Events in Mumbai

Thank you to everyone who sent messages to check up on me. I didn't know about what had happened until about 2am, the morning after it all started, when I got a worried text from a friend who had heard the news while on holiday in Egypt. The tragedy of the attacks on Mumbai has been dreadful to witness, but we have been watching the news throughout the day as events have unfolded.

Some of you will know the places that have been attacked. It started in Leopold’s Café in Colaba, with the terrorists opening fire indiscriminately. Having been in Colaba only recently, and only ever eating in Leopold’s, I must admit the news sent a real shiver through me. If this had happened one week ago, I would have been there too. There is definitely a feeling of ‘there but for the grace of God go I’, and yet I can’t help but think of all the people who weren’t so lucky, including the lovely Leopold’s staff , and the tourists I met who had planned to stay in Mumbai for a while and who may have been hurt, as well as all of those unknown innocents. Some upmarket cafes in India have security guards on the door, yet Leopold’s is completely open to the street and so it would have been easy for the terrorists to come in and attack in the way they did.

In between competing with Dominic in an attempt to fatten me up, my cousin Keith started keeping a closer eye on me. He was worried that people might react badly to seeing a foreigner and so didn’t want me wandering too far. This is because the attack in Mumbai was clearly aimed at foreigners, with Leopold’s being a prime target, and at the Taj hotel American and British nationals being singled out (another reason for a shiver down the spine). But apart from walking the distance to the post office to - rather ironically - send cheerful postcards, I stayed close to the house.

At the moment I am reviewing my position in India and am unsure whether to continue my trip. Not only does it seem wrong to holiday when such a tragedy has happened, but any joy has gone. I have also been wondering whether I will come back in the future, even though I already have a flight booked to India for next year. Nearly every trip I have taken to India has seen some trouble somewhere; not always close to where I have been but quite often in the next town, down the road or even in the same city. And although I have been in a city when riots have been going on, this is the first time that I have felt like I have used up a life.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has issued a warning against all non-essential travel to Mumbai. I am sure that by the time I am scheduled to leave the situation will have calmed down, yet I am not sure I want to see the scars in a place that always felt so safe. So at the moment I am thinking about what to do next....