Editor’s Note: New York artist and lawyer Jolie Schwab toured Mumbai and other Indian cities recently with the American Jewish World Service. She left that country three days before the terrorist assault on Mumbai that began Nov. 26. In an email to family and friends, excerpted here, she shared her reactions immediately after the attack.
As I was leaving India on Nov. 23, I was struck by the vastness of the place, the sheer size of its population, the potential it has for becoming a world power and the complexity of its problems. I realized that there was so much more to see, and I looked forward to someday going back. I imagined we would visit parts that I hadn’t yet seen — maybe Darjeeling or the south of India.
Of the places I had already been, the one that stood out was Mumbai. I wanted to go back and experience more of Mumbai. And next time, instead of the very lovely Oberoi Trident Hotel, we would stay at The Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, which had so much more history and character behind it. I refuse to say that that will never happen, because I refuse to let terror win. However, I will admit that it probably won’t happen soon.
Watching the past three days unfold was surreal. Every chance I got, I turned on CNN. Since I still have not totally adjusted to New York time, I got out of bed at 4 or 5 a.m. and watched as my family slept. I communicated a lot through email with others who were on my trip. As we realized the seriousness of the situation, we all settled into a state of shock. We felt very sad for the people we had met and been touched by who have now been changed forever by these horrific events. We were all extremely thankful to be back, safe and sound, with our families. We were grateful for the accident of timing that brought those terrorists ashore this week and not the week before.
Thirty-two people were killed and many others were injured at The Oberoi, where I stayed in Room 1872. (Sorry, Mom. I know this is hard for you to read). We walked on the docks where fishermen would later see the terrorists come ashore. We visited The Taj — just to see it because it was a special and beautiful place — and the train station because it has such stunning architecture. Both were attacked.
We visited the synagogue and had shared Shabbat dinner with members of the Jewish community. At dinner, our hosts railed a bit about the Chabad rabbi, now dead along with his wife, who competed with them for a minyan (a quorum necessary for Orthodox Jewish services) on those weeks when he decided not to come and lead services at the main synagogue. It amazes me that the terrorists chose the Chabad house as a target instead of the synagogue. How did they know that they would be able to kill more Jews that way?
I don’t mean to be melodramatic because this experience did not come close to really harming us. We were home already. We had left Mumbai several days before the journey home as we traveled to Orissa, Jaipur and Agra. But it does make me pause to think how random these events are. On our first night in The Oberoi, we ate in the restaurant there. On the other nights, we ate out and returned to the hotel, usually for a nightcap in the lobby bar, at around 9:45 or 10. Sometimes, some of us carried tote bags that proudly proclaimed that we were with American Jewish World Service. Now that would have made it easy to target us!
The terrorists struck at 10 p.m. Where would I have been? Assuming I had skipped the nightcap and gone to my room, would I have ignored the knock on my door or the ring at the doorbell when the terrorists came looking for Americans? I mean, why would you assume that you had to hide?
On the other hand, in Orissa as my roommate and I prepared to turn in one night, we heard what turned out to be fireworks at the hotel next door. As we looked out the window and did not immediately see the fireworks, we both thought of gunfire. When the fireworks rose high enough in the sky for us to see them, we laughed that we could have even thought about gunfire. We’re not laughing now.
The Oberoi had a wonderful staff. I mourn for those who were killed or wounded or who have simply now lost their jobs. I mourn for all of Mumbai because it is a wonderful city despite its ridiculous size, mammoth traffic jams, slums, chaos and terrible air pollution. It is a place of great vitality. And, yes, the security was lax. There was a metal detector at the front door, but no one stopped you if you walked around it.
As we watched the twin towers fall on 9/11, I knew immediately that our world had changed forever. I imagine that this is how all of India felt as they watched the Taj and Oberoi hotels burning over three nights. We have so much to be grateful for, as we are safe and sound, with our families in New York. But I still haven’t left Mumbai behind. Now I’m certain I never will.
