Arrival!!!!

Hi Everyone,
Just thought I'd let everyone know how I'm doing! I was able to find Kate pretty easily in MN, and our flights were pretty painless, It just started to get super long towards the end. 20 hours of flight time and 30 hours total with airport waits...kinda lame! Anyhoo, we were pretty stoked bc when we showed up there was a guy with a sign with kate's name on it, which was promising. We though all was well, until the driver started taking us down the most random back alleys you've ever seen! Literally....I thought we were headed straight for the black market. Luckily I had kate with me and all we could do was laugh! Even when we got there, it seemed so weird...no sign, it wasf pretty much just an apartment that they had turned into a hostel. It was a little strange, but all good. Apparently she tried to book a room in a double hotel room, but it ended up being two hostel beds for $15 (which was good bc it was going to be $60 for the room), but it just sucked coming in so late (1 am), then wanting to shower and kick it, but having to be super quiet. I fell asleep ok, but then I woke up in the middle of the night and could NOT go back to sleep. I think I was just filled with nerves, excitement, and fear. So, yeah, I've pretty much been up since about 3 am which sucks...I read a bunch in my book...but it was just so weird laying in an uncomfortable hostel bed in Mumbai reading about all the crazy shit that goes down in this city! So, after a long night of missing you we finally woke up and were trying to figure out our shit. Since we were literally in the middle of nowhere we decided to get a taxi and head to Colaba (the budget travelers destination).

We managed to share the 45 minute taxi with another girl fromt the hostel so it was a pretty cheap ride; far from boring though! Everyone uses their horns here like they are going out of style! LITERALLY, apparently that's the signal for I want to pass you...who knew right? Also, half the time there aren't any lines in the road so instead there are just hundreds of cars attempting to navigate down a four way freeway.....all the while honking....while people are trying to cross the street. Which is really a whole other story in itself. Crossing the street is like risking your life in a game of frogger. You literally don't know if you'll make it to the other side or just be crushed by a tuk tuk or a bus. It's a wee bit freaky. Let's just put it this way...Kate and I have become great runners!

So, anyhoo, we got to Colaba and booked some dorm beds in the Salvation Army hostel....pretty bare and basic, but I guess it works! There were no sheets on the thin little mattress so we went out and bought some fabric to act as a bottom sheet (2 yards for $4), and a little extra to make a pillow out of (bc I don't know what is growing in that pillow, but it makes airplane pillows look super sanitary)! We also decided that the city is a little crazy for us gals, so we went to a travel agency to help us make some sense out of the nonsense that surrounds us, and make an escape south to the pleasant beaches of Goa! Unfortunately all the trains are booked for a few days and we don't really want to wait that long, so we decided that we are going to take a night bus tomorrow night (only 15 hours!!!!), and that way we'll arrive in Goa in the morning! We are pretty pumped to leave the craziness of Mumbai.

And crazy it is, let me tell you!!!! Besides the crazy ass drivers, there are people everywhere; begging, selling, trying to give you things in exchange for money. Everyone has something to say to you its crazy! You literally cannot walk 100 feet undisturbed. If you look at anything at all in a street booth they start yelling and grabbing you, it's a little bit to get used to that's for sure!

Kate and I decided to walk around for awhile, just perusing the streets....of course I ended up with a new sarong, earrings, and bangles (and I am trying HARD to resist shopping even more). We found a place to eat thanks to the LP (lonely planet). It was nice, ac....clean, and cheap. Unfortunately we didn't really know what to order, so kate ordered something she remembered was good, and I just kind of blindly chose another option. Our food ended up being pretty good! The spices are delicious...and most of the food is vegetarian, which is great when you don't know what you're ordering! Our meal consisted of a huge crepe with a yummy potato/onion curry thing inside, a big bowl of rice with two chapattis (tortillas pretty much), and a plate with 5 or 6 different sauces and stuff to eat with the rice and chapatti. We also got a large bottle or water, and our bill was just under $2! And this place was one of the nicer places to eat! It was awesome!

So, that about sums up where we are at right now. Kate's cousin's girlfriend is staying at the same hostel, and she has been travelling around northern India, so we are hoping to bump into her and get some tips. Other than that, we are going to find someway to occupy ourselves in the a.m...then we take the night "sleeper" bus at 5!