India

January 6, 2008 9:00 A.M.

Namaskar! Vanakum! Greetings! The beginning of Day 1 in India. I'll be in Bangalore for two days, then I'll head south. Nothing much to report as the day is just beginning. Entering Bangalore’s humble airport from Singapore’s ultramodern one was quite a jolt. Most airports around the world these days seem pretty generic, and you have to search for signs of the country you’ve just entered. Not so in Bangalore. You know you’ve entered India as soon as you get into the building. Dull lighting, linoleum floors, stained walls, and a carousel that can barely move. When I exited the airport building I was immediately greeted by India’s chaotic frenzy – a large crowd awaiting arrivals, cars honking horns, taxi drivers offering rides, etc. I’d arranged with my hotel to send me a taxi. It was 10:30 at night and I wanted to make life easy for myself. The ride to my hotel felt surreal – like I was in a movie. I’d read and heard so much about Indian roads that I was fully prepared for the heavy traffic weaving through ill defined lanes and constantly blasting their horns. My hotel, the Ballal Residency, is pretty central and very comfortable. It actually feels more luxurious than I’m used to. So, my first night was great. I had a restful sleep. But by 6:00 the jarring noises of the city made it hard to linger in bed. I had my first Indian breakfast this morning. The hotel provides a decent buffet spread consisting of cereals, toast, and fruit. Then there are the South Indian items – idli, vadas, puri potatoes, and a delicious sweet porridge like thing. I decided to be adventurous and have the idli. I thought, heck, my ancestors probably had this for breakfast so why not give it a shot! See, idli is a steamed bread made with rice flour so as breakfast food it’s great. But the sambar – savory and soupy – which goes with it makes it rather too exotic for early in the day! I enjoyed it though, thinking it would be dinner time back in Santa Barbara anyway.

I’m told the shops on the main road – the MG Road – open at 10:00. So, I’ll head out there and begin my exploration of this country.


6:00 P.M.

My hotel couldn’t be better located – within walking distance to the MG (Mahatma Gandhi) Street shopping and dining area, but a little away from the main streets so a great place to return to for peace and quiet. As I walked along Brigade and MG Streets I was so amazed by everything I didn’t even bother taken photos. There is no way photos would capture the many, many things that go on. First there is the traffic – cars, autorickshaws, motorbikes, buses – all spewing out choking smoke. Then there are the people - crowds upon crowds - and all the interesting shops. Such a strange mix of buildings. Some look so shabby, while others are clean and modern. You can tell Bangalore is techie city. Lots of computer and electronics stores everywhere. There's also lots of good food - an absolute heaven for vegetarians. I had lunch at a place called Emgees Veggies. Flocks of well dressed Indian families came in for their Sunday lunch. Waiters in black suits took orders. I had a masala dosa and a falooda. A falooda is a creamy drink flavored with rose water and seved with a dollop of kulfi coated with poppy seeds. It was delicious. I'm being careful with my health. Malaria pills, eating at good, clean, higher end places, and drinking only bottled water.

People here, in the area called Karnataka, have been wonderful. Everyone is so polite and they all address me as "madam". For some reason people know I'm foreign. I don't get why. In this city women dress in much more modern clothes. I want to blend and I've got to work on that a bit.
I noticed European travelers have been wearing Indian clothes. The women have scarves over their shoulders.
I'm loving being among people who look like me. For me, this is incredibly unusual. Today I had my hair cut and colored (the last time I did my hair was in June in Santa Barbara) and it was so strange to have an Indian woman who understood Indian hair handling my hair!
I can tell that Bangalore is too vast a city to get to know. I don't really want to linger here. It's a great place to begin, to take care of logistics, then move on. I'll spend tomorrow hunting down a travel/tour agent and get onward train tickets and hotels sorted out.

Do send comments and keep in touch.