They tried to blast it out of existence.. make it fall.. defeat it.. but they couldn't.
The Tah hotel stands!! Majestic as ever on Mumbai's waterfront!! The final count of hand grenades that were exploded in it was something like 50. It was constantly on fire as the attackers tried to create diversions. But almost four days of fire, firings and blasts later, the Taj stands!!
So do the Trident and Oberoi hotels and the Nariman House which were the other major places under attack for almost 62 hours.
The police found boxes and boxes of RDX and LOADS of other explosives suggesting that the terror plan was much worse than what actually transpired. The one terrorist that was taken in alive also said that the plan was to blow up Taj. It didn't happen though.
They underestimated it.. and they've underestimated us.
Sure there are wounds.. internal damages.. but nothing permanent.
We'll build up the interiors again.. fix our hurting parts.. and we'll be stronger than we ever were.
The facade of Taj is unshaken.. almost perfect.. even more beautiful in its surviving glory.. and so are we.
The General Manager of Taj lost his wife and children in the attack.. but he and the entire staff were extremely proffessional and brave and saved hundreds of peple by evacuating them.. they executed their drills to perfection and messaged the guests that had gone out to stay out and not return to the hotel. They stayed until they were forcibly removed by the cops or killed in some cases. Ironically though, the brave GM lost his own family.
What is he doing today though? Working. He refused taking the day off.. said he was shattered at the loss of his family.. but he must work.
If he can work, so can we.
We are standing tall, proud and beautiful. Just like the Taj. Bruised, yes.. but not broken in the least!!
;-)
