After a few days in Bombay, Baba left for Nasik on the 18th in Elizabeth's car, with her, Norina, Rano and Falu. This was the last time Baba visited his Western lovers at Meher Retreat. He stayed two days and left for Meherabad on the 20th.
Ruano left Nasik on 23 July by train for Bombay, where she was met by Chanji and Kaka who assisted her in changing trains. Like Sam Cohen, Ruano was traveling to Europe via Ceylon (a cheaper passage though it would take longer), and she was to meet Baba and the group in Cannes.
Later that day, Sampath Aiyangar, the editor of The Meher Gazette , came from Madras to see Baba, but when he arrived in Nasik, Baba had already left. Sampath went on to Meherabad to meet Baba and was informed about Baba's upcoming trip to France.
Baba left Meherabad with Mehera, Mani, Naja, Khorshed, Soonamasi and Walu at 2:50 P.M. on Thursday, 29 July 1937 to begin their journey to France. They traveled first in Sarosh's Chevrolet up to Vilad railway station (16 km north of Ahmednagar) from where they boarded a train for Bombay. (Vishnu accompanied them to Bombay.) Chanji, Kaka and Nilu were to join Baba for the journey. From Nasik, Norina, Elizabeth, Nonny, Rano, Malcolm, Jean and Tom drove to Bombay the same day with Falu. When Baba and the women arrived in Bombay early the next morning, Baba did not wish any of his lovers to see him at the train station, so none in Bombay were informed.
After spending a day at the Regent Hotel, Baba and the group boarded the Strathnaver on Saturday, 31 July 1937 and sailed for Marseilles at 1:00 P.M. The two dogs, Kippy and Canute, went with them (as did Elizabeth's Ford).
For the first few days the sea was very rough and all remained in their cabins. But even when the weather improved, the women mandali had to remain in seclusion in their cabins. They would only be taken out on deck in the wee hours of the morning when all the other passengers were sleeping, so that no one would see them. When Baba brought them up, Kaka and Chanji were posted as sentries, often crouching in the pitch-dark passageways "like beggars on the street," Chanji wrote glumly.
The Westerners, however, were unrestricted in their movements and could move about the ship at any time, except for Rano who was kept aloof like the Eastern women.