As we made our way to our next destination, We spent the better part of 2 hours watching the locals of Mapusa celebrate Diwali by setting off fireworks in random places (such as in the middle of the road while cars were still moving, and even children were setting them off!) and fitting fairy lights everywhere. Has health and safety gone haywire in England or are we right to be cautious? This later caused a power cut, probably due to the overload of electrics and Mapusa was pitch black when we departed. 
We had booked a sleeper bus to Mumbai, the only place in the state of Maharashtra that we would be visiting. Within ten minutes of getting on the bus, Helen was in a nervous state as she saw several cockroaches scuttle all over the bed. Helen stayed awake the entire journey (14 hours) as she could not bear the thought of cockroaches crawling all over her, there was a putrid smell of fish and the driver kept braking every 5 seconds to the effect that she could hear the screech of the brakes without her hearing aids!
We arrived in Mumbai (Colaba) at approximately 9.30am, the air was warm and clammy but to our surprise it was not smelly. We got a taxi to our hotel which we had pre booked due to Diwali celebrations. Hotel Seashore is about 5 minutes walk from the Gateway of India and while it looks like a derelict building on the outside we were pleasantly surprised with our room and bathroom - ultra modern and most importantly clean! Thankfully we were allowed to check in without having to wait until 12 as Helen was screaming for a shower! 
Our first day in Mumbai was spent taking in the sights of Colaba. Colaba is a bustling district packed with street stalls, markets, bars and budget lodgings. We completed a walking tour as recommended by the Lonely Planet (yes, Tyron we are still treating it as our bible!). We were surprised with what Mumbai has to offer, perhaps it's the legacy of a British rule back in King George V's reign? Mumbai is a beautiful mess and there is a lot of beautiful crumbling architecture to admire, it is also surprisingly modern and we both loved the vibe of Colaba. Most of you will remember Mumbai as Bombay, and surprisingly this name is still used as reference.
Our second day was spent exploring the Kala Ghoda (Black Horse) area of Mumbai, we visited the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya Museum otherwise known as the Prince of Wales museum. (don't expect us to say Chh Shiv blah etc). The museum itself is held in a stunning building which was more interesting than the contents (exhibits from all over India and hosts an intriguing hodgepodge of Islamic, Hindu and British architecture).  
We spent the rest of the day shopping, this is when Helen wished she was just on holiday and not travelling as she saw many stunning things...we also went to what is 'supposedly' Mumbais best bookshop in search of a Nepal lonely planet book...the bookshop was just the same as an average Waterstones back home! (and they didn't have the book we wanted!) however we did strike up conversation with an older American guy who used to live in the Punjab but since returning to America he ensures that he visits India every year and he gave us tips on our next destination. 
Our evening was spent in frustration as we tried to book bus tickets to Ahmedabad, our next destination but the Indian booking system needs to learn a thing or two from England. We gave up and headed back to the hotel to watch more films! 
The next morning was spent touring Dharavi Slum (where they filmed some of Slumdog Millionaire). We felt we had to tour a slum as this is the way of life for many Mumbaikars (55% live in shanty towns or slums!). We did our tour with Reality Tours and Travel as they give a percentage of their profits back to Dharavi, they also run a community centre and kindergarten in Dharavi.  Dharavi is the largest slum in Asia and over 1 million people reside here. We were surprised to find on our tour how the slum contributes to India, recycling is the main business here - the residents thrive on receiving rubbish and reproducing for their own gain! Dharavi has Potters from Saurashtra, Muslim tanners, embroidery workers from Uttar Pradesh, metal workers, plastic recyclists and Poppadum makers. While the families all live in poverty and dirt due to inefficient sanitation and having one toilet block per thousand people the annual turnover of Dharavi is $665 million. 
Both Environmental Health and the Health and Safety inspectorate back home in England would have a field day if they visited Dharavi. In particular as we observed puff pastry makers using their feet to prepare the food even though they walk bare feet outside amongst all the dirt and rubbish. In addition, the Poppadums are left to dry out on the floor where animals can easily access them! 
Visiting this slum made me realise just how lucky children have it in England and how stringent our child protection procedures are. This trip is certainly making me review my views on how we treat children back home. The children of Dharavi were amongst the happiest and friendliest children we have seen yet they live in flimsy corrugated iron shacks and play games on rubbish tips. 
Our next stop was Dhobi Ghat, a 140 year old place where laundry is done.  The entire hamlet is Mumbai's oldest and biggest human powered washing machine! Dhobi Ghat has 1026 open air troughs and the smell in the air was sweet when we visited! Helen had her laundry done here and is pleased to report that they do a very good job! The rest of the day was spent booking bus tickets, browsing the street markets and having cake at Theobroma where we ate perfectly executed cakes and had a decent cup of tea. 
The evening spelled the end of our stay in beautiful Mumbai, Mumbai certainly surprised us! We caught a overnight bus to Ahmedabad (a/c) to see whether this reduces the likelihood of facing cockroaches! Ahmedabad is only our next destination to break down our journey to Udaipur.