Is sheher se dil laga ke...

Being from NCR, Mumbai is the last city in India about which I am allowed think anything good.

But breaking that protocol, I could not stop myself from speaking what I feel about the city. Only I know how I long to find that monday or friday (or preferably tuesday or thursday) in the academic calender that PGP office puts on the notice board the very first day of the academic session, and consequently running away from this place at the very first opportunity that I get.

I have no idea why my heartbeat starts increasing the moment that plane touches the runway. I have no idea why I love those 6 letters in white written over the blue background that they have put on the international terminal. The feeling has a highly positive correlation with the fuel consumption of the bus engine that takes me to the nearest place where I am allowed to walk. The charge that I feel everytime while walking down that 150 m stretch through to the Arrivals gate can only be compared to what I felt while walking down the ramp for the first time.

This charge is in complete incongruence to what I feel inside the local train.

Mumbai Local
If you have not travelled in a local, I do not consider that you have been to Mumbai.
If you have travelled in a local, but have not traversed that bridge at Dadar station, you are still no better.

Since I have been to the celebrated bridge, I can safely comment on the local. I find it a highly convenient and an unavoidable means of transport for anyone residing in the city.

The best part of Mumbai local is that it has saperate ladies compartments. So what, even our DTC (Delhi transport corporation) buses have reserved seats for ladies?
The catch here is that ladies are aware of the loaction where the compartment will arrive, and therefore they stand at that very place on the platform.

The advantages are-

1. This place is generally very near to the overbridge you take to land at the plaform.
2. This information provides for a highly convenient sight, with everything on the station worth watching concentrated in a very small area.

Map
I am crazy about maps. In fact I am arguably the most frequent non-official user of google maps. Next post dedicated to the geography of this highly celebrated city.