Audio Guided Walking Tour on HopOn India App – From Gateway to Fountain, Mumbai

Gateway of India

The Gateway was a monument built to commemorate travel, commerce - and, of course, the might of the British Empire. It was the entry point into the most happening city of India,and was named Urbs Prima in Indis or the foremost city in India by the colonial administration. . It was the site of cotton trading during the cotton boom. It was the port of entry into India for important colonial officials, merchants and traders, and British army officers. Ironically, it was also the point of exit for the last British troops who had held India. The style of architecture you will be looking at is called the Indo- Saracenic or Indo-Gothic style, or simply Bombay Gothic. The architects of this style were inspired by native Indian and middle-eastern Islamic traditions; they combined these with the Gothic revival and Neo-Classical movements that were flourishing in Britain during the 19th century. Don’t be surprised, if during your tours, you come across several structures with the high arches and ornate carvings like in cathedrals, only to be topped with domes and minarets like a Turkish palace! You can linger about and marvel at the statues of Swami Vivekananda and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.They’re both icons of Indian history. Swami Vivekananda also sailed from here on his historic visit at the Chicago Parliament of Religions in 1893. He ended up introducing the western world to Hindu spiritual practices and ideals.

The Taj Mahal Palace hotel comprises two buildings: a tall, relatively new-looking one to the right, and an older, grander building to the left. The entrance to The Taj is through the new building, and I recommend that you stand across the street from this entrance as I tell you the story of the Hotel. If you stand in front of the Taj, you will find yourself in the middle of an interesting panorama of Mumbai life. Behind you stands the Gateway of India, bustling with tourists. On your extreme left you are likely to see quaint old carriages, called Victorias, dressed up in gaudy colours and pulled by rather sad- looking horses. On your right, the traffic blares away. Every once in a while you will see a fancy car pull up into the driveway of the Taj, carrying elegantly dressed guests who may have come to stay at this iconic hotel or just stopped by for a bite at the many restaurants here. Built in 1903, the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel was, for several decades, the first sighting for visitors sailing into Apollo Bunder Harbour. The island city of Bombay has its British colonial history to thank for most of its heritage structures. But for Indians it is quite a satisfying thought that the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel – one of our most iconic, beautiful and luxurious buildings was built by an Indian. The Taj hotel is exquisitely pretty, built in the same Indo- Saracenic style as the Gateway. It combines this style with elements of Byzantine or Medieval Turkish architecture, so if you look up you will see its domes sitting like fat onions on top of its high Gothic ceilings. It even has latticework on its balconies in the Arabic style.

Before we reach to Leopold cafe we will be visiting Lansdowne Road and Tulloch Road. At Lansdowne Road you will spot some fancy curio shops and the Bowen Memorial Methodist Church. You will come to another lane that leads to the left, known as Tulloch road. It is down this lane that we will go, for it contains some of Colaba's hidden treasures.For decades, this lane has been the centre of Mumbai's nightlife: A delectable pit stop for the city that never sleeps. No matter how late you turn up here you will find good food, good booze and good cheer. First, to your left stands Bade Miya – the kababwalas who have been feeding the city's hungry partygoers since 1946. If you happen to come to Bade Miya during the evening hours when it operates, we recommend you try the succulent mutton seekh kabab and the bhuna gosht. Or if you’re a vegetarian, go for a juicy plate of paneer tikka.you will see Gokul on the right. Gokul has been the provider of cheap drinks to students like me and young professionals since the 1960s, to your right. At Gokul you can try their coastal-style fish preparations like bombil fry and surmai fry with the poison of your choice. Just a few steps after Gokul you will also find Baghdadi - another low-priced eatery. As famished students, my friends and I would raid Baghdadi every Friday night after drinks at Gokul, gorging on the mutton biryani or the chicken fry or chicken Afghani. True to the name, the rotis you will get at Baghdadi are in the middle-eastern style: they're huge, almost 30 inches in diameter, and one is more than enough to fulfill your cravings. Imagine that. You have two iconic monuments on one side and the sumptuous bazaar of Colaba Causeway on the other, and yet this tiny gulli holds enough of the city's treasures to have a presence of its own. For over 50 years, Cafe Leopold has been the confluence, the meeting point, of all the streams of life and multicultural experiences that we Mumbaikars are so proud of. Cafe Leopold is the favourite haunt of foreign tourists and visiting expats, non-resident Indians, and locals who are looking for world class restaurant culture combined with the warmth of Indian hospitality. Have you read 'Shantaram', the best-selling book about life in Mumbai, by author Gregory David Roberts? In the book, he describes Cafe Leopold as "a place for people to see, to be seen and to see themselves in the act of being seen". This is not so true anymore. But what cannot be denied is that Leopold itself has been, and continues to be, the place with an international feel to it. From hippies in the 60s and 70s, to Arabs and Afghans in the early 80s, then backpackers through the 80s and 90s and expats ever since then. And of course, as a peaceful, lively and open-hearted meeting place of different cultures, Leopold could not escape the tragedy of the November 2008 terrorist attack. Two terrorists hurled a grenade and fired bullets into this crowd, causing the painful loss of many lives. Proud of its strength, Leopold has preserved the bullet holes on its walls.