandra and called me at the end of my journey to make sure I was safely home.
     I had the most amazing day.  This is truly the sort of day that is exactly my cup of tea--a grand romp in some of my favorite parts of this magnificent city and a really good meal in stimulating company.
       Once again, as I fell asleep, I felt as if I have truly lucked out in the kinds of friends I am making in Bombay and the manner in which they are welcoming me into their midst.
     It was about midnight when I washed, brushed and flossed my teeth and fell asleep.
     Until tomorrow...