This post is a continuation of my travel series “Beauties of Mumbai & Ahmedabad”.
I hope you’ve read my previous post, if not please find the links below….
Part1, Part2, Part3, Part4, Part5, Part6, Part7 and Part8
We were back to Mumbai once again and were only left with approximately 2 days to explore. As we reached Mumbai by noon, we had pretty much half a day left to our-selves on that day…So, to start with…D and I planned to visit Sidhivinayak temple. We had our breakfast in the train and were not feeling hungry, so settled for a light snack (Panipuri) and started our day…
Sidhivinayak temple:
Temple was calm and peaceful contrary to our belief! We always heard a lot in news about many celeb’s and noted TV personalities paying a visit to that temple and offer their prayers, hence, our first instinct was “It is going to take a hell lot of time for darshan, as it will be crowded!” But it was not the case on our visit Thankfully! Our speculations before our visit didn’t come true and on the contrary, we did not face any inconvenience and had a pleasant darshan. Seemed to be our lucky day indeed!!! Even sat in the premises for couple of minutes before we took off from there…!
That time, when we crossed the path with a delicacy..!
From the temple we headed towards Lokmanya Tilak Marg, in-quest of a shop which was suggested by one of D’s friend from college. After spending more than an hour strolling around and failing, we finally gave up the search and decided to head back to the Hotel…It was then we found this street vendor selling scrumptious Malai!
Fashion Street:
Our next stop was “Fashion Street”. Well Girls and shopping are like opposite sides of a magnet! We spent more than 2 hours there doing window shopping (Guess we even purchased some stuff. I hardly remember what!) and then returned back to our stay which was an IRCTC Accommodation.
Accommodation was not the best but it was manageable! D and I gave least importance to comfort, so we didn’t think of it much as we were about to spend only a night there. It was value for money for us!
We had our dinner at local restaurant near-by and as we returned…a sudden plan surfaced among us…which was….to visit Chowpatty beach at midnight !
Chowpatty Beach:
So that was it!…D’s friends also accompanied us and we headed to Chowpatty beach at midnight! As we reached there, a man approached us and offered us a mat for 10/- , We just had to pay him and use the mat to sit on and leave it behind as it is, when we leave from there…Concept sounded simple and was basically fulfilling our need so, we took it.
We sat there for an hour enjoying the cool breeze and the sounds made by the ocean acted like a calming agent…
Next Day….
Lonavla-Khandala:
Right from the start, I was against this plan of covering those places, instead I wanted to cover Elephanta caves! In spite of my repeated attempts to change the course of our plan we ended up going to Lonavla and Khandala. As I expected, being off season…all the streams and waterfalls dried up and there wasn’t even much of greenery…most of the landscapes were dried out. Also, it was sultry and scorching…Hot as mercury!
My skin is not resistant to hot climates and I tend to develop sun burns very easily, if I do not carry sun screen when I am out in hot conditions! And as it happens, in a hurry to reach the station on time, I forgot to carry my sun screen..!
As we reached and witnessed the climate over there, which was fuming hot….I was left to make a decision, either to buckle up my courage and proceed…or…wait at the Bus-station for them to return, which was comparatively comfortable option when compared to bearing sun burns…!
I decided on the latter and went ahead with everyone! Little did I know then that, this decision of mine would end up effecting my health!
We booked a vehicle and started off…
After spending an hour visiting one place after the other in that hot sun, I succumbed to dehydration and spent rest of the time in the vehicle resting, while D and her friends carried on. Guess the photos below by D and I will some up everything…
In return we had no option but to return by Bus…It was indeed very tiresome and exhausting, as I was already not well! It was only after consuming literally 3 liters of water during our way back, that, I felt normal by the time we were back to Mumbai!
Gateway of India:
D and I wanted to pay one last visit to Gateway of India and witness the beautiful structure amidst lights! So once we were back, rested for an hour and headed to Gateway of India…And My goodness! It was extraordinary and the structure looked even more beautiful at night!
Even the “Chatrapati Shivaji Railway Station” looked stunning at night!
Below is the slide show of images….
We were back to our rooms at Mumbai central by 9 Pm. After check-out, we had our dinner at a nearby udipi hotel and started off to “Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport” at around 10:30 Pm…
Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport:
We reached the airport in an hour and were left in Awww! Mumbai Airport was stunning and as we had a lot of time before boarding our flight, which was scheduled at 3:45 Am…We utilized that time in exploring the airport and as per wish of D, we checked into Starbucks outlet…
Time passed as a flick and in no time we were standing in the queue for boarding and then settled in our seats waiting for the take-off!
“Our Journey came to an end…!” D and I sighed in relief, on being able to complete our first, together yet Solo trip successfully by facing all the odds that came our way…!
Today’s prompt for Problogger Challenge reminded me of the time when we were stressed out and scared to take that step of travelling on our own!
You can choose courage or you can choose comfort [but] you cannot have both.
– Brene Brown
We gave a lot of thought to it….but didn’t choose comfort of staying at home and put out that first step gathering all the courage we had…as it was like “now or never!” situation…
As the flight took off we slowly drifted to sleep thinking of all those memorable moments of our trip…!
*Did I forget to mention that, breakfast was included in ticket of our Jet airways flight! It was an added bonus…! 😛 Who wouldn’t love those free meals in flight BTW?!?!
