MUMBAI
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| Mumbai also called as Bombay is the Capital of Maharashtra state. It is also called as the Financial Capital of India. Mumbai is 2nd largest city in India and famous for its rich culture , cinemas, fashion, shopping malls mouth watering Sea food. The city derives its name from the famous Mumbadevi temple located here. |
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| Places of Interest |
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| Gateway of India : |
| Located on the waterfront in South Mumbai, the Gateway is a basalt arch 26 metres high. It is located next to the iconic Taj Mahal Palace & Tower. This monument is built in Indo – Sarcenic style of architecture and has a mild influence of Muslim style from Gujarat. The Gateway of India was built as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary of England. Ironically, when the Raj ended in 1947, this colonial symbol also became a sort of epitaph: the last of the British ships that set sail for England left from the Gateway. |
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| Banganga : |
| A sacred tank surrounded by four hundred-year-old temples and modern skyscrapers. The water in this tank is believed to come from the Holy Ganges. It sprung forth when Rama, the exiled hero of the epic Ramayana stopped at the spot five thousand years ago, in search of his kidnapped wife Sita. On the annual Banganga festival, which takes place in the month of January thousands of devotees turn up to take a ritual dip in its mossy waters, and offer flowers at the ancient Banganga Temples. |
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| Bhuleshwar : |
| The Mumbadevi temple is located here in Bhuleshwar. The streets of Bhuleshwar is housed with little shops with Glass articles , embroidered saris, vivid pink-and-green sweetmeats. The famous Zaveri Bazzar which sells Gold and Diamonds is located here. |
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| Chor Bazzar : |
| This is Mumbai''s famous Thieves Market where bargain-hungry tourists rummage for Ming vases and Muranos at throwaway prices. The main avenue is Motton Street, flanked by rows of little antique shops that look like musty attics and sell just about anything from old ship parts, grandfather clocks and gramophones, to crystal chandeliers and old English tea sets. Others offer authentic Victorian furniture, wonderful for browsers, antiquarians and restorers. |
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| Chowpatty Beach : |
| The Chowpatty Beach is located in the Central Mumbai , at the end of Marine Drive at the foot of Malabar. This place is filled with activites in the evenings. One can find Carnivals , Bhel puri stalls , local Artists , Street plays on the sea shore. Chowpatty reflects the spirits of the people of Mumbai. |
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| Fashion Street : |
| This is the perfect place for those who look for the best designs for the Reasonable rates. The Fashion Street is located on Mahatma Gandhi road , adjoining Cross Maiden and opposite to Azad Miaden in South Mumbai. This is the most famous hangout for Teenagers and College goers. It has over a Hundred shops with huge collection of Garments of the lastest style. Apart from clothes one can also buy Shoes and Funky Jewellaries. |
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| Flora Fountain : |
| The Flora Fountain stands on the site of the old church gate of the Bombay Fort, now a major crossroad named Hutatma Chowk. It was erected to honour Sir Bartle Frere, a former governor of Bombay and named after the Greek goddess Flora. Other buildings to see in the Fountain or Fort area are the University of Mumbai buildings including the imposing Rajabhai Tower, the Mumbai High Court, the Old Secretariat, and the Institute of Science on one end. Close by are situated St Thomas Cathedral, the Asiatic Society of Bombay or Town Hall, the Office of the Director General of Police, the General Post Office and the Thomas Cook building.This is the commercially active hub and home to Bombay Stock Exchange. |
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| Hanging Gardens : |
| Perched at the top of Malabar Hill, on its western side, just opposite the Kamala Nehru Park, these terraced gardens, also known as Ferozeshah Mehta Gardens, provide lovely sunset views over the Arabian Sea. The park was laid out in the early 1880s over Bombay''s main reservoir, some say to cover the water from the potentially contaminating activity of the nearby Towers of Silence. |
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| Jehangir Art Gallery : |
| Bombay''s main art gallery, just next to the Prince of Wales Museum, displays changing exhibits by well-known Indian artists. There''s plenty of art to be seen outside as well, as the plaza in front of the building is full of artists offering their works for sale and their talents for commission assignments. |
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| Juhu Beach : |
| This suburban beach, located in north Mumbai is great favourite with the localities, and has plenty to offer everyone. Like Marine Drive''s Chowpatty, Juhu ''Chowpatty'' is a vendor''s delight with innumerable food counters. It is a wonderful place to bring kids, as it doubles up as an amusement park, play ground, and open-air restaurant. An unusual sight at this beach is the camel ride, which is both fun and popular. |
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| Kamala Nehru Park : |
| Covering an area of 4,000 sq yd (3,300 m²) the Kamala Nehru Park is located at the top of Mumbai''s Malabar Hill, it is named after Kamala Nehru, the wife of India''s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.A place frequently visited by schoolchildren, it has little to offer by way of entertainment apart from a structure shaped like a shoe. The shoe structure is inspired by the nursery rhyme "There was an old woman". From the garden, one can see the spectacular view of the city, Chowpatty Beach, and Queen''s Necklace (Marine Drive). This park for the people of Mumbai is as prestigious as the Effiel Tower for the people of Paris. |
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| Marine Drive : |
| Marine Drive is a 3-kilometre-long boulevard in South Mumbai in the city of Mumbai. It is an inverted ''C''-shaped six-lane concrete road along the coast, which is a natural bay. The road links Nariman Point to Babulnath and Malabar Hill. Marine Drive is situated over reclaimed land facing west-south-west. The bay is part of the Arabian Sea. |
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| Prince Wales Museum : |
