Having the opportunity to visit Bombay can open up so many splendid doors.  Traveling in India is a fantastic adventure, and no one who sets foot in this country leaves untouched in some significant way.  For most people, it is a major, life-changing event, opening eyes to another spectrum for possibilities of living in the world.  There are many spectacular sights and attractions that are geared toward the tourist’s gaze, offering enchantment and revelation, and an awful lot of fun, for any age.   There are also many hidden sides to the country, and in a city as large as Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, this is particularly true.  There are many cultures here, as well as subcultures, with particular languages and traditions, and they overlap on the surface in ways that are not visible on a first, or even third, look.  This doesn’t mean that a one-time visit won’t reveal many fascinating things, but only that there is always more than meets the eye.

It’s a spectacular city, and it’s been visited by outsiders for centuries.  Today, it is relatively simple for travelers coming for a short stay, wanting to get a simple introduction to the complicated city of Bombay.  Hotel accommodations are plentiful, and there are many spectacular choices, with something to appeal to every sense of style and every budget.  A good hotel is one of the most valuable assets while you’re here, giving you a center for your journey, so you can always have a place to rest and get rejuvenated for more sight-seeing.  With all the excellent restaurants, museums, and temples, there is plenty to do to fill the days with pleasure.  And if you’re looking to get a sense of the history of the place, with activities that can offer something interesting for every member of the group, there is a spectacular visual art scene here.

Traditional galleries are plentiful, and while you’re looking at new and classical works, you might get a taste of the other sides of Bombay.  If you come across Lakeeren, you’ve found something fascinating that offers a sense of what’s really here.  This gallery was open as a physical space until 2003, and today exists in slightly different forms.  Now it’s a concept more than a space, maybe much more, since the space is very difficult to find if you’re not living in metaphor.  They still operate, with an excellent collection and participation is producing excellent exhibitions like the Other (Indian) Story, but these are held in other spaces than Lakeeren.  Now it functions more on the lines of rhizomatic relationship of linkages between curators, artists, and theoreticians, and is devoted to promoting art ideas as much as physical objects, and this is a splendid place to be in the 21st century.

LaKeeren in Bombay and Beyond is a post from: Five DC

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