A Last Night In India

Mumbai (Bombay), India

The last two weeks were quite intense. Perhaps I spend more time on buses and trains than in places. Along the way I visited India's three biggest ashrams (although the one in Pune I don't really consider to be an ashram). So in the last two weeks I saw 'all' of south India ;)

Yesterday I started feeling a bit tired and weak. And although I had just arrived at the 'ashram' I was really looking forward to see and experience (where meditation includes funny things like jumping, yelling, dancing, hyperventilation, etc.) I decided to return to Vienna a few days earlier than 'scheduled'. So I booked a ticket today (Sai Baba bless the Internet) and took the next train to Mumbai.

At the railway station in Mumbai a homeless guy came up to me and asked for some food. At first I tried to get rid of him but the moment he said he was a traveller like me I stoped for a moment and had a look at him...

This guy was different!

First of all he spoke fluent English without ANY accent and apart of that there was something different in his eyes...

A homeless (Indian) who speaks English without an accent?

I started to get interested in this guy's life...

So as I had no plans other than going to the airport anyway, I decided to 'hire' him as my 'city guide' for the night!

I asked him to show me some places and told him that it was up to him what we'll do (as I was more interested in his psyche rather than the city). So he showed me some things around the central railway station and then headed towards McDonald's 'It's the best food in India! It is American quality!'

Hmm... well I guess he's sick of cheap Indian food...

"They have the best service as well!"

McDonald's? Service?!?

So we entered McDonald's, sat down and my guide tells an employees "Hey, get us some water and the menu!" The guy came up to us and replied that it was a self-service restaurant. My guide exchanged a few words in Hindi with him and after a few moments the employee came back with two glasses of water and the manager. My guide also exchanged a few words with him...

We ended up being served food at the most famous self-service restaurant in the world... hmm...

While eating my guide suggested to watch 'India's best action movie ever!'

Again, I was not really convinced so I said, I wouldn't understand anything as the movie was in Hindi.

"Come on, it's an action movie! You'll easily understand it! It's all about guns, blood and dancing!"

Dancing? A bloody action movie with dancing scenes? Hmm...

So I had a look at the poster:

'Shootout - Based on True Rumours!'

Based on True Rumours?!?

The movie started and after seeing a rough'n though murderer shouting people in five minutes of bloody scenes the killer starts dancing and singing in the next! Image Bruce Willis dancing in the middle of Die Hard ;)

Nice experience...

After the movie ended we headed towards the airport. In the end I didn't really find out too much about my guide's bio other than about an eventually 'traumatic experience' he seemed to have had 15 years ago in Texas where a lesbian denied to sleep with him. He told me that story about five times in the few hours we spend...

Still, paying that guy was much worth its money... being served at McDonald's and watching a bloody 'action-musical'! Especially that situation at McDonald's tought me a lot about life and mind-borders!

So now I'm at the airport... at the end of 'Part III' of my trip... and I'm really looking forward to this upcoming reality-check!

Summertime in Vienna is really cool!



vox