Getaway: Mumbai Saree and Design
Floornature - 22.11.2012
Floornature - 22.11.2012
Mumbai is a city of great contrasts, where splendid skyscrapers stand beside decaying buildings, luxury alongside poverty. Mumbai is the locomotive of India, with an international lifestyle which is nonetheless intimately bound up with Indian culture, ensuring that it does not become just another big city.
One might sum it up as “more than just saris”, as the new face of Indira Gandhi's India is the country's women entrepreneurs, artists, dj's and designers.
The university campus in the northern part of the city is also the headquarters of the Indian Design Center, a greenhouse nurturing the designers of the future, who will determine the city's future identity. Our itinerary starts in the most obvious place: at Mumbai's best-known monument, the Gateway of India, by architect Wittet.
Another interesting construction is the National Centre for the Performing Arts, which opened in the 80s as a meeting-place for Indian and international artists. The design of Kanchanjunga Apartments by architect Charles Correa successfully combines modernism with local traditions. The country's national pride is clearly expressed in the Nehru Planetarium and Centre, dedicated to Pandit Nehru, the architect of independent India.
The Bombay Stock Exchange, Asia's oldest stock exchange and now one of the world's most important, symbolises India's financial power. But Mumbai is also the city of Bollywood, of weekend cricket games, bhelpuri, take-out food on Chowpatty beach and the world's most expensive square metres of real estate: the skyscrapers of Marina Drive, where beautiful art deco buildings are lined up along the esplanade.
For luxury accommodations in Italian style, stay at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, where three new suites designed by architect Piero Lissoni in a sober, measured, calm style were inaugurated last year. A fun alternative is Gordon House, a small but charming hotel of simple, elegant, cosy design with two innovative restaurants for spending an enjoyable evening. Enjoy shopping and street food in Chor Bazar, though there are plenty of places well worth visiting.
For Japanese food, go to Morimoto's Wasabi restaurant, offering vegetarian menus. The Vetro, an Italian restaurant in Hotel Oberoi, offers a vast selection of Italian wines. But the most intriguing place to eat is still Swati Snacks, an inexpensive restaurant where you cannot reserve a table serving the best local food, starting with panipuri or bhelpuri, a puffed rice dish with vegetables. The grand finale at The Dome, on the eighth floor of the InterContinental Hotel, is the sunset with an all-round view over the huge city of Mumbai.
www.floornature.com
One might sum it up as “more than just saris”, as the new face of Indira Gandhi's India is the country's women entrepreneurs, artists, dj's and designers.
The university campus in the northern part of the city is also the headquarters of the Indian Design Center, a greenhouse nurturing the designers of the future, who will determine the city's future identity. Our itinerary starts in the most obvious place: at Mumbai's best-known monument, the Gateway of India, by architect Wittet.
Another interesting construction is the National Centre for the Performing Arts, which opened in the 80s as a meeting-place for Indian and international artists. The design of Kanchanjunga Apartments by architect Charles Correa successfully combines modernism with local traditions. The country's national pride is clearly expressed in the Nehru Planetarium and Centre, dedicated to Pandit Nehru, the architect of independent India.
The Bombay Stock Exchange, Asia's oldest stock exchange and now one of the world's most important, symbolises India's financial power. But Mumbai is also the city of Bollywood, of weekend cricket games, bhelpuri, take-out food on Chowpatty beach and the world's most expensive square metres of real estate: the skyscrapers of Marina Drive, where beautiful art deco buildings are lined up along the esplanade.
For luxury accommodations in Italian style, stay at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, where three new suites designed by architect Piero Lissoni in a sober, measured, calm style were inaugurated last year. A fun alternative is Gordon House, a small but charming hotel of simple, elegant, cosy design with two innovative restaurants for spending an enjoyable evening. Enjoy shopping and street food in Chor Bazar, though there are plenty of places well worth visiting.
For Japanese food, go to Morimoto's Wasabi restaurant, offering vegetarian menus. The Vetro, an Italian restaurant in Hotel Oberoi, offers a vast selection of Italian wines. But the most intriguing place to eat is still Swati Snacks, an inexpensive restaurant where you cannot reserve a table serving the best local food, starting with panipuri or bhelpuri, a puffed rice dish with vegetables. The grand finale at The Dome, on the eighth floor of the InterContinental Hotel, is the sunset with an all-round view over the huge city of Mumbai.
www.floornature.com
