Some things change and some things don't

Spaces for children in urban areas are dwindling rapidly and Mumbai is no exception. Very few parks have been designed keeping children in mind. One of the oldest parks that has been the top favourite among children is the Kamala Nehru Park. All those who have grown up in Mumbai would recollect that this used to be a regular spot for school picnics. After all these years, when I passed by Kamala Nehru Park some time ago, it was heartening to see that at least some things in life are still the same.

Old Shoe at Kamala Nehru Park

Located on top of Malabar Hill, the Kamala Nehru Park was full of children. It was so nice to see children running around, talking excitedly, chasing each other, hiding behind the trees and conveniently ignoring their parents.  The Old Shoe structure was still there, in fact it was freshly painted and I remembered how we would impatiently jostle each other inside the stairwell so that we would be the first ones to climb up to the balcony. After enjoying the view, we would come back and try to climb up the shoe from the other end. I could not help seeing myself among the children trying the very same stunts. At that time, we thought the Old Shoe was very very big. I suppose our perspective of space and size changes as we grow older because this time I thought the Shoe was actually not all that big. I have no idea why the Old Shoe was constructed, but it is said that it was inspired by an old nursery rhyme (There was an old woman who lived in a shoe. She had so many children, she didn't know what to do; She gave them some broth without any bread; Then whipped them all soundly and put them to bed). Since the nursery rhyme itself is horrifying, I wonder if it could have inspired something so wonderful. Thankfully, I was not taught this rhyme in kindergarten, or else I would have got terrified to go even close to the Shoe.

At Hanging Gardens, Mumbai

Next to the Kamala Nehru Park is the Hanging Gardens, which as a child I had mixed up with The Hanging Gardens of Babylon! The garden has interestingly cut hedges that form shapes of different animals. I think the trees and hedges have thinned down and are quite sparse than what they used to be when I was a kid. Standing there facing westwards, one can see the Queen’s Necklace and the mighty Arabian Sea. As a child, I remember feeling overawed, not so much by the sea but by the tall buildings and imposing offices which looked so distant in all respects. Now as I write about it, I am reminded of a quote which my friend and fellow blogger, Swagata had recently shared with me:

“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered” by Nelson Mandela in A Long Walk to Freedom.