So far, so great

Confession: I almost went to see the new James Bond movie this evening. I didn't even realize it had been released until I was on the plane last night. The Qatar Airways magazine had a few articles on the movie. Then this evening I was walking back to my hostel and went by a movie theater. Movies are only Rs70 (Rs = rupees). The exchange hovers around US$1 = Rs45 (today I saw it for Rs49), so that's less than two dollars. But alas, they are just showing it once a day (2pm) and I had missed the showing by about 4 hours. There is much I want to do here in Mumbai (and one more day to do it), but if I need a cool, dark respite tomorrow afternoon, you know where I'll be.....

Speaking of getting news from in-flight magazines, I have had really only two sources of news in recent weeks. The Economist issue with all the election results (the farm was I staying doesn't have internet, but they do get The Economist). That was a nice issue to see. A little funny to think I didn't know Obama won Florida until more than a week after the fact.... I also picked up The Wall Street Journal in the Rome airport on Wednesday. I read it cover to cover. I didn't miss the news the entire time I was in Italy, but then, when it was in front of me, I devoured it. And then I'd had enough.

Sitting in the airport in Rome, a song came on that sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. I had this sudden happy feeling, but something was off... I started thinking it must be a cover of a song I knew. Then the lyrics started and I recognized it: "Singing Sweet Home Alabama All Summer Long." I only heard it once, maybe twice, at home, and I had the same reaction: "hey, I know this song... no wait, no I don't... what is it?" Not as good as the song they pay tribute to, but I enjoyed it, as I munched on my final slice on Italian pizza.

The taxis I mentioned in my earlier post? They are black with yellow roofs. Some are decorated: window stickers or pompons on the back bumper. And apparently there are over 40,000 of them in Mumbai. When I walked out of the airport this morning, I really felt like I had been dropped into some colonial era movie set. I've been paying extra attention crossing streets today (Italy was good practice for that), remembering to look at opposite way! (You drive on the left here... thank the Brits). Best sign I saw today: No Parking - Tyres Will Be Deflated. (Forget towing, they deal with it themselves)

I knew there would be a lot of differences between Italy and India, and they made me extra appreciative of certain little things the last few weeks. Like being able to drink water straight from the tap, or even from public fountains in villages and cities alike. Or eating raw vegetables and fresh salads. I ate a lot of pasta the last few weeks, but fortunately I ate a lot of salad too. Speaking of which, my pack seems to have gained weight-- a fair amount, which is weird. I didn't souvenir shop in Italy, but the few random things I picked up weigh a fair amount. I, on the other hand, don't seem to have gained much weight, if any. I thought I had after a few weeks, but my belt is on the same hole...

One other difference: the language. Thanks to the similarities to English, Spanish (which I don't speak but have been exposed to quite a bit of), and Latin, I could understand a fair amount of Italian, and the key phrases are very manageable. Hindi is another story. A very different story, or rather, a very different language. To say nothing of the 17 squillion other languages spoken here (anybody want to guess the actual number of official languages?). Fortunately, plenty of people here speak English (again, thank the Brits).

For lunch I had veggie samosas, bhaigan bhartha, rice, and a mango lassi. Definitely the best samosas and bhaigan bhartha I have ever had. For Rs105 (remember the conversion rate?). It got me sweating a bit, but then again I was sweating to begin (I think it was 28 degrees Celsius when the plane landed this morning-- that's about 82F, but after the start of winter in Italy, it felt pretty warm). But, it reminded me of an ayurvedic principle: to cool down, one does not have a cool beverage, one has a warm beverage. Having a cool beverage triggers warming mechanisms to bring equilibrium, whereas a warm beverage induces the bodies natural cooling mechanism- in other words, sweat!

Maybe because I am in Mumbai, not Delhi, the touts and street vendors have been much less aggressive than I expected. In fact, they are not pushy at all- a shake of the head, a hand wave, or a smile and clear no are plenty. Most of the areas I walked though today were much less crowded than, say, NYC's Chinatown. And less weird, because the bootleg DVDs were out in the open, but quietly whispered as you passed by. It was weird to be trotted after by a beggar child. I've seen children begging, but this one only came up to my knee. She was with her mother and only stayed with me half a block. I am told that there are plenty of places here in Mumbai that will feed and shelter street kids, but many opt for begging because the money is better.

Speaking of money... I hate feeling like a tourist, and I try not to gawk at people. It's why you won't see many pictures of people on my camera: I don't want them to feel like animals in a zoo, but when you ask permission, the photos are less candid. But here, where I am paying Rs165 (less than US$4) for a hostel with a locker and breakfast included and less than US$2 for lunch.... and the average daily income in Mumbai is only Rs134 (that's under US$3).... and that's three times the national average. Oh, and remember, it's an average.... so for all the people here who make much more than, there are more who make even less. I am curious to know the median income (any of my math rockstars remember the difference and why it would be insightful to know both?). Over 55% of Mumbai's population lives in slums. No conclusions yet, but I'm thinking about it and I expect I'll be sorting this all out for a while.

Oh, and for those begging for photos, I have a new excuse. I got my first wish: internet here is cheaper than Italy. But it is also painfully slow. I think I might break this computer if I hooked my 8GB memory card to it. So, I promise there will be pictures.... eventually!

Hmmm, it is much later than I intended to be up this evening. Apparently jetlag has hit. I am now 10 1/2 hours ahead of EST, and 4 1/2 hours ahead of Italy and my internal clock (love the 1/2 difference), but I have somewhere to be in the morning (gasp! a schedule! actually, I've been getting up between 6:45 and 7:15am almost every day, sometimes even ealier, rarely much later), so I better scoot on out of here and see if I can get some sleep. My morning nap (which I desperately needed) was probably a bit longer prudent.