India : Mumbai Suburban Railway

Continuation from here ...

After failing to get ticket to Pune, I consoled my heart by going to Hard Rock Cafe Mumbai! Too bad their shot glass were out of stock, so I settled for a T-Shirt.

Anyone going to visit Mumbai in the future and kind enough to buy me the shot glass?! Pretty pleaseee... *insert cute face*

I went to HRC by using the suburban train. Riding the train, I finally understood why people say you can see people literally dangling at the trains' doors during peak hours here.





Carrying more than 7 million passengers on a daily basis, the trains are super duper packed! As you can see, the trains have no doors. Well, actually they have doors but the doors are never closed.





So during peak hours it is quite dangerous as people can fall off the train due to overcrowds. Read this news.. it just happened a few days ago.

But it is one of the cheapest way to travel around Mumbai, the fare is only Rs4 for the first 10km.

For the next 15km, it is only an additional Rs3. Even if you travel up to 75km, the fare is only Rs15. That is like, what? Around RM1 ok!

But those fares are for travel on the second class coaches. There is a first class coach on the train, but do not expect the coach to be air-conditioned or you have a seat booked. It is just slightly less crowded. The fare is 10 times higher but it is still cheap. So no wonder people prefer to ride this suburban train over taxi crisscrossing Mumbai. They can avoid the hellish traffic as well.

Oh.. for ladies, don't worry about the uncomfortable stares from the local guys and the crowd. They have special coaches for us. Just look out for the signage at the station or coaches with a lady wearing saree.

One of the railway station, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.



Built in 1887, the station has an outstanding Victorian Gothic Revival style of architecture and also traditional Indian features. I spent hours wandering around the station, amidst the scorching hot sun, admiring the facade.

Oh did I tell you that the weather in Mumbai was totally different from Northern India? It was cold and foggy in Delhi, Agra and Jaipur but as I reached Mumbai, the weather was hot and the sky was bright and clear. Weather shock kejap.





Commonly known as Mumbai CST, this station serves both the long distance trains as well as the suburban trains thus, making it one of the busiest railway station in India.

If you remembered the 2008 Mumbai attack, the station is also where one of the attacks took place. 58 people were killed and 104 others were injured after two terrorists opened fire at the passenger hall of the station.

But life goes on for other Mumbaikars. The station was back alive in no time, and more busier than before.