Bombay
The week before last I was in Mumbai for the week for business. I think this was my 20th trip to Mumbai in the past 15 years. It's amazing to see the massive transformation this city and all of India has been on.
Over the years I have made many very good friends in India so it is always nice to get back and see old friends and make new ones. I think that is one of the really big benefits of my job. I have friends in cities all over the world that all come from different places, have different backgrounds and unique perspectives. I'm grateful as this diversity has really shaped my thinking over the years and made me who I am today.
Growing up in the US I didn't have access to good Indian food at that time. I didn't have a good impression of Indian food heading into my first trip to India and was a bit worried about what I would eat. I was very grateful when one of my friends told me he was going to teach me what good Indian food was and took me to a restaurant and ordered far too much food. He explained all of the things we were eating and I've grown to really love Indian food. I've developed a love for Dal Makhani, all sorts of Naan, Chicken Tikka, Dosa, Masala Omelettes and many more. I made sure to eat lots of these this time. Perhaps a bit too much.
For those interested in what I was doing in Mumbai you can watch this and this.
I just got back late last night from a week in Singapore. I had a packed schedule everyday and night but had my camera in tow and hopefully got some good images. I'll post some photos up in a few weeks.
I've switched back to my Monochrom for the time being. I have a lot of late night opportunities for shooting coming up and the Monochrom is much better than film for late night shooting. This is unless of course I'm pushing film but then my camera isn't very useful during the day. This is why I need a second film body. Anyways I have short trips to Osaka, Seoul and slightly longer trips to Manila and Bangkok in the next month or so. You can follow my trips more real time on my Instagram.
Today's configuration: Leica MP with a Summilux 35mm f/1.4 on Portra 160.
I had a very empty flight to Mumbai. I was happy to have a nice long 10.5 hour flight to Mumbai to get a lot of work done. I was able to get so much done. The trick is to not get too distracted by movies. Sometimes I do but mostly I don't...
Good cocktails with the friends...
Meet Harish - Marketing genius
I'm trying to get back into the habit of taking more photos of people.
I had a very busy few days in Mumbai. We were pretty busy with work on Friday until about 3AM so I slept in on Saturday and ate a late breakfast. My flight wasn't until 8PM so I was able to get out and walk the streets around my hotel.
I thought these signs were funny. "No Entry" and "Entry Only".
The police officer sitting in front of them thought I was taking his photo and wanted to put his hat on and pose for me. He was very kind. Sadly not every police officer we met were as kind. One thought we made a moving violation while driving in a taxi and was looking for us to pay an on the spot 'fine'.
Thanks to the magic of SnapChat Spectacles we caught this great video. He quickly went away and so did we. I wanted none of that...
Happy Wife Happy Life
Bollywood Movies!
I missed framing this shot by just a second... I need to get out and practice a bit more.
This was a local spiritual leader...
Some kids were playing crickets. We stopped to play with them for a bit. Well I mostly took photos...
Back in Tokyo. There is a new custom suit shop in my town. I never get suits made in Tokyo. The base pattern they use is an asian cut and I have tried twice and gotten very oddly fitting suits. I have gotten my suits made in Hong Kong and they fit like a glove. I have little opportunity to wear them now.
If you have never had a suit made I highly suggest as nothing fits like a custom suit. This is the place to go...
New Jiyugaoka Coffee Shop. Really tasty coffee. I hope they are around for a while.
Good Luck with your new Coffee Shop!
Thank for stopping by today...
Be well.
Dave