Slum laundry, Gandhi house, and Elephanta caves oh my

If you didn't guess from the title, today we went to slum laundry, Gandhi house, and the Elephanta caves. When I woke up this morning I didn't think I would be able to go to these cultural sites. I could barely get out of bed let alone stand for hours. I will say DayQuil is an amazing drug. I can't say I felt bad to normal, but it numbed my symptoms enough for me to function like a normal human being. I also have to give a shout out to Alyssa and everyone else who refused to let me miss out on this adventure because I was feeling miserable.

We started off our day at the slum laundry. The place is unbelievable. They wash thousands of items of clothing and everything ends up in the right place. However, considering the working conditions I can't imagine the clothes are as clean as those washed in a machine. Fun fact: the slum laundry is in the Guinness book of world records for something. I'm not sure what though.

This is how they wash thousands of clothing items a day.

Next we went to Gandhi's house. He actually lived and work in the building, which is now a museum. It was interesting to see Gandhi not only as the man who became the father of India, but also the life events that helped to shape him. The museum had photos of him as a child, and had a figurine collection that showed landmark events in Gandhi's life, from his birth to his assassination. 

Where Gandhi lived and worked.

Gandhi statue.

Finally we took an hour long ferry ride to the Elephanta caves. The caves were a hike to get through, and we had to dodge merchants along the way, but it was worth it. The caves were magnificent. I still cannot believe humans carved them. However, this place was also the most troublesome to travel around. Allie was harassed by a monkey for her Fanta soda pop, and we were hounded for photos by Indians more than usual. Bandhana actually yelled at the large crowd that gathered to take our picture when we took a group photo.

Outside the elephant caves.

Crazy monkey that stole Allie's Fanta.

After finishing up with the caves, we braved the merchants again. Only this time with the goal of shopping. I can't say I'm getting any better at bargaining, had it not been for Alex, I'm sure I would've overpaid for some of the gifts I bought for friends and family back home. We meet at the dock and boarded the ferry back to Mumbai. It was at this point Alex and I decided to go back with Bandhana to the hotel while the rest of the group went to a rooftop bar. 

Needless to say, both of us were feeling pretty awful. The way I see it though is that I can sacrifice one might at the bars to get healthy, or a can be miserable for that much longer. I did struggle with my decision to go back to the hotel, but considering the amount of DayQuil I had taken today I decided I probably couldn't drink anyway.

The taxi ride back was really fun. I hadn't had much time to talk to Alex or Bandhana. We all talked about how yoga changed our lives. It sounds corny, but we bonded over this ancient exercise.

Namaste.