WITNESS - Walking the streets on Mumbai's night of fear

Phil Smith is the South Asia Editor for Reuters and is based in Mumbai. In the following story, he describes his experience covering the attacks in Mumbai.

By Phil Smith

MUMBAI (Reuters) - As the first explosion rattled the seafront homes of south Mumbai's Colaba district at about 10 p.m., my first thought was it must be a firecracker left over from last month's raucous Diwali festival.

It was soon clear it was much, much more than that.

Not far away, what appeared to be a small bomb had exploded leaving the mangled remains of a scooter strewn across the street. Windows of nearby buildings had been blown out.

Police were erecting road blocks using their own vehicles and the barrows of street vendors who ply the area.

Emotions were running high, resilient Mumbaikars hardened by bombings over the years clearly angry that once again their city was under attack.

The gunmen who spread fear throughout the city over the next few hours had picked their target carefully: the heart of the city's tourist area, packed with shops and many of the luxury hotels favoured by international businessmen and visitors. Among the early targets was the Cafe Leopold, perhaps the most famous hangout for food or a late night drink, an eatery featured in the bestselling novel Shantaram.

On a normal evening, the Colaba causeway near the cafe is packed with stalls selling tourist souvenirs ranging from pashmina shawls to reproduction antique clocks.