It's Not On Top Of Your List, But Mumbai Is A Must-Go For The Adventurous Traveller
We didn't know about these too!
Published for AIR ASIA, 15 Sep 2017, 01:46 PM
You probably already know that Mumbai is home to Bollywood and India's biggest stars
Everyone knows that the biggest Bollywood sets can be found in Mumbai, and that Shah Rukh Khan has a house (or palace) there. These places have become tourist attractions, being as popular as sites like the Gateway of India and the Victoria Terminus train station.
But that's not all there is in Mumbai. We bet you'll be surprised to know that you can find these there:
1. The world's oldest copy of Dante's 'Inferno'
'Inferno' is one of three parts of the 'Divine Comedy', written by Dante in the 14th century, and is one of the most important pieces of literature in the world.
While the original does not exist anymore, there are two first edition copies left in the world - and one of them is kept in the Asiatic Society of Mumbai. Legend has it that the Italian dictator Mussolini offered to buy the book for £1 million back in the 1930s, but the Society rejected it.
2. The village where Coldplay shot their music video
Coldplay made a surprise visit to Worli Village in Mumbai back in 2016 to shoot the music video for 'Hymn For the Weekend'. The band even posted a photo on Instagram to thank the villagers for helping them with the video shoot.
3. A fort that was featured in the same Coldplay music video
Coldplay's 'Hymn For the Weekend' started with beautiful footage taken at the ruins of Fort Bassein, built in the 12th century by the local ruling family. Since then, the fort has been conquered by three different empires: the Portuguese, the Maratha, and finally the British.
4. The neighbourhood where the Tang monk from 'Journey To the West' stayed
If you grew up watching the TVB drama, 'Journey To the West', you'll know who we're talking about. The book was inspired by the journeys of Tang San Zang, a monk from the Tang Dynasty, who travelled from China to India to search for sacred Buddhist texts.
In the year 640, Tang San Zang was in Mumbai and specifically wrote that he stayed in the Bassein area, now known as Vasai. A memorial hall was built for him at Bihar in 1984 by the Indian and Chinese governments to recognise his contributions.
5. Anthony Bourdain's favourite ice cream stall
The travel host and celebrity chef is apparently a big fan of the Taj Icecream stall in Mumbai. This popular ice cream stall has been in business for the past 125 years and is super popular among the locals and tourists as well.
All of their ice cream are handmade using the freshest fruits of the day. They're so well made that you can actually find chunks of mangoes or strawberries in every scoop!
6. The world's most expensive private house
It's impossible for anyone to miss this building - it may not be the tallest building in Mumbai, but it's definitely the one with the most unique design. Named Antilia, it costs USD2 billion, has 27 floors, and requires 600 staff to maintain it.
The building is owned by Mukesh Ambani, the richest man in India, who built this as a home for his family. The top four floors are living quarters, while other floors have pools, a spa, and enough parking space for 160 cars.
7. The mysterious caves that still confuse archeologists
The Elephanta Caves is known for being a beautiful cave complex with many chambers of stone sculptures relating to Hinduism. Nobody knows for sure who built these caves - even archaeologists and historians still have not manage to figure this out. They also couldn't really determine when these were built due to the lack of historical records.
Till this day, locals still believe that the caves were built by heroes from the Indian epic narrative, the Mahabharata.
8. A hipster art district
Situated in Downtown Mumbai is the colourful neighbourhood called Kala Ghoda, the city's art district. If you love Hosier Lane in Melbourne, you should definitely visit this place.
The district also has its annual arts festival every first Saturday of February. Artists from all over the world flock to Mumbai for this nine-day festival to perform, set up their exhibitions, or sell their handmade crafts. Entrance is free for all.
9. A forgotten fountain with a touching story
This unnamed fountain may look badly maintained and unimpressive, but the story behind its construction is anything but that.
The fountain was built by a cotton merchant named Lowji Megji in memory of his late daughter, Kusumbala. Kusumbala was known to be a kind-hearted girl, always bringing water for her father's workers at the warehouse. Unfortunately, she passed away from an illness when she was just 13 years old, and was deeply mourned by her family and the workers. To pay tribute to his daughter, Mr. Megji built this fountain near his warehouse so his workers could continue to have fresh water to drink.
There's even a plaque placed there by Mr. Megji that says: "This public gift of Mr. Lowji Megji, in loving memory of his late daughter Kusumbala." However, the fountain was forgotten after Mr. Megji passed away when his business was shut down. You can still see this fountain near Cotton Green train station.
