A Spring in India: Chapter 4

I have unfortunately allowed laziness to consume me from the inside out, so please excuse the long delay for the next chapter - I hope that you'll enjoy this one and continue to stay tuned.

Chapter 1: Planes, planes and more planes
Chapter 2: Meeting Mumbai
Chapter 3: Ulhasnagar

Chapter 4: Why Lemonade SUCKS

So, in the previous chapters, I had arrived in India and settled at my mom's cousin's house in a town near Bombay, and for about 3 days we enjoyed a bit of quiet coupled with some fun with 2 year old Gurdev and entertaining conversations with all the adults. And surprisingly, we were in good health so far - my mother was extra cautious this time and made sure that we only drank water that had been boiled and then chilled. We were full of plans of what to do in Bombay - sightseeing, tours, shopping, and perhaps a visit to a movie set because my dad's friend's brother was a film editor and is friends with Govinda.

But before we could go about any of that, we were to visit a family friend in Bombay - Papaji's good friend and their family. As a stuffy, dusty taxi with curtains in the back took us through sprawling wilderness - arching trees over murky lagoons - against a backdrop of industrial buildings, I snapped pictures with a disposable camera. As we approached Bombay itself, you could feel the vibe changing - instead of billboards with tacky pictures and mispellings, we were seeing ones for big corporations with witty messages. We even passed through an usually verdant, lush street where vendors were selling drinks along the roadside, under cool shade. And as we got closer, I kept hearing the taxi driver mutter something odd every time he pulled over to ask a pedestrian - "Joo Wale?" I had no idea what he was talking about until we approached a shaded apartment complex by Juhu - not Joo - Beach. A man welcomed us and took us inside a small but immaculately bright and clean apartment, where I settled into a chair, peered outside to see the beach and ocean, and enjoyed absolutely delicious meal of bhindi, raita, and roti. We had a nice discussion with the family before I dosed off for a nap.

The family announced, when I woke up, that we were going to a military club for dinner. I was QUITE excited - and had reason to be - after all, I didn't know what was about to happen to completely derail our trip.

The club was lavish, and the menu extensive. I dug in - ordering soup, noodles, and a lot more. I even ordered a lemonade in my excited.

That lemonade ruined my trip.

Remember I mentioned we were strictly drinking only boiled water? Well, the lemonade had ice in it. I enjoyed it then. I even enjoyed the feeling of satisfaction as we drove home, watching the Bombay night life on the streets outside.

But since their apartment was small, the family was letting us stay in other apartment they owned - a guest apartment. In theory, it was perfect - right off the beach, in an area with beautiful flora.

When we got inside, it was pretty obvious no one had been in there for months. There was a layer of dust everywhere, and the bathroom's flush didn't work - and there was no toilet paper. But right at that moment, we didn't mind. The view was enough to keep us content.

Until a couple hours later, when I felt as if nausea and a blinding stomachache was consuming me from the inside out. It was the water from the lemonade. I was in enough pain to cry, but I held my nausea in, and waited a few hours for the family to pick us up so I could have some medicine.

We got home, and I threw up in the bathroom but I was still feeling extremely weak. A cup of tea helped - a little.

And those grand plans about sightseeing in Bombay? About going to a tv show shooting? I was too sick to talk, let alone travel, so those plans were washed down the toilet along with my upchucked dinner.

A day later, it was back to Ulhasnagar for a final couple days before we were headed to Punjab. The most memorable thing there was watching Gurdev jump up in joy when he heard fireworks outside. I was mostly in a weak, tired, miserable mood - I felt sick and was unhappy that our Bombay plans were cancelled.

We finally went to the Bombay airport, a place with a beautiful glass ceiling. The weather was better than it had been, and I felt a little better, though still weak. We bid farewell to everyone, and hopped aboard our flight to Punjab..

Comment if you read this (guests can comment too!) and stay tuned for the next chapter!