Jaywalking in NYC is Nothing like Crossing Streets in Mumbai!

In many ways, pedestrians in Mumbai are as much a part of the street traffic as the cars, rickshaws, motorcycles, bicycles and push-carts. Horns are used to announce an approach from behind, as much as they might be used as a warning or a prod to an inattentive obstacle. There seems to be minimal traffic lights at intersections and almost no kind of traffic sign would likely have any effect on how intersections are negotiated. Crossing streets is an act of courage and conviction more than patience. A slightly raised hand to warn oncoming vehicles indicates your intent to cross in front of them. It can be fascinating to watch people and all manner of vehicles turning across a line of traffic, and terrifying when you have to join in the melee.

Threshold detail in tiles at my front door.

It is incredibly frustrating to not be able to communicate. I feel badly when most English speaking locals tell me how easily I can just ask for help. But my English seems to only prompt greater consternation when I am faced with a local that only responds to me in Marathi or Hindi (I honestly don’t know what either language sounds like), or worse yet, when I don’t understand their English on account of their heavy accent. As an example, I was waiting to get my air conditioning unit fixed, and a repairman came to the door, but I could not convince him to come in. I tried to explain that someone who could translate would be there shortly, but to little avail. Then he must have descended down the stairs when my local friend arrived via the elevator. I can only think of this as a comedy, as the timing was just too perfect. In truth, I don’t know if the man who came to my door was actually the repairman I was expecting, or if it might have been a different kind of coincidence. I later discovered various people coming by to pick up garbage, collect newspapers, and offer services like cleaning, all unsolicited by me.

Mumbai's streets and courtyards are filled with refreshing greenery.

Linguistically, there are some basic words that have different usages in India than in the USA and a few that I had no idea what they meant. Here are a few examples:

Society – In India this word seems to be used analogously to "association" in the USA, as in when I had to meet with the “Society” which is like a “Home Owners’ Association.” My meeting was actually an interview to be sure that the members of the “society” approved of my character, my documentation, my purpose of staying here, my intent of usage of the apartment, and my references.

Lakh and Crore – are actually words used for large numbers of Indian Rupees. One Lakh refers to ₹100,000 one hundred thousand) and a Crore is ₹10,000,000 (ten million). So when I was told that I needed to provide three Lakh as a security deposit, I had to stop and ask what that meant.

This is actually at the Bandra Fair which took place in the area where Petra is living.

Krishna Janmashtami – a “bank (which I was familiar with from England)” holiday that celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna (typically depicted with blue skin), the myth of which needs more research on my part before I would dare to write about it. But it was the first holiday after I arrived that affected my timeline in getting into an apartment. However, that delay may have provided a better deal than I might have otherwise anticipated.

This is just a little Ganpati that sat on the dash of the car service I was using.

Ganesh Chaturthi (popularly referred to as Ganpati) – a holiday (festival) that can last up to eleven days, from what I have been told, that celebrates the birth of Ganesha (the inimitable dancing god with multiple arms and the head of an elephant). This celebration appears to have begun on Wednesday evening which is the eve of the first day set in 2018 to be on Thursday 13^th September. Small groups of people parade the streets carrying a meticulously created Ganpati (sculptural representation of Ganesha) accompanied by any number of walking drummers creating resounding rhythms that echo along the streets. I was warned to avoid the streets during Ganpati as I am not great in the midst of large crowds.

Speaking of communicating, the global nature of accessing anyone with a cell phone at any time is a seriously sharp double-edged sword. My bank in the USA neglected to inform me that they would require a verbal confirmation of my request for a wire transfer to my prospective landlord. So they tried calling me at a time long after I had fallen asleep. I sleepily looked at my phone and did not recognize the number, and so I did not pick up the call. As a result, the crucial transaction was delayed by a weekend and a day. By the time I found out what the call was, it was too late to get the transaction done before the weekend in the USA. And in India, I needed the action executed by Monday. But the USA would not be working until after business hours in India. So then everything had to be pushed back until Tuesday in India.

