Continued Coverage from Bangalore
Hello all,
In case you were wondering I am still alive and kicking in this city and my spirits are still high. Certainly I did not know what to expect when I arrived here and that I think has helped in adjusting to the lifestyle here so far. So the message to all moving and considering moving to India "Come with no expectations and ye shall not regret".
But I do miss Seattle now! Someone remarked when they found out I was from Seattle "But isn't that such a beautiful city, why did you decide to come here?" It did make me remember all the lovely summers spent in Seattle, camping, picknicking, travelling around the state and just simply many a times the commute back home in the evening under bright daylight with the vast expanse of W.Lake Sammamish and beyond from 520, or the views of Seattle from the floating bridge, and the spectacular downtown view from the ferry with an orange Rainier hovering over the city like a Magic Majestic Mountain. Wow! I certainly miss Seattle.
I was thinking about this as I was waiting to cross the busy street at the signal when the crossing sign turned green and a familiar chirp was heard above me. Wow! Bangalore lights have support for blind people crossing the streets! I looked up and I saw a real bird chirping high above on the banyan tree nearby not an electronic one. So much for a equal opportunity traffic system. And don't get me started on traffic. I think that if only the concept of a stop sign was embraced in India the traffic would be so much smooth and efficient. No hopes of that happening anytime soon. Here it is everybody for him/her self. The name of the game is get as far ahead as you can. Don't worry about the others. If they can they will do the same. If you tell someone that they cut in line while you have been waiting for a while they will grudgingly say "OK man, you can go ahead I don't mind yaar" and you will feel like they obliged you by this benevolent act of theirs.
But that's India. That's the spirit. If you need to get things done demand it. If you can't have it one way try and find another. Be persistent and you shall succeed! And many a times people will help you find a way out (as long as it is not threatening theirs :-)
So it rained the other day for an hour. I was sitting on the sofa in the evening and reading when I heard a loud drumming sound like a machine saw. It went on for a while and I was thinking what the hell are they doing? But I was getting used to the noise when I realized that this isn't a machine saw but hard rain on the aluminium roof shingles. In a couple of minutes the tiny road was jammed with cars, trucks, cows, dogs, cycles and of course constant honking from all of them. Not one minute goes without a car honk and one wonders if all this honking is really necessary. But I feel the car honking is just a reaction very much like getting in a heated argument at the drop of a hat. The other day my car driver got into one (obviously he was in the wrong) with a motorcycle guy who complained that the car almost ran over his leg. The driver let forth a few of the choicest abuses as if it is his right to get as close as possible to get ahead. I had to tell him to stop yelling and continue on.
But I have been driving around a lot in the city and have a fair idea of distances and times. Exploring some areas for schools and homes. It's been hard to get a good combination so we will have to continue to work on it when we all move here. But prices are shooting off the roof. And sellers/renters are demanding a premium price just because they can. If only buyers/rentees stood their ground then the price rise can be contained. Still with the expansion planned and some road infrastructures planned to complete in the near future for improving the flow there seems to be good amount of growth still left in the city.
And there is a lot of life and energy. I saw a sign for Sunday Music Jam every month in the palace grounds. Bangalore is a good place for music artists. Also there are lot of other activities for kids through adults and older. There are also Karate classes, urban yoga wear shops, kids model hunt, indian idol shows and other fashion shows (I haven't been to any though ;-). Also "sleeveless sarsa" is quite funny on Radio Mirchi. "Chi Ganda" is her quote on the DJ. Also there are decent places to eat. Not as good as Mumbai / Delhi but good enough. I had pani puri and sev puri and gobi manchurian at the "chaat corner". The Pani Puri guy was the authentic one with the thela (not a sanitized version) and hands dipped in the masala. I had dosai, vadai for breakfast at Yahoo!, frankie for lunch, really good paneer tikka at Geoffreys (a bar) and good buffet at "Roomali with a view". So guys I have been eating well. A little too skip a meal (not used to so much food during the day).
Anyways it's getting late so I should stop. I am eager to come back! It's been long 3 weeks and it's going to be hectic for the next 2-3 months for us.
Hope everything is well in Seattle and I will bring some Mithai with me. If anyone needs anything else please send me an email asap so that I can get it.
