Elephanta Caves…Mumbai part 2

 

Heading towards the Gate to India. Today we will board a ferry and take a one hour board trip to Elephanta Island to view the UNESCO world heritage site of a Hindu cave temple dedicated to the God Shiva. There are five caves but I imagine we will concentrate on the main large cave. Today the tour is listed as demanding… we will see. You know I’m not much into caves, in fact really can’t begin to enter a cave, but I have read so much and seen so many picture that I’m going to force myself to get inside. I have a medical box of anti-anxiety drugs with me and I’m bound and determined I will see this cave.

First obstacle is getting on the ferry. Susan and I are hesitant 

But we move forward as best we can.. there are 6000 people getting on and off ferries daily here…we find that to get to our ferry, we need to climb into one boat, walk across the deck and climb into another boat ( using old tires and big gaps over the water) to get to our boat. All the while angry ferry passengers are stuck waiting for us instead of going to their destination… But WE MADE IT!! Onto our boat and headed to the next adventure…boarding a little train  to get to the 120 steps up to the temple. Our ferry ride was uneventful and when we arrived the train was waiting… its just a little thing with two little engines and a few open cars to take us from the dock to the entrance gate to the steps up. AHHHH the steps… certainly not 120 all in a row…no,one or two with a huge long ramp in between. The vertical rise was unbelievable and after just a couple of them I decided the Sultan chairs carried by four men was the lesser of the two evils.. either I’ll fall out and break a hip while riding or Ill collapse from fatigue while climbing the steps on my own…the possibility of a broken hip won out and into a chair I climbed…we had to travel through a gauntlet of shops and sellers while also going up steps… no easy feat, but of course all I had to do was sit and think light thoughts…

The blue flavor is due to the rates lining the walkway to provide shade.The Sudan chair rocked and rolled and I held on for dear life but we made it to the top! Both Susan and I are glad we took the chairs… most of those who walked were red faced and puffing from exhaustion when they reached the top of the stairs. 

This woman was waiting at the top and for just a dollar you could take her picture… I waited till someone else took hers then grabbed a side shot.. 

walking up to the cave. Very ornate opening.

OMG! 

THE MOST INCREDIBLE TEMPLE EVER!

The sheer size and beauty of the carvings takes my breath away!

When the Portuguese came they desecrated and destroyed many of the carvings. Around the sides were the histories and stories involving Shiva and always seemed to point to a life lesson learned by others..My understanding of Hinduism is limited, of course, so please excuse any falsehood… Shiva is know as the Destroyer, but also as “the protector” He is also the creator and is part of the Holy trinity of God along with Brahma & Vishnu. This temple is dedicated to Shiva and each panel or fresco has a definite moral issue to impart. I was absolutely awestruck by each panel.the following are just a few of the pictures I took and Im afraid I can’t recall all of the stories.. But please enjoy the magnificence of each one.

Looking at the smooth detail and intricate stone work and realize that current archeological thought is that they were carved during the 5th-7th century CE and most scholars  feel they were completed by 550 CE. 

These statues are all in the main hall. Inside the main hall is a smaller temple where you can go in and worship.  We did not go in but could see inside. It held an alter in the center and was very plain compared to the outsides!

Looking through east to west in the main hall

This might help give you an idea of size.

Main hall and western hall

Entrance to another of the five temples on this site.

As in much of Asia, there were the dreaded monkeys. These also know how to grab and run…

And drink from water bottles they steal…

And grab chips

And I guess they like stolen candy bars too.

And another lesson I”m learning… never become so absorbed in your solitaire game on your phone while waiting for the tour to resume that you look up startled to see this walk by you, narrowly missing your feet…

Just doing a little shopping on his way around town!

Returning to the Gate of India and the Taj Mahal Hotel by ferry

We returned at rush hour and this is what we had to walk through to find our bus…

This was a fabulous day and Im so very glad we were able to visit Elephanta Island. I found it to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited.

Once we returned to the ship we quickly got refreshed and headed out to a Viking event: Mumbai Mela..a festival of India and Mumbai. This was an added event to give us a fun and exciting time . 

We were taken to a local event space where we experienced getting Henna tattoos, learned to wrap a Sari,learned how to wrap a turban, watched how bangles were made, watched fabulous dancing and music concerts and had appetizers and a full Indian Buffet. It was three more hours of fun and discovery. Below are some pictures in no particular order:

Tomorrow we leave around noon so will only have time to run out briefly to do a little shopping and then complete our face to face immigration departure interview. Next five days will be sea days while we travel to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.