This is an email sent to me from Tom McClellon, a Norfolk native, who now lives in India.  He has spent a lot of time at the Taj hotel that came under fire  when terrorists struck ten different locations in the heart of India’s financial district on Thanksgiving.  He watched international news and surfed various webpages- including www.wavy.com and www.myfoxhamptonroads.com during the chaos.  Tom also emailed me pictures of what those areas looked like before the bombing.  He has stayed there in the past and knows the building well. Tom’s text is in red.

this is really bad and still going on..  i’m watching cnn and bbc and txting frinds in mumbai constantly/  we txt alot here in india.  its how we communicate.

all are worried re the lasting effects on internationals.  many international companies are already pulling out of emerging markets due to the economy.  india’s economy has suffered terribly this past year.

if u want to ask any questions//  blog me/  also i know those buildings the taj and oberoi very well and the entire hood of ‘colaba’ (the real name for south mumby) is a stomping ground.  cafe leopold too//  .

u might say they are a terrorist’s dream//  cafe leopold is completely open to the street and always packed..//

the oberoi is built around one central atrium encircled by exposed hallways.. all room doors facing in.  the atrium is the entire height of the hotel.

the taj is open throughout all the floors as well on the room floors from the 2nd floor (usa 3rd fl) to the 6th floor/ sort of like balconies inside/  but open from the center of all the interior hallways/  quite stunning ut when it was built it was compared to a prison (haha)/ the taj is absolutely massive.  the main tower in front is the grand staircase//

i see lots of smoke coming from there from time to time.  it is completely open from ground floor to dome  whyich is known for its sea green ceiling and also for them changing the entire carpets on the staircase to reflect monsoon season or not/  also i used to live in one of those top rooms that burned.  we used to request them cuz they had balconies. now i always stay in room 236 because its near the street and has a small balcony and i can watch teh carriages and all the street mahem at night.  probs stayed there about 10 months total out of my life.   th e last time i was there i rode in the elevator with mick jagger// trivial huh?   buyt cant imagine that area being quiet// its so frenetic/always  also known for the seawall which is where the terrorist came in by small ‘dingy’ raft boats

this was def directed at foreign nationals and i think had to do with thanksgiving / TV viewing.. a greater american audience

and i worry re india as many times the terrorists attack multiple cities

we’ve had more terror deaths here than in afghanistan

so im staying out of shopping malls, hotels and airports for a while-low profile

was out yesterday morning trying to scrape up a TG meal and there were a noticeably fewer xpats/ as we all frequent the same shops/

nice to hear from u

keep in touch

and pray

x

tom