yeh hai mumbai meri jaan!

i needed to get out of dubai for a little bit. to miss it. to appreciate it. to not hate is so much. a little breath of fresh air - well in this case, not fresh but new. to get away from the streets and the people and the decision making!
so i took a little 'on the spur of the moment' trip. to mumbai. after 10 long years, i went.
it was an awesome trip!

all the way on the flight, i was a little iffy, weird butterflies in my tummy. not the looking at your high school crush at lunch time type of butterflies, but a different type. i cant explain them. i think it was just because i got so much advice, from so many people before going - i didn't know what to expect. you know, the usual - 'don't forget your sanitizer' and 'roadside ka khaana math khana' (translation - don't eat food that is sold on the street side). don't drink water at anybodys house because you don't know if it is bottled or not, don't touch ANYTHING, don't give money to even ONE beggar - you give one and you give all, don't look into the eyes of chakkas, and the list goes on and on.
when you hear all of that, you don't really know what to expect.

so i expected the worst. but i found i really enjoyed it.

i thought people would stare if you , but i found that i wound up staring. people there dared to dress similar to each other and and dared to be different. they talk loud and not care. bindaas! -that's the word. and more than anything else - its a city. and like all big cities, people live for themselves. and that is so important. to try and do that. do things you want to do and flick a finger at the world. and its fast. very fast. time flies there.


i mean, don't get me wrong, it is a mad, mad city. there is pollution, it was bloody hot and not everywhere is air conditioned, the autos are made and the drivers are functioned to try and kill you, there are no such thing as traffic rules, the slums and poverty are a horrible reality straing you in the face and the noise! oh Lord the noise! its all mad! but its OK that its mad because - yeh hai mumbai meri jaan! anything goes here!


it also makes you realize how much i have. what so many people don't. living in a city like dubai you cant help but focus on what you don't. and that pulls you down a lot. so it was nice to look at it from there other side. i went to puna to check out these houses that were being built. they were still under construction. and the construction workers had their 'homes' behind the construction site and they lived there with their families. you could tell by appearance that these kids had close nothing. but they where running around a half built home playing house. there was a dad and a mom and a baby - the standard roles that all kids have when they play house. all the rules i had when i was a kid. only these kids had torn clothes, no shoes but a whole bunch of dreams - to own a home like that one day. and it made me realise, that though i hope and pray that they do own a home like that one day, there is an unfortunate probability that they may never. but i can. and that just makes you thank you stars!
also, it got me thinking as to how we go into work - and we hate our jobs! what we don't stop to think about is that some kids sell balloons on the street for a living. everyday. they sit on the street side, blow ballons and sell them. they come up to your car when it stops at a light, they knock at your window and see if you want to buy one. most of the time people look away. they wont even look at these kids, just look away.
looking at all this makes you just bow your head down and pray. pray for these kids and pray for forgiveness for ever whining.

also, i got to bond with some family that i haven't had the chance to. my cousin brother and his family. got close to my 16 year old niece. it was nice to hang out with her. though it did sort of make me wish i was in high school again, and not so grown up, with all these effin grown up responsibilities!

anyway, after all that insight being thrown at me, i have come home (and was happy to come back) refreshed! i know what i want now. i still have to figure out of a lot of stuff here and there, but i will. i know i will and i know everything will sort out - kyun ki, picture abhi baki hai mere dost! cheesy, i know. but i cant help it! i'm speaking fluent hinglish. but to sum it all up - i loved the trip. would i live there? probably not!
hey! don't judge me! i am a NRI brat and i cant help it!
but i am sure glad i made that trip. and i know i want to go back soon and maybe next time, see more of india. mera bharat mahan - remember?