A Dosa the Action in Mumbai

Six women board a plane to go to Mumbai, India. What happened next will shock you.

It’s a wonder we all actually made it to Mumbai. With visa and immigration hassles and the copious quantities of bubbles consumed in the lAl Mourjanounge at Hamad International Airport, I was pretty sure there was some kind of black notice issued by multiple authorities.

I will admit, there was a moment when I thought this trip would never happen. It was when one of our crew was forced to get her visa at the very last minute. This required the speedy skills of our driver Shafi and many Hail Marys.

Many dosa, samosa and paneer were eaten in the making of this blog post. Over a mere 36 hour period. You have been warned.

Looking back over my photos from this trip I am stuck by the colors of the city. It has an amazing energy.

I am also struck by how much food was consumed by the six of us. More of that soon…

Mumbai may not have the big ticket tourist attractions other Indian cities are blessed with. But it does have its people and its food. Our first order of business, after a 3am arrival at Grand Hyatt Mumbai and much bacon, we headed out on a specialized food tour organized by our new best friends Mumbai Moments

Eating in Mumbai is an art form. From breakfast through to lunch and late dinners, the city heaves with eating places. from snacks through to full meals.

It even has a way for those who want a home cooked, hot meal, delivered to their offices. The Dabbawallas  are  part of a delivery system that collects hot food in tiffins or boxes from the homes of workers in the late morning, delivers the lunches to the workplace using any means possible – bike and train being the most common. There is a complicated system of coding and word is they haven’t lost a meal. they are also embracing technology with orders via SMS now common.

Our tour was a smorgasboard of tastes, colors and smells. From the Pav Bahji – a tomato feast served with luscious rolls…

Through to the riot of tastes, textures and colors that is Thali and Sev Puri.

This is not to say we didn’t go high end. We took up an invitation to head to the Rooftop at the Four Seasons Mumbai where we pretended to be VIPs for a couple of hours. With panoramic views of the city, free flowing cocktails and enough people watching to keep us busy, we may have almost outstayed our welcome.

Everything in India has a process – getting a visa, making a dosa and even making tea. I believe this is how they make sense of a country so vast in human and geographical scale.

Our own process involved lots of eating, drinking and generally swanning around. We’re planning another trip to India soon. Goa. you have been warned. Again.