Day 2 in Mumbai.
Woke up around 7:00 AM in order to catch the ferry to
Elephanta Island. No; there are no elephants on Elephanta Island. All three of us asked Dada the same question. The name came from the Portuguese when they found an elephant structure around the 18th century upon arrival. Said structure is now on display somewhere in Mumbai.
Now, the main grab of the popular tourist attraction is the cave temple(s) built to honour Lord Shiva, the Destroyer. So, after one extremely shaky and seasick-inducing ferry ride, we finally reached the island.
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| So tranquil. Besides the roaring tourism. |
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| A happy(?) family. |
The first thing I did in a car when I touched down in India was search for monkeys. Besides the dead one we found during our morning hike, Elephanta Island was the first spot where we saw live ones. Actually, we saw at least a hundred of them. Notorious for stealing from shopkeepers and tourists alike on the island, we were told to steer clear from all monkeys. That, and numerous dark red spots all over their body that led me to believe that getting bitten would be a bad idea. Funny story: a few years back one girl from CFHI had her purse (with her passport within) stolen by one of them.
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| The 120-some steps leading up to the cave temples. |
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| The caves. A lot more impressive in person. |
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| One of the numerous sculptures found inside. |
These were the first ruins I have ever visited. Quite impressive!!!
Alas, after that our trip in Mumbai came to an end. We picked up some Starbucks (Yes, that is everywhere) and started on the long road home.
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