Signing off our Trip to Mumbai and Ahmedabad…
Keerthi Vydyula
You can read the previous posts here:
Trivial Adventure #SiblingDiaries Part1
Peaceful Morning #SiblingDiaries Part2
Celestial Vibes #SiblingDiaries Part3
Impeccable Structure #SiblingDiaries Part4
Troublesome First Day #SiblingDiaries Part5
Rebounding from Setbacks! #SiblingDiaries Part6
Those memorable days! #SiblingDiaries Part7
Train Reached The Terminal #SiblingDiaries Part8
I AM TAKING PART IN THE WRITE TRIBE PROBLOGGER OCTOBER 2017 BLOGGING CHALLENGE.
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Yes it was brave if you to travel solo and indeed you gained a lot. I love your narrative and your photos particularly the slide shows. Happy Diwali and happy travels .
Thanks a lot sunita for ur kind words. Yes indeed learned a lot from my first travel and even my confidence boosted ?
happy diwali to u and your family.
Having lived in Mumbai for 10 years, I know it’s relatively safe to travel alone, but it can be intimidating for us Hyderabadi girls! 😉
Hehe hailing from hyderabad i feel lot comfortable when i roam around here, even at late night. But yeah travelling was a different experience all together. Thought i wanted to travel alone, a kind of pull was stopping me for years but i am glad i broke that stigma and moved forward 🙂
Mumbai is Beautiful ??you explained well
Thanks a lot ?
Looks like you did everything that is on list of tourist in Mumbai! Great narratives, Kirthi!
Nah Arv missed out on elephanta caves! Guess its for another trip 🙂
Thanks a lot Arv.
It happens, Keerthi…unless you are traveling alone and can dictate your agendas! 🙂
ha ha true!
🙂
I look forward to your travelogue posts, not for the descriptions, but for your clicks. 🙂 esp. the nature ones. there were a few here too. a park, and a lake… (and also, later on, a cake). 😀
hehe thanks a lot vinay for showing so much love 🙂
I love the way you have been describing the good, the bad and the ugly in your posts yet taking it all in your stride and never once complaining! You sound like the perfect travel companion and I hope you and your sis get to have many such trips together – I cant remember the last time me and my kid sis went on a trip now that she has been married for 6 years 🙂
Hehe I hope i am a good travel companion! Yeah we had been on another trip after that (Bhubaneshwar and Puri) will post about that soon!
Thanks a lot shalzz for showing love 🙂
Nice anecdote, Keethi. Felt as if I was in all the places. Mumbai is one place I’d love to visit someday. The pictures tell a lot of stories as well!
Thanks a lot for your kind words Sreedeep 🙂
Nominated you for an award pls check
https://muddymarbles.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/the-mystery-blogger-award/
where do i ask these questions Ravi? Sry but i am a bit confused soul when it comes to rules can u DM me on twitter? Just not clear about how it works…
Sure. Whats ur twitter id
@Keerthi_Vydyula
Beautiful pictures and wonderful description of the places . I loved reading this travelogue as you wrote about my hometown and my current city of residence. Love your photography
This compliment means a lot Aesha! Thanks a lot for showing such love 🙂
I’m a Delhi ite and I admit I don’t feel safe at all!
I have heard Mumbai is so safe even at 2 am it’s normal for a woman to be on the streets!
I’m not sure if I agree with the fact of comfort and courage can’t coexist! Maybe it can! 🙂
Yeah may be and may be not! In our case we ditched comfort though 😛
Thanks a lot for stopping by Zainab!
I love your travel diary! And you’ve made me nostalgic about Bombay now…. Brilliant pics btw 🙂
Aww! Thanks a lot Bhavya 🙂 Hope i brought back some wonderful memories through my posts!
Have been a Mumbaiite for long years.. I guess it’s safe here than most places to travel alone. Looking at Mumbai thru your eyes was a treat .. fashion street used to be a craze in our hey days.. now with time i have outgrown it though..
Yeah we did not face any difficulty during our stay there, had a peaceful trip 🙂 Thanks a lot for stopping by.
So glad you and your sis took this brave step of solo travel- the pics are evidence enough of the fun you had and the lessons you learnt!
Indeed Aks! Thanks a lot for stopping by 🙂
From Ahmedabad (my home town) to Mumbai (where I now have settled) you have taken this series very well and I can so relate 🙂
Thanks a lot Ashwini…Wasn’t possible without the love i received from all of you…which encouraged me to write! 🙂
Ooh..aamchi Mumbai. Your pics are so lovely. Glad you could experience Chowpatty at night. Sometimes, it’s definitely better to opt for comfort over courage. ?
yeah…So true! Thanks a lot for showing love 🙂
I’ve lived in Mumbai all my life and never eaten malai from a street vendor!! I guess I need to head to the town side more often. By the way your photos of Lonavla and Victoria Terminus are stunning!
Thanks a lot Mahak 🙂
Amazing… As always a great post and took me to my trip to Mumbai. You people have covered important places in Mumbai. Next time if you are going to Mumbai do plan for Elephanta Caves and Gorai Beach… Lovely places!!
Yeah Sham…Elephanta caves was in our list but we couldn’t manage then…For sure will plan for my next visit!
Thanks a lot for stopping by 🙂
I have been to Mumbai for about 2 days and hardly saw any famous places. This post was like a quick trip <3
Thanks a lot Anjana 🙂
Ah, the Siddhivinayak temple – my favourite haunt in Mumbai. Nice write!
Thanks a lot Lavanya 🙂