An Epic Journey Via Sea From Mumbai to Mandwa

It was a clean weekday in Mumbai. Since a week, I was working from home, so, on this day, wanted to see the ocean. My sister gave me an idea of visiting Alibaug, a nature filled island near Mumbai.  I was also excited, so, we both rushed to the Gateway of India.

Gateway of India is that arch monument on the waterfront of Mumbai, which was made to welcome George V for his coronation as the Emperor of India in 1911. Previously, I have discussed in details about this place in my YouTube video “A Day at Colaba”. I request you to watch to know more about Gateway of India.

This area provides tickets to book ferries for different places and Alibaug is among those. So , we bought tickets for Mandwa Jetty, from there, we can go to Alibaug.

When I started my journey, I had no idea what it will going to offer. After a few moments, I started to feel like I am in an unknown world. My all sides had endless sea, some ships were working on the ocean, silver sparkles were dancing on the shoulder of every wave. The sky and the ocean had a blurry line to differentiate.

Suddenly, a black ship like structure appeared in my vision. It is not exactly a ship but look like it is. Though I have less experience of sea, but, I got a flashback of my childhood textbook, an image of an oil driller, somewhere on Indian Ocean called Sagar Samrat. Yes, this is what, in front of my eyes now.

Experiencing a sea life, we reached Mandwa. A peaceful island surrounded by Indian Ocean. By the time, I was damn hungry, so we rushed to the Boardwalk by Flamboyant near the Mandwa jetty.

We relished Apple Ball, Virgin Blue Lagoon and Squids. The Broadwalk by Flamboyant offers captivating sea view from its dining area. We indeed enjoyed that view and enjoyed our food.

Now it was the time to explore the island. We booked a cab and reached the Alibaug beach. It was a very vibrant beach with different activities. From camel riding to bicycle riding, from boating to water sports, many options to spend the time.

Though Alibaug comes under Mumbai metropolitan, but it comes under Raigarh District of Maharashtra. Around 2000 years ago, Jews came to this sea beach filled island when their ship wrecked here while escaping persecution from the Roman Empire. In modern days, Alibauge is a perfect weekend gateway for Mumbaikars and also for those, who come to Mumbai for different purposes.

The other two beaches we also visited were Versoli and Kihim beach. Versoli beach was less crowded than Alibaug beach, and it also offers different kinds of activities in the beach area. The reflection of the Sunlight on the sea-line was mesmerizing. It seems like melted gold has been mixed with the ocean water. I enjoyed some moment on those rocks near the seawater. It was indeed a stress releasing experience.

We planned the day’s sunset at Kihim beach. This is more calm and crowd free. When we reached to the Kihim beach, the sun had already turned to pink. Kihim beach offers eye-catching views at its both sides. At its one side, coconut trees were playing with rocks in the background of blue sky. Another side had captivating sunset where the sky meets the Indian Ocean.

We were on a day trip to Alibaug, and had to return to Mumbai. After enjoying the sunset at Alibaug, we needed to catch the last ferry from Mandwa by 6pm. Sunlight sticks till 7 pm in Maharashtra, So, we weren’t much worried about getting late.

The return journey had a magnificent twist. When it started, those seagulls started to fly with us. It was like waves in the sky. With the backdrop of pink sky, those flying white seagulls were creating a different world’s view.

By the time, we again met the Sagar Samrat. This time it was very different from before. It was sparkling with different kinds of lights. Its lights were ruling over the Indian Ocean. It was like, the Sagar Smarat is marking its present standing still, just the way a king stands wearing its crown after a victory.

Slowly, our boat approached Mumbai. The sparkling city lights were welcoming us happily. It was an amazing view, when the lights of the Taj Mahal Palace took over the Gateway of India.