Mumbai Meri Jaan

have you heard that before? i have. and have wondered, what makes a city so endearing? especially this one. I've been wanting to go to Mumbai for quite some time now and finally got the opportunity to recently.

after spending 9 exhilirating days, i'm still trying to figure out what makes the city so awesome, the city where dreams come true:

1) is it really (like everyone says) the pace of the city? how one feels safe walking around even at 11 in the night because there are still all sorts of people out? from grandmas to kids? how you can get stuck in kilometers long traffic for hours together but still not get bored of looking out the window?

2) is it the constant rainfall that Mumbai people just accept and go around with life like it were nothing? the umbrella is the perfect accessory for everyone in the city, and armed with that, it seems like no amount of rain can stop them. i saw a grandma pulling her saree up and treading knee length pothole in the street. people were on the beach, rain or shine, with or without an umbrella.

3) is it eclectic group of people and cultures that comprise the city? how there are so many Italian restaurants, a full page of Mexican food choices in the menu of Indian restaurants. Or how at the home of our lunch hosts, they were speaking Gujrati, Marathi, Hindi and English?

4) is it the graciousness of people (though I admit, it's not exclusive to this city) who offer everything they have to guests, even when they are lacking themselves? like the slum dwellers who poured their heart out to me, but still offered me a full glass of water with a smile. or the auto driver who dropped us off and told us to be careful and made sure we crossed the shady area safely?

5) is it the multitude, and I mean numerous, things to do and places to see? from an attention calling, brightly decorated horse carriage around Marine Drive to the many markets in Bandra, Colabha, etc?

I still haven't figured it out. And probably won't. But (I think) I felt the city. I felt it's heart beat. And I'm going to join the millions in saying that I was blown and I can't wait to go back. Mumbai meri jaan, phir kab milenge hum dono?