One Apple A Day #265
My second day in India. Or I should say my second day in Mumbai. My first day was only a half day, I spend the whole morning sleeping, but it was enough to get the feeling that Mumbai is more than just a city.
It is a whole world.
I know that this is the densest city in the world (Wikipedia), but that’s just a cold fact, a number. These streets are like a buzzing hive. A hymn to movement. It looks like people in this city spend most of their time moving. By car, motorbike, moped, bicycle, walking or whatever. They are running most of the time.
But all this movement has a kind of grace. At first glance, it looks as if there were no rules on the streets but one; the one who makes more noise get through. But if you observe with more attention, everything flows as if every person has a clear perception of what’s around. It looks like a ballet. Everyone is doing her steps trusting that all the others will do the same so, in the end, everything will work fine.
A few exciting things happened on my first afternoon in Mumbai.
I got 28 passport size photos of my face. I needed one to buy a sim card, but 28 was the minimum. I should be ok for the next ten years or so.
I talked about meditation with an old man at a traffic light while we wait to cross the road. He gave me a piece of paper with his view about meditation and suggested me to spend ten days trying Vipassana (I’m not sure about the right spelling).
I met Bapu, a nice guy who offered me a Chai tea on a small cafe built inside a bus and guide me to the Gate of India. It also helped me in buying my first typical India shirt and gave me some night insights about India. He showed me the pictures of his kids. Took me on a ride on a busy bus on which I had to hold me outside the door in the Mumbai traffic. In the end, he asked me to help him buy the kit he needed to start working as a shoe cleaner. It was probably scum, but he made an effort and to be honest, in that moment I wanted to believe in someone and something. So, I gave him the money he needed. I asked him to send me a picture of him with his new kit. Let see.
I took a quick walk around the hotel after dinner. I was tired, but I love walking. I saw families living on the pavement. People are coming out and going in every hole in the building. There is no empty space in this town. Every corner is used. Every spot has a purpose for someone.
I found myself thinking if this is living. Anytime I’m in a big city I think about freedom. I can’t help but think that these cities are big prisons where we are at the same time the prisoners and the guards.
Maybe it’s just my countryside mind that can’t cope with the noise of a big town. Probably this is why I fell in love with the emptiness of Patagonia.
It’s time to go out and see what is waiting for me in this second day in Mumbai.