Sporting life in Mumbai

My overnight bus from Goa dropped me in the middle of Mumbai by a roadside, I was told I was about 4km from my hotel. 3 Spanish girls were also in the same situation, so being the gentleman that I am, I flagged down a taxi for them and negotiated what I thought was a good price for them of £1. The next taxi I flagged down, which was for myself, opened the bidding at 60p.

I was a little concerned at what my accommodation was going to be like, on my last visit to Mumbai I paid 3 times the price and that was only average at best. I was pleasantly surprised, it was OK. It didn't have air conditioning or hot water, but following a hot day in Mumbai a cold shower was quite refreshing. At night the temperature was cool enough that having a fan in the room following a few Kingfisher Beers was easily enough to get a good nights sleep.

The primary reason for been in Mumbai was to watch England play against the West Indies and South Africa in the T20 Cricket World Cup. There had been a frenzy on social media about the ticket situation, many were worried about not been able to get tickets once they had travelled. The ticket selling website only showed that they had tickets for £20 or £30 left available. On the advice of an experienced cricket traveller I decided to check out the situation at the ground the day before.  It couldn't have been easier to buy 8 tickets (3 for the first game and 5 for the second) all at the cheapest price of £5.

Feeling quite pleased with myself after sourcing the tickets, I set of on a stroll along Marine Drive, which runs along the coast and allows for nice views and a cool breeze. On coming across the old cricket ground, I thought I would see if I could have a look around. Getting to the gate I found out that there was a game on, South Africa v Mumbai in a warm up game. Not only that, the entry was free, so I set on a dusty concrete step watching arguably the finest batsman in the world (AB De Villiers) blast the ball to all parts.

Marine Drive

Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai

Decent view from the concrete step

After the game I headed back to my hotel to freshen up, when amongst the crowds I saw a familiar face. I'd not seen Essex Jeff for a few years and amazingly bumped into him on the busy streets of Mumbai. We arranged to meet up for a few beers before the game the following day.

I had some time the next morning to take a wonder down the streets of Colaba, the touristy area of Mumbai at the bottom of the peninsular. I took in the impressive Gateway to India monument and Taj Hotel and had a walk down the Colaba Causeway. Yet again I bumped into the very familiar face of Boz, whom I had no idea was coming out to see the cricket. I find it amazing I can walk down my local high street and not meet anyone I know, but when England are playing in a foreign city I bump into friends all the time.

Gateway to India

Time for a trip to the barbers for a shave Phil

Taj Hotel

Gateway to India

We assembled a group of about 10 -15 England Lads congregated in a bar for pre game beers. In the half full stadium the performance was a let down, England never really got going and in the end were beaten comfortably by an outstanding hundred from West Indian Chris Gayle one of the games greats. With our £5 tickets we sat in the £20 stand without really knowing where we went wrong.  Excellent seats and excellent value.

Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Great seats for just £5

The next morning I went to the barbers for a wet shave. Looking on the price list a Shave was 30 Rupees (31p) and a Special Shave was 60 Rupees (62p). I asked what the difference between a shave and a special shave was to which the barber in a clear Indian voice replied "30 Rupees Sir". I splashed out on the special shave which post shave I discovered included a head massage, a bit of a haircut and a face wash.

I was meeting 3 lads at the races, first going to a restaurant by the course and then into the races. The restaurant (The Gallops - an old colonial building) was situation beyond the turnstiles. Typical carnage began, we were not allowed into the races for flouting just about every rule on the dress code. They wouldn't allow us to go to the restaurant without paying the £5 entrance fee for racing that we couldn't watch (due to our attire). We tried negotiating various deals but they were adamant we had to pay for the privilege of going to the restaurant. "Do you have TV in restaurant?" we asked, "Oh yes Sir", "Can we watch the racing on the TV", "No sir, we do not put the TVs on".

We ended up paying, but had to surrender our phones to avoid a £200 fine. This meant I could not get in touch with the 4th member of our party to inform him of the chaotic scenes. We had a fine lunch, sold our tickets back at face value and went in the 50 Rupee (52p) entrance which had a more relaxed dress code. Horse racing in Mumbai was very similar to horse racing in England, in which I would go to a bookmaker, hand over money in exchange for a ticket telling me how much I would win, my horse would lose and I'd go to the bar. After the races we went out into town and had a good few beers.

My last day in Mumbai was again a match day, with the game starting at 19:30 I had the morning to catch some sights and the afternoon to refuel on Kingfisher before the game. I went to Dhobi Ghat which is an giant laundry area where 6,000 people wash clothes all day. It wasn't the greatest of tourist attractions and plenty of locals were trying (and failing) to charge us an admission fee and a photograph fee.

Hand washing at Dhobi Ghat

Dhobi Ghat, home to 6,000 washermen and women

Dhobi Ghat was a train ride away, which was an added attraction for me to go there to use the commuter trains in Mumbai. The return ticket was just 10 Rupees (10p) for the 25 minute journey. The doors never closed on the train allowing a cool breeze to pass through the train. It was long after rush hour so the train was quiet, an hour or two earlier and the same train would have carried thousands with some literally hanging on to the door frame from the outside.

View from the open door of the train as it rattles along

The final game in Mumbai was an all time classic. England's poor bowling combined with South Africa's brilliant batting allowed them to score a huge 229. At the half way stage the game was all but over, but immense batting from England saw them pull off an unexpected victory.

England v South Africa Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

An enthralling game enjoyed by us all

I had an early flight to Agra the next morning so could only stay for one celebratory beer. My next blog will feature my time in Agra which of course includes visiting one of the worlds most famous sites, the Taj Mahal.