Reflections on Bangalore

It is time to say goodbye. My 5.5 weeks stay in Bangalore seemed to fly by as we get busier and more involved in the project. However, the local conditions and culture are such an experience that it made quite an impression on me.

As I leave, I left with an enriched life experiences….

Bangalore has one the worse airport I’ve been to. Bangalore being the silicon valley of India, the condition of the airport is appalling! The infrastructure can hardly handle the traffic that this city attracts, making it extremely chaotic (and scary). It is only capable of handling one landing each time, everything is very much manual, including the annoucement system. With limited space every where you turn, people filled every corner of the building, even outside the building! It is definitely shocking for first timer.

Bangalore traffic comes a close next, where it is one of the most chaotic traffic I’ve ever seen, but suprisingly with very little accident. As much as KLites are known for their driving skills, I wouldn’t have survive here for a second. We need a chauffer every where we go and this has limit our opportunities to explore the city on our own. I’ve often wanted to stop in between to capture the local lifestyle, but I can only manage to take a memory imprint.

Bangalore is a city of many faces: the modern and the traiditional, the rich and the poor, the religious and the liberal, designer brand and local handicraft, common eateries and 5-stars restaurants. Among these, the deepest impression would be the wide gap between the rich and the poor. The rich is blessed with abundance, the poor can afford nothing. Every where we go in the city, they are people begging – following us, knocking on our car windows, waiting outside shops. The worse of it is children begging or selling things amidst busy traffic. I felt extremely helpless as there is nothing I can do for them.

If there is a next time to Bangalore, I wish very much to see an improve Bangalore.

Mysore, Mysore, Mysore

We finally made the out of Bangalore trip to the garden city of Mysore, about 150km south of Bangalore after being here for 5 weeks. We started our journey early at 7 am as it takes 3 hours of bumpy ride. We visited quite a few places of interests:

• Keshava Temple, a 1300 years old temple
• Shivanasamudra, where the Cauvery River dived into 2 streams, people can have some fun with a spin on an interesting round boat or a dip in the river.
• St. Joseph Cathedral, a100+ years old goltic designed cathelic church
• Chamudi Hill – breath taking panaromic view of Mysore
• Chamundeshwari Temple
• Mysore Palace (winter palace), a majestic palace with fine morish architecture
• Bird santuary
• souvenir shop, no trip is complete without souvenir! :p

I have also caught a glimpse of local lives as we drove through many places. I find it quite fascinating and some are very familiar images from my childhood memory of Malaysia Indian community. There is a sense of nostalgia but at the same time felt that progress has left these people behind.

However, the trip was anything but enjoyable. Every where we went, the moment we stepped down of our vehicle, we are surrounded by petty traders who tried to sell all kind of things to us, despite us politely declined. Someone even offered us a snake! Even the guards at the palace asked for money! I felt absolutely harrased!

The most painful experience was children begging for money. There is this boy at the Chamundeshwari Temple. He followed us the whole time we were at the temple, asking for money, just refusing to leave us. He has watery eyes, dirty clothes and walk around bare feet. As we leave, I gave him Rs. 10, and a smile finally found its way to his face.

Sad to say, we didn’t enjoy the trip at all. It would probably be more relaxing if we stay in the hotel.

Do not Urinate

There’s a bright yellow sign on the wall just outside of where we stayed. It was nothing unusual until I noted that the sign actually told people not to urinate there least they be fined.

Now all these people (all of them men) standing by the roadside with their backside facing the road made sense now…. they are relieving themselves. You can see them everywhere: by the road side, beside the bush, down at the drain … anywhere possible to answer nature’s call. That also explained the bad stench along the streets. Is either basic public sanitation facilities are poor, or they just want a quick relief!

If you do want to answer nature’s unresistable call, please do not do as some of the locals do, though the fine is really cheap!

Please Honk

Bangalore traffic is something to hold your breath for. First is the ignorance of traffic rules, second is the lack of personal safety awareness and third the the excessive honking.

I am amazed traffic flows when most people drive without observing much of the traffic rules, like keeping to your lane, give right of way. I am even more amazed that I have not seen a single accident on the road yet. By not observing basic traffic rules, people actually put themselves in harm ways, especially when they cross a busy street by faith alone, faith that they will get across to the other side safely. That’s a lot of faith!

The most intolerable thing is the honking, as if the traffic itself does not generate enough noise. Honking does not do much either, no one pays attention to it, people use it as a way to say “hi”. Bumper sticker encourages drivers to sound their honk. I really don’t understand how does this help the traffic. Stress relief?

No one should try a hand on Bangalore roads unless you are one brave soul, real brave soul!