Mumbai Oberoi Hotel Reopens
Apr 20, 2010, 9:39 pm
#1
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Mumbai Oberoi Hotel Reopens
The NY Times reports that the Mumbai Oberoi Hotel will reopen on Wednesday following a $45 million reconstruction after being attacked by terrorists in November 2008.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/21/bu...tml?ref=global
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/21/bu...tml?ref=global
Apr 21, 2010, 5:27 am
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The best news is that the company has apparently taken the opportunity to fully re-fit all of the rooms--there's a nice picture of one in the Times article. I have been staying at this hotel for many years, but in the last 5-6 years the rooms and furnishings were starting to show their age, particularly in contrast to newer properties uptown like the Grand Hyatt, FS, etc. I'll be happy to stay at the Oberoi now during my "downtown" periods in Mumbai.
I'm hoping the Taj (which was a much worse offender as far as tired, shabby rooms) is doing the same thing. I went through the Taj lobby last month to visit the corporate offices, but didn't stay at the hotel. There seems to be a good amount of work going on.
I'm hoping the Taj (which was a much worse offender as far as tired, shabby rooms) is doing the same thing. I went through the Taj lobby last month to visit the corporate offices, but didn't stay at the hotel. There seems to be a good amount of work going on.
Apr 24, 2010, 10:41 pm
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Does it bother people that the terrorists targeted it and deliberately went after foreigners? I'd kinda want to get into less high profile lodgings myself. Thing is, I don't trust either the Mumbai police, the Maharashtara home minister, or the Indian Army. They all failed embarrasingly, I thought.
Apr 25, 2010, 5:58 am
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Does it bother people that the terrorists targeted it and deliberately went after foreigners? I'd kinda want to get into less high profile lodgings myself. Thing is, I don't trust either the Mumbai police, the Maharashtara home minister, or the Indian Army. They all failed embarrasingly, I thought.
Apr 25, 2010, 8:20 am
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Apr 25, 2010, 5:39 pm
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Does it bother people that the terrorists targeted it and deliberately went after foreigners? I'd kinda want to get into less high profile lodgings myself. Thing is, I don't trust either the Mumbai police, the Maharashtara home minister, or the Indian Army. They all failed embarrasingly, I thought.
It is an icon for the city, true. But unless you're going to give in to the fear, I don't suppose people will avoid the other iconic elements of Mumbai.
Thing is, I don't trust either the Mumbai police, the Maharashtara home minister, or the Indian Army. They all failed embarrasingly, I thought.
Apr 25, 2010, 10:24 pm
#9
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Ajmal Kasab and nine other terrorists who attacked Mumbai last year were in constant touch with top LeT commanders in Pakistan during the strikes and received instructions to kill "political leaders, foreigners and prominent personalities of India."
I suppose the Oberoi is famous like places that John Dillinger robbed. That might get some people to deliberately book there. But the Wiki article says the Oberoi was only getting 40 percent of its former business, so I guess not all tourists are thrillseekers.
Last edited by Babu; Apr 26, 2010 at 12:54 pm
Apr 26, 2010, 1:07 pm
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once again, not everything written in the article is necessarily true....
the terrorists also got hold of a police van & randomly fired at people on the street while driving that van....i don't think political leaders, foreigners and prominent personalities of india would have been roaming the streets at night....
my friends claim that the terrorists were trying to kill anyone they came across....not just the type of people mentioned above....
the terrorists also got hold of a police van & randomly fired at people on the street while driving that van....i don't think political leaders, foreigners and prominent personalities of india would have been roaming the streets at night....
my friends claim that the terrorists were trying to kill anyone they came across....not just the type of people mentioned above....
Apr 26, 2010, 1:34 pm
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To be honest, Mumbai security is pants everywhere and hotels included.
Next time you go to a mall, observe closely, they got security guards who make you walk through the metal detectors, you set it off and the pat downs are non existant. Women, as a bonus, can smuggle in anything they want. My wife has never been frisked or had her bag searched when entering a mall or cinema even though she has set off the metal detector plenty of times.
Its the chalte hai attitude.
I fully expect another attack from terrorists in the near future. Its these kind of things that keep the politicians in power so they are not exactly doing much to prevent it from happening again.
Next time you go to a mall, observe closely, they got security guards who make you walk through the metal detectors, you set it off and the pat downs are non existant. Women, as a bonus, can smuggle in anything they want. My wife has never been frisked or had her bag searched when entering a mall or cinema even though she has set off the metal detector plenty of times.
Its the chalte hai attitude.
I fully expect another attack from terrorists in the near future. Its these kind of things that keep the politicians in power so they are not exactly doing much to prevent it from happening again.
Apr 27, 2010, 12:06 am
#12
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Well, sure, the aim was to create a mood of "no one is safe". So the fact that now the attacks were not targeted at Hindus was a shock to foreigners. My original thought was "So now things are really different?" I've seen India take a lot of defensive measures. But the slaughter by Naxalites of a whole army company makes me think the defenders aren't that skilled at counterterrorist measures.