Maharashtra
If you live in Maharashtra, the gigantic state of Western India, you are blessed. You will never run out of places to visit in Maharashtra. Maharashtra is a traveller's paradise when it comes to monsoon. Bhandardara, Satara, Lonavla are some of the places to visit in Maharashtra in monsoon months. The state is spectacular with its clean beaches and mesmerizing greenery during monsoon months. The city of Mumbai is no doubt the most popular city of the state closely followed by Pune. Maharashtra is home to hundreds of forts and set of caves. If you are in love with history, Maharashtra has a lot to offer.
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A Shorewalk at the coast of Haji Ali Dargah, Mumbai
On a Friday morning we reach the gates of Haji Ali Dargah, a mosque located on an islet off the neighbourhood of Worli. The mosque is connected with the coast by a causeway. The path is accessible only during low tide. The rocky coast around the mosque is home to marine flora and fauna. The coast shines in all its glory during low tides when the water recedes. It is low tide now and we are here to discover the treasures hidden inside the niches and crevices of the boulders. Tides and Intertidal zones The experts from Marine Life of Mumbai have arranged this guided shorewalk free of cost. Before…
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An Indonesian food festival in Mumbai
The embassy of Indonesia in Mumbai is in Altamount Road in the Cumballa Hill area. The embassy arranges an Indonesian bazaar once in every 3-4 months for a day from 10.30 AM to around 5PM. In the yard of the embassy Indonesian craft items and food are sold from temporary stalls. Extremely interested in the food, we show up at one such bazaar in the month of March. The foodie vibe at the embassy of Indonesia in Mumbai The market can be attended by everyone but we are shocked that there is no frisking or even ID card checking at the entrance gates. We reach at 2 PM and by…
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A Heritage Walk Inside BMC Headquarters in Mumbai
On an exceptionally pleasant winter day in Mumbai, we go on a walking tour of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation(BMC) building at the Fort area in Mumbai. It was designed by Frederick William Stevens and is built in Venetian Gothic and Indo-Saracenic styles. The building stands bang opposite the UNESCO World Heritage site of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus(previously known as Victoria Terminus), an operational railway station in Mumbai. The front yard of the BMC building has a viewing deck where general public are permitted to visit and take photos of the exterior. However, entry inside the building has restrictions. It is accessible only by signing up for the “Urbs Prima Tour”…
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Walking through Worli fishing village in Mumbai
On a Sunday morning, we are in Worli, a neighbourhood in Mumbai, for a guided walk through Worli Koliwada. The Kolis are the aboriginal inhabitants of Mumbai. Traditionally, they have been associated with catching fish from the sea and selling them. Koliwada is the place or neighbourhood where the Kolis live in a tight knit community and conduct their business. History of Mumbai and Koliwadas Mumbai used to be an archipelago of 7 islands— Colaba, Little Colaba, Bombay, Mazgaon, Parel, Mahim and Worli. Mangroves and marshes made up their ecology. The Kolis have lived on these individual islands since time immemorial. The islands were ruled by several Indian dynasties before…
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A walk in the Dadar Parsi Colony in Mumbai
A yellow carpet graces the tree-shaded broad road. The copper pods have shed their flowers. The bungalows on both sides of this road are old, not more than three storeys high, and they ooze with character. Elements of Neo Classical and Art Deco architecture styles with rounded corners feature in all these houses. The recurrence of the Zoroastrian symbol of Faravahar— a bearded man standing on a pair of wings with one hand reaching forward— makes it obvious: I am in the Dadar Parsi Colony in Mumbai. Who are the Parsis The Zoroastrians are followers of the ancient Iranian prophet Zoroaster. They worship the deity, Ahura Mazda. The faith is…
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The Van Gogh 360 Experience in Mumbai
Vincent Van Gogh is a famous post-impressionist painter from Netherlands who lived a very short life from 1853 to 1890. He created many masterpieces in a short span of just 10 years. Van Gogh 360 Experience is an exhibition where the work of Vincent Van Gogh is projected on all four walls and the floor of a giant enclosure. It is called an immersive painting experience as the admirer might feel they are living inside the painting. It evokes a surreal and beautiful dimension. We had seen a photo of the exhibition for the first time on the feed of a friend who lives in New York. That is how…
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A ghostly way of exploring Girgaon in Mumbai
On a Saturday night in January, we wait in front of the gates of Saifee Hospital at Charni Road in Mumbai. We are here for the “Grisly Girgaon Ghostwalk” conducted by Khaki Tour. It is a walking tour that is supposed to take us through the nooks and corners of Girgaon that has a dark past (and sometimes present). I want to know Mumbai beyond its skyscrapers— I want to know the wadis and chawls. I do not mind the spooky theme. Once the walk starts, the guide very clearly conveys to us “please do not expect a ghost in white saree who will do wyaaaaaa” (his actual words 😀…
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Offbeat Mumbai: A shorewalk in Juhu
It is breezy on the beach. Everyone in my group is peeking at the catch the fishermen have caught. I walk fast, trying not to miss it. But before I reach, I see they spring off to another spot and gather in a semicircle. At the centre of the semicircle is a hook-nosed sea snake! It is moving at a very slow pace on the sand. I am on my first shorewalk in Juhu with the Marine Life of Mumbai (MLoM), and my day is already made. Shorewalks are intertidal walks that are conducted in shallow tide pools during low tide. I came across Marine Life of Mumbai on a…
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A historical walk at Sassoon Dock of Mumbai
At 7.45 AM sharp we gather by the double gate clock tower, the entrance to Sassoon Dock. Once everyone arrives, our guide leads the way. Sassoon Dock stands in Colaba, South Bombay. It is a wet dock and currently it is used as a nerve-centre of the fishery business. This is where fishermen land their boat with catches and auctioneers conduct auctions for both international and domestic markets. On our walk, the story starts with how the island of Bombay was given as dowry to Charles II(1660-85) when he married Catherine of Braganza in 1662. This is how Bombay came to be controlled by the East India Company. The Sassoon…
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Offbeat Monsoon Getaways from Mumbai
International tourists often freak out at the thought of touring India in monsoon. A few years ago, even I was in the same boat. Monsoon was a time to lay low under the soothing shelter of my home. All this changed in 2017 when I decided to deviate from the mainstream tourist trails and explore the unexplored. Mission monsoon in Maharashtra was undertaken and I found myself falling in love more and more with Maharashtrian countryside. Bari Village This quiet village happens to be the base village of Kalsubai trek, the highest point of Maharashtra. Bari is frequented by trekkers only in the weekend or during holiday. The rest of…
