Mumbai, Bandhavgarh and Maldives
Although we have been to India several times we have never been to Mumbai. We also thoroughly enjoy seeing the big cats on our regular trips to South Africa on Safari , so we decided to combine a trip to India visiting Mumbai with Bandhavgarh to see the tigers in the wild. This will be quite a busy trip with early mornings so once the India section is finished, we’re off to Ananea in the Maldives for a spot of rest and some diving.
The trip didn’t get off to a brilliant start due to Mr Donald Trump’s shenanigans in the Middle East and Paul getting wrong date on visa wasn’t his finest hour. However, despite being rerouted over North Africa, we arrived ahead of schedule.
Mumbai
Mumbai, often called the “City of Dreams,” offers a mix of cultural landmarks, historical sites, vibrant markets, and scenic coastal spots. Mumbai’s diversity ensures there’s something for everyone, whether you’re into history, culture, food, or just soaking up the city’s vibrant energy.
Mumbai New Coastal Road: on way from the airport we passed through the iconic Bandra-Worli Sea Link, a well-known cable-stayed bridge, then on to the new Coastal Road and finally the underground tunnel that passes beneath the Priya Darsahni Park.
As we’d just arrived the first day is about getting over jet lag and perhaps finding our bearings.
Mumbai City Tour
There is so much to see in this city, so it was easiest to just get our driver to take us to see some of the highlites, these are the ones that we chose:
Marine Drive: is one of the most beautifully laid boulevards in southern part of Mumbai. The C shaped area in South Mumbai, Marine Drive is also called the “Queen’s Necklace”.
Girgaon Chowpatty: is a public beach along the Queen’s Necklace adjoining Marine Drive and is great for an evening stroll and snacks.
Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Temple: Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir is a Hare Krishna temple, community, and ashram dedicated to the practice of bhakti-yoga and home to a loving community of practicing Hare Krishna devotees and over 200 resident monks.
Hanging Gardens: offers green space and trees amongst the heavily congested city. Along with numerous hedges carved into the shapes of animals, the gardens feature a prominent flower clock at its centre and the ‘Old Woman’s Shoe’ or the ‘Boot House’.
Jain Temple: Babu Amichand Panalal Adishwarji Jain Temple, A Holy religious temple of jain community who follows Jainism in Mumbai is located at Malabar Hills.
Antilla Residence: located on Billionaires’ Row, is the residence of the Indian billionaire businessman Mukesh Ambani and his family. It was valued at US$4.6 billion in 2023 and is the world’s second most valuable residential property, after British crown property Buckingham Palace, and the world’s most valuable private residence.
Haji Ali Dargah: is one of the most recognisable landmarks of Mumbai, a Sufi shrine and monument to Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari, a Sufi saint and a wealthy merchant from Uzbekistan and is located on an islet off the coast of Worli.
Dhobi Gat Mumbai: Dhobi Ghat is an open air laundromat in Mumbai, India. The washers, known as dhobis, work in the open to clean clothes and linens from Mumbai’s hotels and hospitals.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus Area Fort: formerly known as Victoria Terminus, is a historic railway station and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India which serves as the headquarters of the Central Railways.
This is also a great area to watch the dabawal at work.
Other places to see are:
Dharavi Slums: is one of the world’s largest slums with an area of 2.4 sqkm and a population of about 1,000,000 making it one of the most densely populated areas in the world. Dharavi has an active informal economy in which numerous household enterprises make leather, textiles and pottery products. The total annual turnover has been estimated at over US$1 billion.
Mumbai Elephanta Caves
Next up is a 1 hour ferry ride across to Elephanta Island in Mumbai Harbour to see the Elephanta Caves. The caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and feature 5th-8th century rock-cut temples dedicated to Lord Shiva.
Besides the caves, the island features two hills (Gun Hill and Stupa Hill) and a small museum, offering panoramic views of Mumbai’s harbor.
Gateway of India: is a monumental arch on the waterfront, erected to commemorate the landing of King George V for his coronation as the Emperor of India. He was the first British monarch to visit India.
As we were in the right area this afternoon we decided to have a little retail therapy:
Colaba Causeway and market: is famous for shopping and food. From cheap street clothes to fashionable boutiques, this lane, which houses old buildings from the British Raj, has it all, clothes, shoes, purses, and even jewellery in the latest designs.
Crawford Market: is one of South Mumbai’s most famous markets named after Arthur Crawford, the first Municipal Commissioner of the city, the market was later renamed to honour Indian social reformer Mahatma Jotirao Phule.
