DAY 2

     We have had a jampacked day here in Mumbai. Perhaps the most productive day I have ever experienced. The day started with a delicious breakfast at the Taj Palace Hotel. After piling into a beautifully air conditioned bus (still not used to the humidity!), we arrived at our first destination, Mani Bhavan.

     Mani Bhavan is located in the Gamdevi region of Mumbai and is where Gandi spent the later part of his life upon his retun to India. I had already known a little about his life and the effect he had around the world but it was truly inspiring to see demonstrations of his spinning wheels, letters he wrote to numerous political figures, as well as a number of photographs, paintings and puppets depicting different events in his life. I purchased his autobiography "The Story of My Experiments with Truth" from the front desk which I aim to begin reading on our coach journey to Village Dhanivali tomorrow. 

     Too quickly we found oursleves having to leave and, after a hurried lunch at Chetanas, we headed over to the Artisans Gallery. If ever in Mumbai, I would wholeheartedly encourage this spot. Started in 2007 by Radhi Parekh, Artisans is a social enterprise that aims to connect highly skilled craft designers to consumers. This is achieved in two ways. The first, an exhibition space and the second, a small shop where visitors can purchase Sari's, jewellery, and other hand produced craft items. We were introduced to the exhibition space first where Radhi talked us through a number of techniques celebrated and used by different, regionally traditional, Indian textiles.

     After the talk, I was thrilled to volunteer to be dressed in a gorgeous orange Sari with yellow trimmings and golden embroidery. In Indian culture, 'sexiness' is achieved through having the shortest top and lowest skirt so as much waist possible can be shown. How one drapes the Sari is incredibly important, Radhi explained that a poor draping will look awful irrespective of the quality of the material itself.

     After heading off from Artisans, a couple of us stayed back to watch the cricket IPL final at a nearby bar before checking out the pool in the hotel. Tomorrow's activities will take part in a more rural area of the city as we explore the stages of cotton milling and fabrication.