Mumbai and the Proximity of Elegance and Squalor

Travel Blog  •  Joanna Kakissis  •  12.06.07 | 9:47 AM ET

imageThe middle of the night is “not such a bad time to arrive” in Mumbai, Thomas Swick writes in a engrossing story in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. The darkness hides the city’s sins, such as the searing poverty. By daylight, however, you see the slums but also the garlanded temples, Bollywood wealth, the elevator operators reading Oliver Sacks, the carnivalesque tourist district of Colaba, the “harsh, utilitarian cacophany” of Crawford Market.

It is, Swick writes, a place that exemplifies “the Indian proximity of elegance and squalor.”

Photo by Humayunn N.A. Peerzaada via Flickr (Creative Commons).

Tags: Asia, India

Joanna Kakissis's writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe and The Washington Post, among other publications. A contributor to the World Hum blog, she's currently a Ted Scripps fellow in environmental journalism at the University of Colorado in Boulder.


2 Comments for Mumbai and the Proximity of Elegance and Squalor

travel to mumbai 02.23.08 | 9:24 AM ET

mumbai is very nice and recommened city

mike willis 04.08.08 | 6:35 AM ET

I,ve recently returned from India,A country I,ve visited a dozen time,s,and each journey across this third world wonderland is a mind-blowing joy.Each time you visit make,s you a little more (india savvy),but don,t worry too much if it,s your first time,India is a very safe destination.Yes there is a huge gap between the rich and poor,you will see more poverty than wealth,but the people and place,s will win you over with their warmth.

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