So as you say bye in Kannada
"Bye"
Chintan
In case you were wondering I am still alive and kicking in this city and my spirits are still high. Certainly I did not know what to expect when I arrived here and that I think has helped in adjusting to the lifestyle here so far. So the message to all moving and considering moving to India "Come with no expectations and ye shall not regret".
But I do miss Seattle now! Someone remarked when they found out I was from Seattle "But isn't that such a beautiful city, why did you decide to come here?" It did make me remember all the lovely summers spent in Seattle, camping, picknicking, travelling around the state and just simply many a times the commute back home in the evening under bright daylight with the vast expanse of W.Lake Sammamish and beyond from 520, or the views of Seattle from the floating bridge, and the spectacular downtown view from the ferry with an orange Rainier hovering over the city like a Magic Majestic Mountain. Wow! I certainly miss Seattle.
I was thinking about this as I was waiting to cross the busy street at the signal when the crossing sign turned green and a familiar chirp was heard above me. Wow! Bangalore lights have support for blind people crossing the streets! I looked up and I saw a real bird chirping high above on the banyan tree nearby not an electronic one. So much for a equal opportunity traffic system. And don't get me started on traffic. I think that if only the concept of a stop sign was embraced in India the traffic would be so much smooth and efficient. No hopes of that happening anytime soon. Here it is everybody for him/her self. The name of the game is get as far ahead as you can. Don't worry about the others. If they can they will do the same. If you tell someone that they cut in line while you have been waiting for a while they will grudgingly say "OK man, you can go ahead I don't mind yaar" and you will feel like they obliged you by this benevolent act of theirs.
But that's India. That's the spirit. If you need to get things done demand it. If you can't have it one way try and find another. Be persistent and you shall succeed! And many a times people will help you find a way out (as long as it is not threatening theirs :-)
So it rained the other day for an hour. I was sitting on the sofa in the evening and reading when I heard a loud drumming sound like a machine saw. It went on for a while and I was thinking what the hell are they doing? But I was getting used to the noise when I realized that this isn't a machine saw but hard rain on the aluminium roof shingles. In a couple of minutes the tiny road was jammed with cars, trucks, cows, dogs, cycles and of course constant honking from all of them. Not one minute goes without a car honk and one wonders if all this honking is really necessary. But I feel the car honking is just a reaction very much like getting in a heated argument at the drop of a hat. The other day my car driver got into one (obviously he was in the wrong) with a motorcycle guy who complained that the car almost ran over his leg. The driver let forth a few of the choicest abuses as if it is his right to get as close as possible to get ahead. I had to tell him to stop yelling and continue on.
But I have been driving around a lot in the city and have a fair idea of distances and times. Exploring some areas for schools and homes. It's been hard to get a good combination so we will have to continue to work on it when we all move here. But prices are shooting off the roof. And sellers/renters are demanding a premium price just because they can. If only buyers/rentees stood their ground then the price rise can be contained. Still with the expansion planned and some road infrastructures planned to complete in the near future for improving the flow there seems to be good amount of growth still left in the city.
And there is a lot of life and energy. I saw a sign for Sunday Music Jam every month in the palace grounds. Bangalore is a good place for music artists. Also there are lot of other activities for kids through adults and older. There are also Karate classes, urban yoga wear shops, kids model hunt, indian idol shows and other fashion shows (I haven't been to any though ;-). Also "sleeveless sarsa" is quite funny on Radio Mirchi. "Chi Ganda" is her quote on the DJ. Also there are decent places to eat. Not as good as Mumbai / Delhi but good enough. I had pani puri and sev puri and gobi manchurian at the "chaat corner". The Pani Puri guy was the authentic one with the thela (not a sanitized version) and hands dipped in the masala. I had dosai, vadai for breakfast at Yahoo!, frankie for lunch, really good paneer tikka at Geoffreys (a bar) and good buffet at "Roomali with a view". So guys I have been eating well. A little too skip a meal (not used to so much food during the day).
Anyways it's getting late so I should stop. I am eager to come back! It's been long 3 weeks and it's going to be hectic for the next 2-3 months for us.
Hope everything is well in Seattle and I will bring some Mithai with me. If anyone needs anything else please send me an email asap so that I can get it.
So as you say bye in Kannada
"Bye"
Chintan
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