A 4 hour flight delay on the plane in London meant a 4am arrival in Mumbai. Here, we meet our new friend the lovely coordinator, Sai Prashanth, who took us to IIT Bombay.....that at first sight resembled a military camp rather than a University campus.

Inside, however we became acutely aware that this was almost like a separate island from Mumbai with lush vegetation, serene lake views and free roaming dogs.

Even a Panther had been sighted a few minutes off our guesthouse accommodation.

Our exhibits required us to bring some unusual equipment and material that we had been lucky not to have scrutinised by customs. We had also posted these but had not been told that it had arrived. Requiring a lab space to set up the exhibition – we had arrived early – however, we were told that this could only start early the following morning. The plants could be seeded.

Instead, our coordinators, Sai and Nithin Nara, took us sightseeing around Mumbai.

Outside campus, the traffic is horrendous. If it had been the UK, everyone would have been fined, but here the 'near-miss-hooting strategy' seemed to work – despite seeing life flashing before our eyes like a paparazzi photo session.  

On the other side of town, we visited was the arch, and the hotels where the dreadful shootings took place.





A boat taking us, just off the harbour gave some beautiful views, and there seemed no coherent manner of taking in the vastness of the city.