During the past one month, our quaint little village has been receiving visitors from Germany. This has been possible through Lotus Destinations Pvt. Ltd. who have arranged to get these visitors to our Heritage Village. These tourists have been coming to Mumbai by Cruise Ships starting from Dubai, then travelling to Mumbai, New Mangalore, Muscat, Abu Dhabi and then back to Dubai. They take around two days to reach Mumbai from Dubai and spend one/two nights at Mumbai before proceeding to New Mangalore. This is the fifth group of visitors starting from 23rd November 2016, 5th December 2016, 19th December 2016 and 20th December 2016. These cruises are typically of around 12 days duration. We received around 80 visitors who had come on Monday 2nd January 2017 by the Cruise Ship “Aida Aura”. They have another ship “Aida Stella” which does the Gulf run. Our very own Andrew Monteiro handles these cruise ships at Dubai. Their stopover in Mumbai is mainly for one night or maximum two nights and one of their must visit places while in Mumbai is to our Heritage Village at Matharpacady. Besides a walk around our heritage precinct to explain the history of the various landmarks, the visitors are treated to snacks/brunch by Hansel Baptista at his residence. Almost all the visitors are surprised that such a quaint, quiet little place exists in the heart of the city. With the Christmas decorations already up, the whole place looks very festive with Christmas Carols filling the air. We have heard that more Cruise Ships will be stopping by at Mumbai and at least two Cruise Ships will be expected every month.
Note : Photographs of visitors who visited our village on 2nd January 2017.
