Because of our decision to take the overland journey to Nepal we have only one day in India. When we left the cruise ship in Cochin it travelled up the west coast of India stopping at Goa, Mangalore and finally Mumbai. This is where we re-joined the ship.
The tour we chose today was Elephanta Caves on Gharapuri Island, a one hour ferry ride from the Gateway of India area where the magnificent Taj Mahal Hotel is located.
The hotel was targeted by terrorists in 2008 where many were taken hostage over a three day siege and many lost their lives. Both Hilary Clinton and Barrack Obama have stayed at the Taj since the attack in order to strengthen ties with India.
Waiting to board the ferry I watched a teacher showing her pupils around the harbour. Kids are the same whatever part of the world you live in. There is a lot of action at the harbour and it seems to be organised chaos as you board you boat. The boats are lined up three deep so you step from one boat to another to get to the farthermost one. It can be quite dangerous stepping from one to another but there is always a willing hand to help you across.
Once on board it was an enjoyable journey to the Island. We passed hundreds of ships docked around the harbour and watched as one fishing boat towed another into shore. There seems to be too many people on board some of these boats and I quickly looked around to see how many life jackets there were!
Once we arrived at Gharapuri Island we boarded a “cane train” to take us along the long jetty to the mainland. From here we began our ascent to Elephanta Caves - 120 fairly steep steps. All the way along the walkway are stalls selling all sorts of wares. I did purchase a beautiful bejewelled table runner for the princely sum of $25.
The caves themselves are awesome. The 7th century caves were carved from solid rock that took seven generations to complete. A description from the guide book says : “The cave complex includes shrines, courtyards, grand halls and porticos filled with exquisite stone sculptures and reliefs of Hindu gods and goddesses.”
Our informative guide was able to describe in detail the meaning and story behind each carving and it was very interesting.
It wasn’t a long tour and we were back on board the ship in time for a late lunch and afterwards a nap. We are still recovering from our cold/flu that seem to linger. We don’t want to visit the medical centre again as my one visit cost me almost $1,000 US. Thank goodness for travel insurance!
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