Fashion Street: Is a long stretch of over 150 stalls selling everything from ripped jeans and funky t-shirts to sneakers and watches.
Mumbai Bollywood
Today is Bollywood. We’re off to learn about Bollywood’s history, and maybe even catch a live shoot.
Mumbai is the home to Bollywood which is the massive Hindi-language film industry and is one of the largest production centers in the world. Films are known for being 3-hour spectacles combining multiple genres, often featuring star-crossed lovers, dramatic family conflicts, and musical numbers. While India remains the biggest market, Bollywood has a massive following in Britain and globally.
This is Paul using artificial intelligence and video effects to save the world against the zombies
Lynn teaching the world to sing
Last day in Mumbai, so we decided to go to the Taj for high tea. A bit of a colonial hotel, a real tourist attraction but I guess we are tourists so it would be rude not to.
Bandhavgarh
After an early flight to Jabalpur then a long road transfer it’s time for safari.
Bandhavgarh National Park, known for Royal Bengal Tigers, is spread over the Vindhya hills in Madhya Pradesh and consists of a core area of 105 sq km and a buffer area of approximately 400 sq km. The topography of the whole area varies between steep ridges, undulating forest and open meadows.
The density of the tiger population at Bandhavgarh is the highest known in India as well as in the world. The national park was the former hunting preserve of the Maharaja of Rewa and at present is a famous natural hub for the elusive White Tigers.
Besides tigers, it supports a diverse range of fauna, including leopards, sloth bears, gaur (Indian bison), nilgai, sambar, barking deer, wild boars, and over 250 bird species.
Below are a couple of highlites of each drive over the 5 days and below longer versions.
In Bandhavgarh mobile phones and radios are banned so sightings aren’t particular easy. But with a combination of looking for prints, listening to warning calls and a little help from elephants we got there. First photographs of tigers weren’t the easiest though…….
The sightings did get better……….
So did Lynn’s video skills
Then it was challenging again
Bath time
Tiger and three cub
Tigers crossing
Masters of disguise
Tiger in dried up river bed
I’d always thought that seeing a big cat coming along a dried up river bed towards me would be cool. Last day didn’t disappoint.
Arrived at raised area to hear a lot of alarm calls then a tiger came up the river bed. There were a few other cars there and weren’t keen to give up their positions.
I still got some nice pictures of the tiger but then it decided to have a bathe where none of us could see him.
I realised if he went back same way it would be an “ass shot” but if he decided to go up the bed towards the bridge it would be head on. I persuaded the guide to go to the bridge.
Isn’t karma a funny thing, he came straight up the river bed towards me and all the vans that wouldn’t let us in missed out on those shots/ videos and despite their protestations our driver had an attack of deafness.
What goes around comes around.
Tiger in dried up river bed
Tiger chilling
Tiger Cleaning herself
The monkeys here were so cute
Plenty of birds….
The best of the rest!
Maldives Ananea
Ananea Madivaru Maldives is in a private lagoon in the North Ari Atoll and blends contemporary elegance with South Asian and Indian Ocean heritage. It is unique in that it is a twin-island resort with each connected by an overwater walkway and is a short sea plane transfer from Male. There are pristine white sandy beaches, a central lagoon, and a house reef rich in marine life, ideal for diving.
We generally would never opt for a water villa as we like to have the sand in our feet experience. We opted for the basic room which was classed as a deluxe pool beach villa and we are very fortunate to get one on the sunset side of the island, or perhaps that was maybe with a little help from our travel agent.
Ananea Dining
There are 8-9 diverse dining venues.
Ananea Grounds
With the island being less than one year-old, the whole place is pristine. I don’t think I’ve ever been to an island where the flowers are so beautiful, they even have their own fire truck which doubles up for watching duties for the flowers, plants and shrubs.
Ananea Sunsets
Each night we have a beautiful sunset from our beds on the beach or from one of the bars.
A look around the island
A tour of the island from one end to the other on the back of the golf boogie
Ananea Diving
Not the best of videos but it was my first dive after the last 12 months and I guess my mind was elsewhere and more than a little apprehensive.
Viz wasn’t the best and I was also experimenting with a new close up lens but did see a turtle, eagle ray and for once I’ve been able to video a nudibranch in focus.
Second dive and due to a medical incident my last ever dive. Not the high that I intended going out on but some great diving memories over the years.