The city of a zillion dreams–an intern’s guide to Mumbai

Mumbai is perhaps the liveliest city on earth. If you’re shifting to Mumbai this year for an internship, an important piece of advice previous and current interns can give you is to learn to love this city. If you don’t, you may have a very difficult time. The most populous city in the country doesn’t come without its stressors, so be prepared! (The biggest problem with this beautiful city, of course, is that it is so distressingly difficult to articulately write about it).

These are the things you may find useful to know about before you shift:

The city in one word: Dynamic.

Where to stay: Renting flats can be extremely expensive. Paying guest accommodation is available in MHADA colonies all over the city among other places, and it is not too difficult to find. YMCA and YWCA too offer accommodation. Hostels are another good option and several are available in all parts of the city. Overall, the question of finding accommodation won’t keep you awake at night.

The people: Nothing to be concerned about here. If you want help, you’ll always receive it. If you want directions to a certain place, you’ll get detailed ones.

Of course, it is never safe to generalize, but the people can be categorized into the “wonderful” group. But as a local tells us, “You’ll always find someone fighting in the neighbourhood. Where ever you go.” It is fun to watch.

Weather: During March to May, you will hear, “It is so terribly hot today!” every single day. Also expect humidity. June-September means rains. The work doesn’t ever stop, though. The city never sleeps, remember? October is uncomfortable, but November to February is fairly pleasant.

What to do:

1. Visit the Gateway of India at night.
2. Ride on the upper deck of a double-decker bus.
3. Spend hours walking or just sitting at Marine Drive and observe the sea, the people and the crabs.
4. Walk around Fort and look at all the quaint old buildings (a great place if you’re into photography).
5. Go to Juhu Beach.
6. Go to Blue Frog for a gig.
7. Arjun, who is interning at Rainbow Books, swears by the m-Indicator app. If you own an Android, you should get it.
8. Watch this video. It describes Mumbai people better than any article can.

What not to do:

1. Guys—never ever travel in the ladies’ compartment in a train. Girls—always travel in the ladies’ coach unless there’s a guy accompanying you.
2. Not leave aside some time for traffic—it will always make you late.
3. Expect perfect Hindi—most Mumbaikars think speaking in proper Hindi is too formal.
4. Praise Delhi. Mumbaikars don’t like it. Not because they’re Shiv Sena people, it’s just like that. One of those unsolved mysteries.
5. Give a Rs. 100 note to a bus conductor—you will never forget that look you’ll get.
6. Not everyone’s loved this city, obviously, and if you’re a nature lover, you may be disappointed:

What to eat:

1. Vada Pav
2. Pav Bhaji and gola at Juhu Beach
3. The chocolate chip cookie at Mocha
4. All kinds of chaat, everywhere
5. Natural’s ice cream
6. More vada pav.

Transport: If your office is more than 15 minutes away from where you stay, traveling is going to be an important part of your life.

1. Mumbai’s famed trains are really its lifeline, and get a railway pass made as soon as possible. Trains do not run for hours on Sundays due to maintenance work, so if you’ll be working on Sundays, make sure you’re prepared to travel by alternate routes. Train rides, though tiring and noisy, can be really entertaining. You will also discover what ‘train friends’ are. And if you didn’t know already: trains are the best place to buy cheap, trendy jewellery.
2. BEST buses are not bad, but can get really crowded. The people aren’t likely to be as friendly as the people in trains. AC buses take longer than trains but are perfectly comfortable.
3. Auto-rickshaws are famous for not going anywhere you want them to go. You can try asking just for fun, but we do not take responsibility if the rickshaw driver agrees to take you somewhere and you just stand there looking awkward.
4. Cabs are very comfortable, but work out to be quite expensive for long-distance travel.

Weekend getaways:

1. Hills stations: Matheran, Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar and Panchgani are the best.
2. Beaches: Madh island, Alibaug, Kashid, Harihareshwar, and, of course, Goa.
3. Forts: Sinhagadh, Murud-Janjira, Raigarh and Pratapgarh are really interesting constructions.

Misconceptions:

1. Bollywood is not a great way to learn about cities, and we need hardly tell you that Mumbai isn’t about bhais. Very few people will tell you that they have met a bhai.
2. The city of crowds: Yes, it is crowded. Yes, there is traffic. But every train does not have people traveling atop it, nor are all streets always clogged with people. Someone from Delhi, for instance, may feel claustrophobic here, but it isn’t as bad as they make it out to be.

We may not be able to say exactly what Mumbai will be like for you, but we’re sure it’ll be unforgettable. If you are interning/have interned in Mumbai, do share your experiences. If you are heading to Mumbai for an internship, feel free to post any queries. We hope this was helpful, and wish you all the very best for your internship!

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