Elephanta Island – Mumbai, India

About 45 minutes by boat outside of Mumbai India lies a small island called Elephanta. Although this island is small and seems insignificant it actually has one of the most unique places we have ever seen. The island is full of ancient caves that have been carved into temples/statues of the Hindu Gods. Our journey to Elephanta Island started by catching a ferry at the busy and chaotic India Gate in the heart of Mumbai. The water in this area is extremely choppy and these small ferries are swaying like crazy when you go to get on them (which lead to a lot of sea sickness). In fact, while we were on the ferry a small little Indian girl got extremely sick and was throwing up off the side…it was very sad but also a tiny bit funny. :) After you get out in the bay around Mumbai the ferry ride is actually very relaxing. The water calms down and you can start to see the endless concrete jungle (skysrapers, buildings, etc) that is Mumbai, India. After about 45 minutes you pull up to this small island and begin the trek up hundreds of steps (lined by little stores) to the caves. It was a sunny/humid day and Lindsay and I were already dying from the heat. The island itself is green and pretty with lots of monkeys running about. After a few minutes we finally reached the first cave and were blown away. The cave was huge and had been carved into a great hall with numerous pillars that went from floor to ceiling. Even though you were in a cave it actually felt more like a dark grand palace or something…truly something out of Indiana Jones. At the far end of the cave was one of the coolest statues we have ever seen. It was a 3 headed bust (waist up) of the God Shiva with her numerous faces. The statue was carved right into the rock wall and it was truly gorgeous. We ended up just sitting in this area for probably an hour taking in the beauty of this statue and the surrounding cave. However, we quickly began to realize that it was EXTREMELY HOT. Not only was it a hot/muggy day outside but the cave was cramped and there were hundreds of other people in the cave as well. It actually was so hot that Lindsay and I could barely move…we would just walk a few feet and then sit and rest. It was almost laughable how hot it was and how much we were sweating. However, despite the heat we toured the rest of the cave complex before working our way down the stone steps to the waters edge to catch the ferry back to Mumbai. On the way down we found a guy selling very cool looking “Ganeesh” (God with Elephant head and numerous limbs) statues and we bought two from him (one for the house and one for my office as he brings good fortune to business). The ferry ride back to crazy Mumbai was peaceful and relaxing. If you ever find yourself with an extra day in Mumbai, India do not miss the beautiful Elephanta Island caves.