so when i said housing was difficult to find in mumbai, i wasn't exaggerating. and though we were technically only homeless for 5 or 6 days, it seemed like much more, and in the end we were probably extremely lucky.
we spent the first few days roaming all around bandra (a good, central area with lots to do) being taken from place to place in auto rickshaws. the broker, 'brendan' (who bore an uncanny resemblance to an indian nathan lane) was clearly playing a game with us - showing us several small dingy places in unsettlingly narrow alleyways, several that were way too fancy - one with beach views and a swimming pool, and of course one that was just right. i'm calling it the goldilocks effect. we asked a lot of questions which seemed to be annoyances to him. silly of us to ask such frivolous things like if it will be furnished, and the price.
every day was more of the same, looking at place after place out of our price range until they all started running together. the whole process was exhausting. then on top of the high prices were the security deposits. apparently in mumbai it's not uncommon to ask for '1 or 2 lakhs' (1 lakh =100,000 Rs. or about 2200 USD) upfront. we, of course, being scholars (seems to get a better reaction than 'students' around here) on a fixed monthly stipend, can in no way manage this - which we attempted painstakingly to explain to the various brokers we dealt with.
and then, today. something must have happened. the skies parted and the gods smiled down on us. (i'm crediting this one to krishna as today was his birthday celebration) somehow we went from being homeless and destitute at looking at getting kicked out of the ymca (where fulbright chose to put us up for a week. sidenote: if you're in mumbai, don't ever stay here. for the same money you could get a much nicer place in a better location and actual edible food) with nowhere to go... to having a fully furnished, affordable apartment in the nice part of town.
we met with a woman whose apartment we had seen the day before. it was a 1 BHK (apparently this means bedroom, hall, kitchen) that essentially had two bedroom areas and a spacious living room, plus a small kitchen full of windows and a bathroom with a small step for the shower area (not so common here, believe me). though there was furniture we would need to get we thought we would still be saving money in the long run, since it was so affordable.
the whole process worked like clockwork. we met in the morning, agreed on a very reasonable security deposit, got the rent down to the price we wanted. we went to the Y to check out (and never again return) and bring our bags across town and in the meantime had the lease read over by our other friend who happens to be a lawyer (handy, isn't it). by 2.45 we and our belongings were inside the apartment, by 3.30 we had signed and fingerprinted the lease, and by 4.30 we had somehow acquired all kinds of things from our extremely generously landlord - including a single bed, a double bed, two comfortable chairs, new sheets, pillows, a pan and some maggi.
as we explored our area that evening and saw our new neighbors gathering for the festivities (more on that later) we mused on how amazing it is the way things turn out sometime. all i can say is, jai shri krishna
we spent the first few days roaming all around bandra (a good, central area with lots to do) being taken from place to place in auto rickshaws. the broker, 'brendan' (who bore an uncanny resemblance to an indian nathan lane) was clearly playing a game with us - showing us several small dingy places in unsettlingly narrow alleyways, several that were way too fancy - one with beach views and a swimming pool, and of course one that was just right. i'm calling it the goldilocks effect. we asked a lot of questions which seemed to be annoyances to him. silly of us to ask such frivolous things like if it will be furnished, and the price.
every day was more of the same, looking at place after place out of our price range until they all started running together. the whole process was exhausting. then on top of the high prices were the security deposits. apparently in mumbai it's not uncommon to ask for '1 or 2 lakhs' (1 lakh =100,000 Rs. or about 2200 USD) upfront. we, of course, being scholars (seems to get a better reaction than 'students' around here) on a fixed monthly stipend, can in no way manage this - which we attempted painstakingly to explain to the various brokers we dealt with.
and then, today. something must have happened. the skies parted and the gods smiled down on us. (i'm crediting this one to krishna as today was his birthday celebration) somehow we went from being homeless and destitute at looking at getting kicked out of the ymca (where fulbright chose to put us up for a week. sidenote: if you're in mumbai, don't ever stay here. for the same money you could get a much nicer place in a better location and actual edible food) with nowhere to go... to having a fully furnished, affordable apartment in the nice part of town.
we met with a woman whose apartment we had seen the day before. it was a 1 BHK (apparently this means bedroom, hall, kitchen) that essentially had two bedroom areas and a spacious living room, plus a small kitchen full of windows and a bathroom with a small step for the shower area (not so common here, believe me). though there was furniture we would need to get we thought we would still be saving money in the long run, since it was so affordable.
the whole process worked like clockwork. we met in the morning, agreed on a very reasonable security deposit, got the rent down to the price we wanted. we went to the Y to check out (and never again return) and bring our bags across town and in the meantime had the lease read over by our other friend who happens to be a lawyer (handy, isn't it). by 2.45 we and our belongings were inside the apartment, by 3.30 we had signed and fingerprinted the lease, and by 4.30 we had somehow acquired all kinds of things from our extremely generously landlord - including a single bed, a double bed, two comfortable chairs, new sheets, pillows, a pan and some maggi.
as we explored our area that evening and saw our new neighbors gathering for the festivities (more on that later) we mused on how amazing it is the way things turn out sometime. all i can say is, jai shri krishna
1 comment:
Can't wait to see your place and Mumbai. I'll be well prepared with these posts by the time I get there.
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