Pop Star!!

Bombay/Mumbai is wild!!
Today we went on a further adventure of this city, and made our way over to Colabas. A very popular part of town for tourists, sketchy touts, and all sorts of jewels and fabrics!!!
The weather is a cool 80 something with humidity at its peak today!! We walked for most of the day and I was drenched in all my own sweet sweat. I recently changed the colour of my hair with a regular dye {its now a super bright sunset orange!!} so at least my sweat was not dripping dye down my face, as it would have with my prior special effects colour!!
Jonathan and I made our way over to Colabas knowing it would be hectic, but excited to check it out. Its so interesting seeing other travelers. Their adapted fashion and dewy glows are so different from all the locals with their jet black, or orange hennaed hair, who apparently do not sweat. All the travelers look thwarted by the heat, while Indian family's and people just seem like the heat is no thing. Now when I saw orange hennaed hair I mean it..like pumpkin style. The look here is most prominent on men!! Yes men, and the older ones at that. When the men's hair here starts to turn white they just henna the heck out of it with orange henna. It is just too much. We have seen the salt and pepper look which of course is more of summer squash and pepper, or the best is the full carrot top on some old man!! It is too funny to me! Its extra hysterical because there is such a thing as black henna!!

Our first stop in Colobas was a coffee shop that had real coffee, not instant like we have gotten so used to and begun to even like! After a caffeine kick we went to find Leopold's. For all of you who have not read Shantaram, first of all you should, but this was the spot that Gregory David Roberts often hung out in with his troublesome friends. A short walk from the coffee shop and we found it. I was so excited to be able to take part in a lil bit of my fav novel!! Sad to say I did not run into Gregory David Roberts as planned and wished, but the experience was lovely non the less. The place was packed with locals and tourist alike which made it really interesting. Our food was phenom!! We both got Indian veggie burgers, which is like the masala veggie burgers you can get at the TJs, only 1000 times better. There was even wine on the menu to our surprise. I went for it and got a white Indian wine. Bad choice. For anyone who has gone to church or celebrated communion, you will know how that wine tasted!! Who would have thought I would be drinking the blood of Christ in Leopold's in India!! ahhaha
Our waiter was lovely, and after a brief head bobble of a conversation he turned to me and said "you look like a pop star"!! Could it have been my fierce gleaming green eyeshadow?? The sparkles? My vivid orange hair and matching lipstick?? Whatever the case, I did not look like any other traveler in the place!! I took the pop star comment as a compliment even though we all know that pop stars are not the look!!
While dining Jonathan mentioned how Leopold's was not what he had expected of the place where strange locals hung out like in Shantaram drinking hard liquor, especially because there was only beer and that wretched wine on the menu. Well, thank goodness for my wandering travel eyes, because I noticed a closed door in the back of the restaurant with a man standing in front of it, and then I looked all the way up to see that there was a second level with tinted windows overlooking the mass of people eating and enjoying themselves. That I said must be the bar part of Leopold's.
After lunch we decided to go for a walk around with the idea of coming back for a drink upstairs later or tomorrow. Just as we left we got approached by a handsome guy asking if we would like to be bollywood extras!!!! This is a moment I was dreaming of..I just knew that if I was asked that inevitably they would love me, and be blown away by my dancing skills and quickly usher me up to the front row where I would get ample face time, and get to be all dolled up bollywood style!!! The horrible news is that we only have 1 day left here before we leave for Goa, and it would not be possible for me to participate!! :{ I was devastated by this, but I must feel flattered and happy that I was even asked...next time Bollywood, next time!!
Lover and I continued to wander amongst the sea of ever flowing fuchsias, violets, teals, sunflower yellows, and many many other vibrant tones of the everyday women wear. The honking is not as bad as in Egypt but still rings in your ears as we dodged traffic and stray dogs just lying where they please. The stares are the same for us here, being that I look like a pop star and all, and of course Jonathans hair draw us much attention!!!
On Sundays everyone is out, and Cricket is the game of choice being played in any street by all the boys in the neighborhood. Today is also a day of rest...as people tend to sleep wherever they want. On old British building steps, in their cabs with the door open and feet hanging out, on wooden pulley carts on the side of the road, on the sidewalk on matts or not. It is really bizarre, but a way of life, as I am sure that most locals do not have air conditioning, if they even have anywhere better to live than the shanty shacks built of tin, tarp, and garbage. So the outside air is better than stuffed up air..that is for sure!
After walking for a while, and dripping in sweat all over again we decided to go back to Leopold's to go to the upstairs bar which we figured would be air conditioned, because sleeping in the street to cool off just wasn't an option for me! We got ushered up the dimly lit stairwell, into the frigged air of the upstairs bar. This was definitely the spot!! It was all local people around our age up there, and no tourists..{just the way we like it!} There they had a full cocktail menu, although I was weary of ording one and being disappointed, but I also did not want a beer. We figured if anyplace would make a proper cocktail in India, a country where drinking is overall taboo, then this would be my one and only shot..so I went for it. Bad choice again..as always. If any of you end up traveling to Africa or India, take it from me, just skip the cocktail ordering..you will never get what you want. I drank my miniature shot of mystery gin accompanied by a bottle of tonic, no ice and lemons {I asked for lime} and just had to grin and bare it. I was more happy to be chilled by the AC than anything else, so I got over the bad cocktail!
Lover and I then strolled back to our neighborhood by the train station and were so happy that we are staying where we are. It is not touristy at all, so after being in Colba its nice to get back to what the city is really like with street food merchants mixing dahl in large pots with their hands, and little tiny shops selling strange "chemist and medical" potions.
Ok..time is up..
xoxoxo Alicia Claire