After a 26 hour train ride crossing India East to West, we arrive in Mumbai. the largest city of the country with its 16 million residents. Here, be ready for some action: with its 40 000 taxis in downtown and its 120 000 tuk-tuks in the suburbs, Mumbai growls day and night in a chaotic lifestyle. Open your eyes and let them explore the fascinating change of the castes: from the orphans playing by their slums on the side tracks of the train to the wealthy business man working to perform in his real estates.

We walk in the streets of Colaba to find some corner restaurants filled with tourists, both Westerners and South Indians. In the streets, very young and skinny children tap on your leg to beg you for some rice. ”No money. Just rice please”. How can you resist. Dinner left-overs are gently put beside their sleeping bodies, at the end of the night. Some very young ladies come with a tiny doll in their arms, asking you for some milk. You don’t quite understand why they show you a doll. after you realize that this miniature creature is actually a real baby.

We took the opportunity of being in a big city to loosen up and enjoy the attractions. Walks in the streets, shopping at the multiple stands along the sidewalks, we even spent a day at the largest water park in Asia, the Water Kingdom of Mumbai (which was soooo busy but lots of fun. For the ladies, you must cover yourselfbywearinglong sleeve shirts and long tights, a very different thing for us, butwe sure indeed do it). At night, we cruise along the streets, finding a nice place to eat. Jess and I got approached by an agent offering us to be part of a Bollywood movie. A tempting invitation that we eventually turn away, deciding that a nice dinner between friends with some good seafood and cheap wines was what we needed. 

A couple days seem enough in the big city. We pack our bags and leave towards the beaches of Goa.