Mumbai, India

Still alive and well in Mumbai...I have been been so fortunate in having a friend here in the city to spend time with and and I could not be happier that the experiences I am having are not like any that a tourist would have here. To be able to go into people's homes and see how they live and eat a home-cooked Indian meal, to meet the friends of my friend and sit around drinking beers, listening to what they talk about and to have an intimate peek into their lives is so different from just walking around looking at touristy sights that lonely planet tells me to see. Hanging out with locals away from the tourist district has been interesting because there is always staring, even more so than when I am alone. I thought I would have gotten used to the staring after two weeks in Burma last year, but I don't think it is something I will ever get used to and unfortunately the only way I can handle it is to look down all the time. Just imagine walking into a crowded restaurant and having every pair of eyes look up at you, not just for a second, but for a long time. And it is not just that I am the only white-skinned blonde, it seems that I am usually the only female in any restaurant or drinking establishment in the evening. Locals crane their necks on the sidewalk, peek into the cab that I am riding in, follow me for a few blocks while I walk around, so much staring- sometimes I just laugh and sometimes I am just uncomfortable, sometimes I stare back. People here love my camera too. I rarely walk around with it around my neck, but when I do everyone wants me to take a picture of them, which isn't a bad thing. Sometimes they are doing it because they want money, but mostly they just like seeing the image of themselves after I take the picture. The tables turned on me yesterday though, when I was at the Gateway to India, which is just a big stone arch-like structure that is more of an attraction for Indians than foreigners. I was snapping a few shots and then some brave teen-aged boys asked to take my picture with their cell phones, which turned into a 10 minute photo shoot as they all started taking turns posing with me in front of the monument.
I got my third rabies shot yesterday, I think I have one more to go. This time I actually went to a hospital to get the shot. This hospital was nothing fancy or pristine and certainly not very sterile looking, but having to get these shots has been fun because it gives me something new to experience and see. First we inquired at the help desk and she sent us to the pharmacy. The pharmacy said I needed a prescription which was frustrating because I have never needed one before, so we went and talked to a nurse around the corner who just wrote down the dates I got my previous shots and then we took that back to the pharmacy. The pharmacy took my age and name and then printed out a kind of bill or invoice and I had to take that across the hall to the "bank" where I paid my bill. With the receipt, I went back to the pharmacy and got the vaccine and then walked over to the emergency room area- nothing like back home, mind you- and my friend asked one of the nurses if one of them could give me the injection. So a nurse who wasn't busy had me follow her to a room just up the hallway- hospital bed with a filthy cover, old curtain, bars on the window, rusty sink, no one wears medical gloves....All the nurses wear a white hat, white dresses, white stockings and white shoes. She at least disinfected the area of my arm where she gave me the shot and then she stabbed me and that was that. No actual charge for the injection- just the medicine. Anyway, I plan on being in Mumbai for a bit longer and look forward to spending my time as though I live here. I do plan to take a ride on the train that bisects the city just for some pictures and people watching, peeking at some of the slums along the way. I keep forgetting that it is December with the hot weather and since I never know what day it is, I am afraid I will completely forget about Christmas what with the lack of ANY Christmas decorations here. very different.