Back in Mumbai!!

I have finally managed to secure internet connection and now the blog is up and running again.
I arrive back in Mumbai in the early hours of Monday morning after an amazing flight. At the check-in desk at Heathrow I nearly had a panic when they told me there were no more seats left. Luckily for me they had some spares in the Premier section so I got an upgrade. The 'Jet Airways' service was magnificent. Great food and a very comfortable journey. I was also able to watch the first 6 episodes of Season 1 of my favorite TV show '24'.
There was a slight delay on the flight but we finally touched down in Mumbai at 00.50 Monday morning. I was met at Mumbai airport by Pradeep and we headed off to the medical college where I am staying, not before stopping briefly at the roadside for a cup of fine Indian tea.
I haven't seen changes to Mumbai since I was last here but I have noticed an increase in people sleeping on the streets. When I was here last it was the end of the rain season and many people go back to the villages for better shelter. They have now all returned so the street are looking more crowded.
After a good nights sleep, I got up on Monday ready to get back to work with the Vision Rescue team. Firstly, I wanted to visit the new office, so I was picked up by Rajesh and he showed me around the new Vision Rescue Office. It is much bigger than the old one and a lot more head room. After greeting all the team members and having some lunch, I sat down with Rajesh and Ajesh to get an update on what has been happening at Vision Rescue. Unfortunately they have had to stop feeding at a couple of the locations due to the area were the bus parks being blocked off. With these two locations they have not been able to find other suitable parking areas. Sadly, one of these locations was Reay Road which is where we had introduced the t-shirts. Another location has been stopped due to low number of kids one new location has been added on. Very shortly a third bus will be arriving and new areas are being investigated for the third bus to visit.
My first night entertainment was to go and watch a good old Hollywood blockbuster so Pradeep, Manoj, Selvin and myself went to the cinema to watch '2012' - action packed but very predictable!!
Tuesday morning I was picked up by Rajesh and we headed off to meet the bus at Mahim. Unfortunately, Rajesh had some sad news to share with me. One of the street girls from Mahim, who is only 4years old, went missing on Monday. After a long search her parents found her almost dead behind some bushes. She had been taken by a man, raped and her body slashed four times with a knife. He then dumped her in amongst some bushes. She is still in hospital and has only just regained consciousness from her horrific attack. I couldn't believe it when I heard it and it brought a lump to my throat. How can someone attack an innocent 4yr old girl like that? Thank you God for keeping her alive! The Vision Rescue team have given there full support to the family and have been into the hospital every other day to visit her.
I was a bit choked after hearing that news and Mahim was where we were headed. On the way we picked up an American Pastor who has been in India for the last three years working in the slums in Juhu. He wanted to see the work of Vision Rescue so joined us for the morning. When we arrived at Mahim I was greeted by the kids who I have been training to play football. It was great to see them and they were desperate to know when the next football session was going to be. I told them I would be back on Wed so we would play then. Next we went on to the new location in Bandra. I have seen this slum many times when driving past and always thought it would be good for the bus to stop there so I was pleased to see it as Vision Rescue's new location. There is one old man who has been in this slum for a long time and is always lying in the same place. A couple of months ago, the Vision Rescue team discovered him with a incredibly infected foot. It was so infected that almost all of his toes had rotted away - not nice! After being treated, his foot is now still bandaged but is much better and he is is a lot less pain. He has lost most of his toes but is now able to walk. There are about 25 kids who come onto the bus at this location and although there are many more around quite a few do already attend school. I did watch some of the teaching during the morning but as it was Hindi it was hard for me to get involved. The next two locations were the original Bandra slum and Wadala, which was on the evening bus but has now moved to the day. It was great to be back on the bus again and I was looking forward to starting up the football again on Wednesday morning. Well that is enough blogging today. I will pick up from Wednesday tomorrow!