Did a few walks on my own during my staying in Mumbai. Situation on the streets reminds me a lot of the Philippines, so many things happening at the same time, all these small stores selling everything and anything, garbage here and there, people everywhere, lots of noise, horns, traffic... but there is one thing unique here, the cows! They are everywhere and not to be disturbed since they are considered sacred in Hinduism. Although prevention of killing of cattle is mentioned in the Indian constitution, the real penalty for killing a cow depends on the laws of each particular state, in some extreme cases it can even be life imprisonment (for example in the state of Gujarat)!
Just another corner in the neighborhood. Cows chilling, chickens running and clothes hanged to dry.
This piece of land was full of garbage and had a distinct smell. Crows were scavenging the garbage bins, a dog was taking a rest and a guy was taking a piss.
The interesting part was that sign on the premises which read: "This property is in the possession of The Court Receiver High Court Bombay" (??)
School graffiti. As I continued walking at some point passed by a school, it was a small building with a few rooms, an elementary school. At first a teacher noticed while teaching and then the kids started coming out to check me out and greet me. After a few smiles I left as not to disturb the lesson.
A bit later I reached a viewpoint. The ground was sand, a few skinny cows were chilling and a kid was walking around being curious.
A guy on the palm tree cutting and fixing, he had tied himself and his legs with some kind of rope and that was it, so high above the ground! No security measures no nothing!
Going through one of the slums, a bunch of kids noticed me, when they saw me I smiled, they smiled back and joined them for a chat. One of them spoke good English and worked as the translator. They asked me the usual, where I'm from, my name and stuff, if I like India. I told them I'm half Philippino so all these are not entirely new to me. They were making jokes to each other about having many mothers and fathers. In the end they also joked about a kid being gay. Laughing a lot they made sure that I knew it was a joke. They asked me if I had any US dollars, they wanted to see. My instincts immediately said "sorry I don't have with me", but I showed them one of my lucky euro coins which I have found on the streets in the very past and carry with me as a lucky charm. They were so fascinated and even though it was my lucky one I wanted to give it to them, they politely declined, they just wanted to see it. Then I felt so bad for not letting them see a US$, since I had some with me. In the end I asked if I can take them a photo. The English speaker told me it was alright, and added that he hoped I will not go back to my friends with that photo and laugh and say "look at these poor Indians"... his comment really broke my heart, couldn't imagine what kind of treatment all these people get from the rich tourists who came there being exposed to dirt and poverty and taking photos of the slums... I assured them that its definitely not the case and told them that they are not poor because they have a big smile and good energy so they are rich in the heart. They were happy and they posed for one shot, big smiles. So many things that you learn in India just by strolling around...
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