Mumbai Travel Guide for Travel Lovers - 1

Having a good time in Mumbai or Bombay is fairly easy simply because Mumbai has a lot to offer.There is also no major hindrance to finding your way around. English is commonly used and even an average man on the street can speak and understand it well enough to guide you. Some areas that are a must to experience include -

Statue of Shivaji Maharaj at Juhu Beach

Chowpatty Beach - Come August/September, Chowpatty Beach comes alive as the devout Hindu population of Mumbai comes thronging to its sands to immerse their larger than life idols of Ganesha and incur his blessings. On every other ordinary evening Chowpatty is where the common man comes to eat and be entertained. A gastronomic paradise of bhelpuri, a savory snack made from puffed rice with loads of onions, coriander, a medley of spices topped with sweet and sour tamarind sauce, chuski ice balls dipped in syrup, pao bhaji buttered buns served with a spicy potato side dish or pungent chutney sandwiches. Chowpatty is an experience that should not be missed. I liked pani puri most and missing it’s taste now days.

Fort - The Fort area in Mumbai is choc-a-bloc with old Victorian, Gothic buildings. An important financial and commercial center this area is always full of activity. The BSE or the Bombay Stock Exchange on Dalal Street is also located in this area. Avoid the Fort between 9.00 - 10.00 a.m. and 6.30 - 8.00 p.m. when the office traffic is at its peak.

Marine Drive - Eulogized by Bollywood, Marine Drive caresses the seashore from Nariman Point to the foot of the Malabar Hill. Passing Chowpatty Beach, Marine Drive is also famous as the Queen's Necklace. One of the busiest roads in Mumbai, it is also one of the breeziest due to its proximity to the sea.

Colaba - The hub of tourist activity in Mumbai, Colaba is known for its street stalls, cafes and kitsch ambience. Colaba is also home to the most pocket friendly guesthouses and economy hotels.

Hanging Gardens - Also known as the Ferozeshah Mehta Gardens, they are built over 3 reservoirs, which store billions of gallons of water for cleaning before they are pumped to the thirsty city of Mumbai.

Crawford Market - With a 50 feet high sky lit awning, Crawford Market is the place to shop for a wide variety of fruit, vegetables and meat. It is famous for the frieze just above its main entry point that has been designed by Lockyard Kipling father of the famous author Rudyard Kipling. It depicts the rural Indian farmer amidst the wheat fields. The building is a blend of Flemish and Norman architecture. Named after Arthur Crawford, the first Municipal Commissioner of Bombay, the building, which was completed in 1869, was donated by Cowasji Jehangir to the city.

My Rendezvous with Almighty

Meri Vaishno Devi Yatra

Jammu, which is best known to the world as a city of temples, and spreads around the river Tawi, was the destination of my trip. Since a very long time, I haven't travelled out of Delhi so I was quite eager to start my trip.

I boarded from Old Delhi railway station to Jammu Tawi. Train reached an hour late as there was only single track and to make way for another train was coming from Jammu, it has to wait on other station. Whole station was covered with army personnel for security reasons.

Katra was the next stoppage of my journey. It is 50 km away from Jammu. There was one army headquarter, which caught my attention, on my way to Katra. Green was the color I could not forget whether it was trees or army, both were in good numbers on the way.

I reached Katra in the mid of the day, spent some time in a Shrine Board dharamshala near the bus stand. Reaching to dharamshala was not an easy job, people were after us like honey bees expecting to earn some money that is how it happens in most part of the India and we are often used to it.

Katra to the Vaishno Devi Temple

After having lunch, I started trekking to the temple at 4 ‘o’ clock in the evening. In a great enthusiasm, I walked very fast in the begging but it didn't last long. After trekking for 2 km stretch, i took rest for 10 mins. Initially i was thinking i could whole 12km stretch without any rest, but it all proved to be overconfidence on my physical strength. 

*One need to careful of land sliding on mountains whenever it's raining. I saw it passing through trek route. Three days before my journey, landsliding had happened and, you can see in photographs.

There were many check posts in the route, due to security reasons. one has wait for his turn. Though one don't like to wait in queue, but as it's for our own security, one need not to bother about it.

As I get done with the first security check, it started to rain hard. I waited for some time but rain was not stopping, I bought a rain coat of good quality and started on. After covering nearly two kilometres, I was all sweat because of that rain coat and my body was not in contact with the outside air. Dirty water was coming down the way, as horse shit was getting mixed with rain water. My feet were in dirt but I had no option only to move on. At last, rain stopped and I took off my rain coat and for the first time i began to feel better. When I looked down whole Katra town seems to me small blocks of tiles. The natural beauty began to enchant me.

When you moved to one mountain, you will find other one higher than the one you are on. I talked to many people in my run. I got a few friends, one guy even suggested me to move on till we get near to the temple and we did the same with rhyming “Jai Mata Di”. The Junoon is the thing that makes easy for all people. I found the religious Junoon and Aastha in the people going up.

Some people were very fat but still making their way to the Holy Shrine. I reached up at 9 ‘o’ clock, rested for 20 min and took bath. Water was so chilling; I just had a bath in 3 sec. After that, I queued up for darshan according to the number on my permit slip. I went through small caves and finally went to temple, one of the priests put the sacred Chandan on my forehead but within second, I was pushed by the mob. When I came out of temple, I took a long breath and was feeling like having won a war. It was 1 ‘o’ clock, I didn’t get much stuff to eat. I spend the entire night on the top of the hill; in the early morning, I started my journey to Bhairav Baba Temple.

Bhairav Mandir is 2.5 kilometres away from Vaishno Devi temple and at more height than the one had seen. My legs were refusing to move on but Junoon that I mentioned earlier makes everything easy in the end. At 9 ‘o’ clock I saw the desired temple and started to get down the hills. Now again the weather took a new turn, fog was getting denser and denser. Cloud slowly hiding the sun and in the end it rained for 20 mins. This is the beauty of mountains; you don’t know what is going to happen in the very next hour. At 12.30 in the daylight i was all down the mountains. I didn’t relaxed there I took the bus to Jammu and rested there only for 7 hours in Shri mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board’s dormitory. At11:45 there was my train back to Delhi. It was nice journey, you could it from the photos but i could not forget the pain at the same time that my legs have been through.

Useful Information:

From Jammu Tawi Station to Katra:

Pick the Bus or Cab to Katra. Fares Varies. Choose as per your comfort and purse.

Stay at Jammu and Katra:

If you are a budgeted traveller, stay at accommodation provided by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. Visit website for booking here.

Food:

Whole Katra to Vaishno Devi Shrine trek is full of restaurants of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. They provide good food at reasonable price. There are also restaurants of famous food chain like Haldiram, Sagar Ratna and others but they are close to Vaishno Devi temple.

You can also book helicopter ride from katra to vaishno devi bhawan here, incase you need it.

Don't wait for your own Vaishno Devi trip!