If you plan to visit the nooks and corners of Bombay and not the usual hangouts, then choose your company well. Good company as in who are ready to hop on to an auto or catch a local train for any distance at any odd hour and travel across the hot sun. For the luxury of a cab lets you to enjoy err only the traffic.
Wait, don’t miss this fun part!
Speaking of company takes me back to my travel time company from Pune where we shared a cab with two loud blonde girls. Blonde, you know what I mean. For the first time I met price-tag talking individuals just like Kareena’s fiance in 3 Idiots. Gosh, such blondes exist! I knew their entire life doings in the short span, but of course only those involving a price tag. I knew one’s bf gifted her an iPhone6, her entire family changed phones to match up, the exact monies the other spent on her birthday treat (a whopping 11k), the exact quantity of drinks that had knocked her down to this and much more. All this live action in 3 hours sure had me by the stomach. Who talks this way! The icing came after they got off and the cabwala when we were thanking him at the end mockingly told us, “Tum log acche the, who dono toh pakaa rahe the”! S and I were rolling with laughter thereafter.
Coming back to my Day 2 of visit!
Thebroma English breakfast- Avoid the closed plate click:P
It started on a high calorie note, sans any regrets! 😛 A Theobroma English breakfast. Theobroma, Powai I knew had the best brownies, before I had a sumptuous taste into this too. It’s the perfect Sunday breakfast recommended to all (see pic below). They have a variety of cakes and is packed on most days. What also got my attention was their nicely written Menu card that invited you to try their delicacies. Inviting enough that I couldn’t stop googling who their brand agency was!
Tea-sets and beautiful brass crockery
Mumtaz adorned the walls of some fan perhaps:)
Stomachs sorted, we were next looking for furniture shopping and headed to Jogeshwari. Now Pune has some good places but Bombay I discover is known for its antique furniture market- the Oshiwara market at Jogeswari being one of them. That was our next stop shop.
These show-pieces ranged across centuries and was fabulous to be seeing them in real
I came across rows of second hand best of quality wooden furniture. This furniture is usually sourced from old Mumbai mansions, h avelis or palaces. What surprised me was to see some amazing antique shops that housed artifacts like picturesque paintings, brass & bronze crockery, pendulum clocks, colourful lamp-shades and much more. Curiosity to ask the owner let me know that some dated as old as 15th century and could be priced to almost up to a lac! I ain’t any collector but was already mesmerized by its presence.
Lights and chandeliers
Morning came to an end and the evening was savoured for the best, a play at NCPA, Nariman Point. Theatre scene in Mumbai is huge. You will find a variety of theater artists including quite many side actors from movies portraying some fine acting in these plays some running full house till date.
NCPA Experimental theatre (Pic Courtesy – website)
I discovered my love for theatre after seeing my first one called Hamlet (a funny adaptation of Shakepeares play) at Prithvi theatre, Mumbai. Prithvi café inside, I have heard is famous and an adda for artists discussing art over a cuppa coffee. This NCPA play at the experimental theatre was ok and featured the Nescafe ad guy who stammers. (P.S-These actors are real short in real-life) But NCPA has amazing cold coffee and sandwiches. Don’t miss that. If art & architecture enamor you, then this place creates that aura and will have you looking around its British architecture and admiring its maganmity.
Mumbai trip is incomplete without a trip to Causeway at Colaba and a stroll near Gateway of India. Go past Bade-Miyan that is crowded as ever and walk over for some lip-smacking chicken rolls outside Gokuls– a shadier but jam-packed hangout of Toons in Mumbai. That was my last and final pit-stop.
Till the next time, I had a last look at the enticing sea waters at the Gateway of India that have this magical power to enchant you saying come visit me once more will you!
My Story trails 