| Barely a stone''s throw from the Gateway of India is the Prince of Wales Museum, a magnificent structure, built in a confluence of Gothic and Moorish styles, and crowned by a sparkling white dome. It boasts a good collection of ancient Indus Valley artifacts dating back to 2000 BC, plus some priceless Tibetan and Nepali Art. There is an entire gallery devoted to Buddhist tankha scrolls and another to Tibetan bronzes, but the chief attraction here is the collection of over 2000 miniature paintings from the various art schools of India. Next to the Museum is the Bombay Natural History Society, which has an extensive collection of local flora and fauna. |
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| Priyadarshini Park : |
| A rocky wasteland near the sea has been reclaimed and transformed into a large park, which can only be described as a feast for the eyes, amidst the concrete jungle of Malabar Hill. It lies to the west of Napean Sea Road. Besides acting as a lung for the city, it has a large track for joggers, several tennis courts and a fully equipped gym and a health club. |
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| Mani Bhavan : |
This simple and charming museum was where Mahatma Gandhi lived on his visits to Mumbai between 1917 and 1934. Gandhi''s room and belongings including his books are on display. Mani Bhavan is situated on Laburnam Road, near the August Kranti Maidan, where the ''Quit India'' movement was launched in 1942. Open daily from
9.30 am to 6 pm. |
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| Victoria Terminus : |
| Modeled on the lines of the St Pancras Station in London, Victoria Terminus, now rechristened as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is undoubtedly the Raj''s piece de resistance, Complete with carved stone friezes, stained glass windows and flying buttresses. It is Gothic architecture at its best, an awesome edifice that most citizens view with deep pride. At the top of the central dome stands the triumphant figure of Progress. |
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| The station was christened to commemorate Victoria Jubilee Day in 1887 when India''s first steam engine puffed out to neighboring Thane, about 45 kms away. Today it has been rechristened Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus after the Maratha warrior. And the old steam engines have been replaced by electric ones. But to the 2.5 million commuters who push past its massive portals everyday, this is still VT, the pulse of a throbbing city. |
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| Veermata Jeejabai Udyan : |
| Popularly called Ranee Baug after its namesake, the Victoria Gardens are now rechristened Jijamata Udyan. They are botanical gardens, sprawled over 48 acres and contain some of the oldest trees in the city, some dating back two hundred years. At the entrance is a charming Renaissance clock tower to match the Italian Renaissance-style Victoria and Albert Museum (now the Bhau Dali Ladd Museum) that houses an interesting collection of local archaeological finds. Just behind it is the Mumbai Zoo. |
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| Worli Fishing Village : |
| Over two thousand years ago, Mumbai was an archipelago of seven islands, inhabited by the kolis. These tribal fisherfolk still live here in tightly knit communities that the passing centuries have scarcely touched. The best place to see them is in the 600-year-old Worli Fishing Village that stands on a sliver of land jutting into the sea. Plunge into one of its winding gullies and you will instantly be assailed by the smell of drying fish, and colourful koli women, their dark skins offset by chunky tribal jewellery. At the end of the village is a small Portuguese fort with remnants of an old armoury, soldiers barracks and thick ramparts. Before the Raj, when Portugal ruled Mumbai, this was a strategic vantage point to counter attacks from the sea. |
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| Essel World : |
| This is Mumbai''s only international-style theme park and amusement centre situated close to Gorai Beach. Special ferries get you across to the park and the entrance fee normally takes care of a fixed number of rides. These include the standard roller coaster and adventure themes, plus a water world section where kids can literally run amok. Summer is usually crowded, but the place also offers low budget monsoon packages and special deals on weekends. |
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| Sanjay Gandhi National Park : |
| Originally planned as a wildlife retreat outside Mumbai, the Sanjay Gandhi National Park is now virtually engulfed by the growing city. Most of it is wild and unsafe, but breathtakingly beautiful, filled with dense forests and dotted with sylvan lakes. One can also take the Lion Safari at the entrance. |
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| Kanheri Caves : |
| These are Buddhist caves or monasteries where monks practiced their austerities around the first century AD. And unlike the artistic extravagance of Elephanta, they are spartan and bare. Situated in the heart of Mumbai''s National Park, the complex contains more than a hundred tiny cells cut into the flank of a hill, each fitted with a stone plinth that evidently served as a bed. |
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| There is also a congregation hall supported by huge stone pillars that contains the dagoba, a kind of Buddhist shrine. And if you pick your way up the hill you will find channels and cisterns that are remnants of an ancient water system that channeled rainwater into huge urns. |
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| Places around Mumbai |
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| Elephanta Caves : |
| Across the Mumbai Harbour, lie the seventh-century rock-cut temples of Elephanta. Once known as Gharapuri, or the Fortress City, the Caves are now designated as a World Heritage Site and visited by hundreds of tourists both for their art historical and scenic value. The Portuguese renamed this island Elephanta after a large stone elephant found near the shore. The caves are reached by the means of Boats from the Gateway of India. |
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| Lonavala and Khandala : |
| Khandala and Lonavala are two charming hill stations on the western slopes of the Sahyadris, 104 kms from Mumbai by road on the Mumbai-Pune highway at an altitude of 625 m. The most popular hangout of the locals. October to May is the best time to visit. |
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| Matheran : |
| Matheran is 100 Km away from Mumbai , an undulating hilltop cloaked in shady trees, that sprawls languidly at an altitude of 800 m. The journey involves an adventurous two-hour ascent in a toy train, with food and drink vendors and monkeys jumping on and off as the valley glides by sedately. Alternately, a tough 11 km hike through thick and shady forests or a winding car drive can get you there as well. |
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