Depending where you are in India the monsoon season generally lasts from mid-June until the end of September, so we have landed pretty squarely in the middle of it. As one might expect it rains a lot, though having lived through more than a few rainy seasons in Japan I must admit I kind of expected more. It rains, sometimes quite hard which washes out cables which has been playing havoc with our internet access since last Friday, it is extremely humid all of the time, but mainly it is just grey. The upside to the monsoon is that the temperatures are a bit cooler, it averages only about 28°C, and the air quality is better.
Not having reliable access to the internet, while an annoyance to be sure, truly is a first world problem. It is also somewhat surprising seeing that Mumbai truly is a world class city. It is the financial and technical hub of the country, it has a population of anywhere between 18 and 22 million people depending on who you ask, and it ranks 6th in the world for the number of billionaires. That being said there is a clear divide between the have and have nots in India, and the infrastructure of a world class city is in some places severely lacking.
Well, as I said, sometimes it rains quite hard, and in low lying areas of Mumbai it can lead to severe flooding. Our neighbourhood isn’t too bad, but when it rained last week some areas of town were particularly hard hit. Near T’s office there was over a foot of water on the street, and over by the kids’ school (as evidenced by the pictures below) it was even worse.
I have seen pictures of flooding on the news and always thought it would be kind of neat to plunge through it. That was until somebody mentioned to me the extremely high ratio of fecal bacteria which is in the water. Nothing like a bit of feces to take the romance out of it. Yet, people plowed through the knee-high water nonetheless. Some because they had to, while some children obviously took great joy in swimming their way home from school.
Not only does the water cover the streets, but they flood the shop stalls on the sidewalks, and the small patches of earth/road/or sidewalk where people live on the streets. The water also erodes the foundations of buildings leading to numerous collapses across the city. Such puts my inadequate internet service into a clearer perspective.
That being said, I did manage to see the sun the other day.
(The great irony is that this picture was taken while it was raining.)
M
Thanks for this, quite an education. Hope the kids don’t ever have to swim home from school. If we don’t hear from you, we’ll blame it on the monsoons.
Amazing! So interesting to hear about actually living through and in these conditions. India is replete with dichotomies and you’ll get to experience so many of them. Unfortunately the water situation is just the situation that exists, take whatever precautions you are able. I think it is difficult for people from as spacious a place as Canada to really wrap their heads around the density of the population and its resulting problems. I’m sure the experience will make a profound and lasting impression on you and the family, it is a gift you cannot buy the children. Take care and be safe!