Mumbai

Imagine sprinting through an airport while the final boarding call echoes like a countdown timer, then finding yourself 24 hours later coding in a college hallway fueled by midnight waffles and sheer panic. This wasn't just a hackathon trip; it was a week-long sprint through the chaos, contrasts, and cats of Mumbai—a city that welcomed us with a missed flight scare and sent us home with a silver medal.

Oct 10: The Great Escape & The Sprint

The trip didn't start with a suitcase; it started with an exam paper. We had our college internals scheduled from October 9th to 11th, but the glorious chaos of a hackathon called to us. On the 10th, we attended one subject, handed in our papers, and left college around 1:00 PM for a flight departing at 3:30 PM.

"You need to be there 3 hours early," they say. We were leaving with barely enough time. We reached the airport to hear the final call for our flight echoing through the terminal. We rushed to the luggage counter, skipping queues because we were desperate, and somehow managed to make the flight just as it took off around 3:20 PM.

Boarding just in time

The journey had a twist: a layover in Goa at an airport apparently managed by the Indian Army. It wasn't well-maintained, but my curiosity led me to an MRP shop where I saw wine bottles priced in lakhs.

We landed in Mumbai around 8:40 PM and headed to the metro connected to the airport. Compared to Bengaluru, this underground station was massive—and eerily empty. We booked tickets via WhatsApp and reached Santacruz.

The "Mumbai spirit" tested us immediately. At a major junction in Santacruz, Ola, Uber, and Rapido drivers rejected us for an entire hour. When we finally reached our accommodation, we found a room so small that three of us had to adjust on a 4.5-foot bed that took up the entire space. But the night had a silver lining: the area was full of stray cats. We had some much-needed cat therapy petting them until 1:00 AM before crashing.

Oct 11: Hackathon Mode & The Mannat Pitstop

We were up by 9:30 AM. The organizers booked us an auto to Santacruz railway station for my first-ever Mumbai local train experience. Contrary to the horror stories, it wasn't as crowded as hyped.

First local train ride

We got off at Bandra and took a bus that stopped right in front of Mannat—Shah Rukh Khan's house. It was under construction, but we still clicked pictures before heading to the Bandstand promenade right in front of it.

Mannat stop

Our destination, Fr. Conceicao Rodrigues College of Engineering, was a short walk away, located next to the Taj Hotel with a perfect view of the Worli Sea Link. Organized by the Google Developers Student Club, the hackathon had an F1 theme (though the problem statements were standard). The organization was impeccable.

Sea Link from the venue

Oct 12: 24 Hours of Delirium & The Win

As it was a 24-hour hackathon, we coded through the night. To keep us engaged, they served midnight waffles and hosted a cool music jam session. We even found a PS5 on the way towards the seminar hall. I wanted to play Mortal Kombat, but the CD was broken, so we played other games for an hour to reset.

We didn't sleep. After clearing the first round at 9:30 AM and the second at 4:30 PM, we had zero expectations of winning.

Then came the results. They announced the 3rd prize, then the 2nd prize: "Team Cat Coders". I looked around, confused, until I realized—"Cat" was us. We had named ourselves after the Santacruz cats. We had won 2nd prize. It was a total surprise.

Hackathon announcement

We celebrated by ordering Egg Biryani from Charcoal Eats back at the accommodation. It was arguably one of the best biryanis I've ever had. We ended the night with another round of cat therapy and finally slept at 1:30 AM.

Oct 13: South Bombay Styling

We checked out at 10:30 AM and moved to "Mumbai Dorms" in Malad. At ₹700 for 24 hours and located right beside the station, it was a great deal.

We took the local train to Churchgate—a different kind of experience—and walked to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). I expected a massive street like Wall Street, but the road was surprisingly small.

We walked to the Gateway of India, saw the Taj Mumbai, and then chilled at Marine Drive to watch the sunset and the city lights.

Marine Drive sunset

Later, we hit Colaba Causeway (great for fridge magnets, better for girls' shopping than guys') and had dinner at Kailash Parbat. I made the mistake of ordering Jeera Rice thinking it was a dish, but it was just rice; I had to steal gravy from my friend's biryani to eat it. We wrapped up with ice cream from the famous "K. Rustom & Co.".

Oct 14: Temples, Brains, and Contrasts

The next morning began with Misal Pav at Dadar Chowpatty—I'm now a fan. We visited the Shree Siddhivinayak Temple via metro and then the Haji Ali Dargah.

Haji Ali causeway

From there, we went to the Mumbai Botanical Udayan and Zoo, then headed to Mohammed Ali Road for snacks. The contrast was jarring. Just one station away from the posh areas, this place was clumsy and dirty; I witnessed three street fights in a short walk. I even saw animal brains on a plate, which was... disgusting.

However, the food was redeeming. I tried Jalebi at "Burhanpur Jalebi Centre" (looked burnt, tasted amazing) and a Mixed Fruit Milkshake at "Noorani Sweets". We ended the day at CSMT Railway Station and tried the famous "Aram Vada Pav" opposite it, though I felt it was overrated.

Oct 15: The Secret Caves & The Long Goodbye

For our final day, we explored North Mumbai. We went to Sanjay Gandhi National Park, dodging the cycle rental scam at the gate to take the internal bus. We visited the Kanheri Caves, which are incredibly beautiful and contain over 110 caves.

Kanheri Caves

There was a mystery, though. Cave number 87 was kept secret. We couldn't search for it due to lack of internet, and the guards wouldn't tell us what it was. I later found out it is a monastic burial ground.

Ancient carvings

We did the lion and tiger safari, then headed to Borivali West for snacks. We tried the "Extravaganza" at Shreeji's and the expensive-but-good "Bunty's Filmcity Dessert" at Bunty Juice Centre. I also noticed a unique skywalk for pedestrians over the busy roads—a very Mumbai solution.

Safari statue

Shreeji's extravaganza

Filmcity dessert

Before our bus, we ate at "Malgudi South India Resto-Cafe." I noticed a framed "illu" (a Telugu word) written in Kannada script—a dumb mistake that felt disrespectful to the language.

We caught our bus back to Bengaluru around 9:30 PM, encountering heavy Mumbai traffic for the first time.

Oct 16: The Highway Home

The return journey was a 24-hour marathon due to traffic delays. We ate near the Maharashtra-Karnataka border and had lunch near Dharwad, finally reaching Bengaluru at night.

From the polished Sea Link to the gritty charm of the local trains, Mumbai threw everything at us. It was exhausting, exhilarating, and completely unforgettable. We came for the code, but we stayed for the chaos—and the cats.