Patience with the process of negotiating international and local bureaucracies and protocols comes part and parcel with working internationally. But I find myself thinking of my emotions being more like a mandatory tolerance of matters beyond my control. Remember my earlier assertions that no matter how well one plans, there’s always something that won’t go exactly as one might hope.

Creating some kind of daily routine seems to be a crucial factor in my sense of “comfort”, as I negotiate the adventures of settling down in India for half a year. It has felt like one of the longest couple of weeks I can remember, and at the same time, I feel like my outlook, moods and general self-management has mutated through more extremes in two weeks than I typically go through in a month or more. I cannot say that anything that has happened to me so far could be remotely considered out-of-the-ordinary. It is my ability to choose how I respond that has mostly kept me focused on the positive. But I would be lying if I said that I have been consistently objective rather than reactive to situations.

I had been told to drop into the nearby shopping mall to get my supplies for the apartment, and I walk by it every day as I walk to/from work. But I was initially disinclined to venture into the mall as it appears to be standard practice to go through a security screening (metal detectors and x-ray of bags) just to enter shopping malls in Mumbai (I can’t speak for the rest of India). Roadside stores have no such security, and I discovered that many Indians were not aware that security screening at shopping malls is not standard in the USA. Yesterday, my caffeine addiction drove me to stop into a Starbucks attached to the mall, as the cafes I passed were not open early in the morning. Mostly, I have found the culture here to be very active late into the night and not so, early in the day.

The cost of my “flat white” (an espresso choice I got used to when I was in New Zealand) and a breakfast sandwich is fairly expensive by Indian standards considering that I was in a Starbucks, but I have the privilege of being able to afford this luxury. So I gave myself permission to indulge this as a part of my daily “routine” to start my days. It is comforting to have a nice cup of coffee and something warm and hearty to eat without needing to think about dishes, and it is on my way to work.

It has taken close to a week to get the only air conditioner in the apartment fixed, and it was definitely an exercise in patience and understanding. Out of it I actually learned where to find the breakers in the apartment. So that was a serendipitous bonus from the trials.

A couple days ago, the “point-of-service” water heater in the shower “died.” And in light of Ganpati starting today, I have been imagining myself as an elephant showering myself under a “snout-ful” of chilly river water!

Handwashing my multiple changes of clothes from each day and hanging them out on the internal clothes lines set up in the hallway is a chore of normalcy that I find quite satisfying, and everything is dry by the next morning. For heavier duty items, I am happy to say that the washing machine in the apartment works great, and the spin cycle is almost as effective as my hand wringing, so towels, sheets and trousers dry overnight.

Fresh seasonal fruit is readily available on the streets, and I will ask the help of a local friend or two to get me acquainted with the cart sellers who are much closer on hand than needing to go to a higher end supermarket. Familiarity and communication will go far to develop my shopping routine for certain things, and I can easily live on cold fresh fruit to start my days and as snacks. I’ve been collecting containers from delivery meals, and I bought a cheap chef’s knife and small cutting board to prep foods that I can chill in the refrigerator.

I’d still like to get an electric kettle, a jug with a water filter, and a couple sets of dishware and cutlery wouldn’t hurt. I haven’t decided as yet as to how much cooking I will be doing, but I did test that I can light the propane stove provided, and I can do a lot with a couple of pots.

All of the above said, I am here to teach, to learn from my teaching, to experience how dance as a formal activity fits into Indian society, and to hopefully get to know more about the local perspectives on what they would like to share with me, as much as what they think of the ideas I bring with me. This aspect of my Fulbright has started well, and I am teaching practically every day now. I am thrilled with the eagerness and earnestness of both the students and the teachers, some of whom choose to take my classes rather than just observe. I plan to share more specifics about my work, but that warrants an entry onto itself, even in these early days.

Namaste from Mumbai. (It actually sounds better to say "Namaste from Bombay!")