Bangalore Kolkata से ख़राब है

(in which Bangalore is revealed to be an inferior mega-city to Kolkata, despite what all the tech-heads think)

Emboldened by our success in reaching the salt-encrusted tiger swamp, our first Indian biosphere reserve, we hopped on a plane from Kolkata to Bangalore in hot pursuit of our second.  Bangalore, India's 3rd most populous city and the capitol of the state of Karnataka, is the gateway city to the Nilgiri biosphere reserve, a fantastic landscape of forested hillsides and tea plantations spanning three states. Known for its parks, renowned research institutions and universities, and high-tech industries, Bangalore ranks highly on most people's list of livable Indian cities.

But in this self-described Garden City I failed to find a single garden. My Bangalore experience was a wilderness of crumbling cement, congested roads, and cockroach-infested budget hotel rooms. It probably didn't help that I spent most of my three days in the city in and around the chaotic wasteland of the interstate bus terminal. Hey, the accommodation was cheap, transportation was easily available, and I only had three meetings to conclude before we could get the heck out.  One evening we succeeded in escaping the grey hell in order to find the city's commercial center.  But here too, gaudy signs and blaring traffic left me cold.

Bangalore, I do not love you.  But maybe I didn't give you are fair shake.  When next I come again, show me your fair parks and multi-billion dollar corporate headquarters, and then, perhaps, I will give you a second chance.

Here are some pictures of the few sights of Bangalore I did find appealing.

Typical south Indian food: dosa on the left and idli sambar on the right.