Returned to Bangalore, India

r2Blore is moving

2007-10-01T20:34:00.000+05:30

Dear readers,

I have been blogging for about 11 months now. I have enjoyed good readership and wonderful participation. Thank you for your support and encouragement! I wanted to let you know that I am moving bag and baggage; nope, not me! :) but the blog. Yep, r2blore has a new home now. I am working on a site that will house all my thoughts and works. And r2Blore will now be a part of it. I plan to do a lot more writing on a variety of things. The site is still a wok in progress and it will be a while before it reaches where I want it to be. All the posts and comments have been moved manually. So, not everything from here is still there. Hope to see you all there.

For general/personal stuff, go to http://chitra-aiyer.com
For R2I specific topics please go to http://r2blore.chitra-aiyer.com

I will be having a couple of other categories too going forward. You are welcome to email me at chitra [_] aiyer [@] yahoo [.] com if you want to suggest topics, discussions etc. Looking forward to your continued readership and support.

Please point to http://chitra-aiyer.com in case you have me on your blogroll/site/blog.

Thanks,
Chitra

Ganesha Chathurthi

2007-09-14T19:04:00.000+05:30

It is that time of the year when Ganesha Chathurthi is celebrated in full fervor in Bangalore. This time the Gowri festival (previous day of Ganesha festival) was pretty much washed out due to the rains. I am not sure if I have experienced such rains in Bangalore before. Resembled India's west coast!! A constant downpour with dark skies for the entire day.

The fun part of the week was to take the kids around to see the sights of the colorful 'Ganesha's in the temporarily setup stores, and all the flowers that were available in plenty for the festival.

The way we celebrate is to get the clay from a potter and make a small Ganesha at home; it is a fun family activity that brings a lot of joy to the kids.

My husband making the Ganesh idol

Along with the flowers, Ganesha is also worshiped with a lot of leaves. I went around with my daughter picking the select leaves. She was very happy to be doing all this, the only thing that ups my interest level in the whole affair. And when we did the pooja to the little Ganesha idol with flowers, leaves, traditional sweets and savories, ringing of the bell, the kids wearing their traditional colorful clothes etc, it was a day filled with happiness and joy. My kids are young and are thrilled to bits seeing such activities around them; the big plus for me to be doing any of this.

The atmosphere was festive in the neighborhood with the ladies hurrying around in their silk sarees, and the kids going around in groups to see the many 'Ganesha's. This is my first time celebrating the festival with hub and kids in India. And well, it was fun.

Happy Chathurthi from our home to yours!

PS: The bummer of course is that I am sick now and so is my son. It is the rains/weather change and the viral fever doing its rounds.

Jobs in Bangalore

2007-09-05T09:15:00.000+05:30

One of the most asked questions over email from r2Blore readers has been about jobs in Bangalore. And the ways and means to land one. I will write a detailed post on this topic sometime this month. This post is to let you know that right now, I know a couple of MNCs that are on a hiring spree for their Bangalore offices - for a wide range of positions.
If interested, please feel free to email your resumes to me at chitra [_] aiyer [at] yahoo [dot] com . I can forward the resume through my friends. Please say 'Resume' in the email subject for easy identification. More details via email.

Nope, this is not for any personal referral bonuses etc.

Burrp! turned 1

2007-09-01T15:15:00.000+05:30

What's Burrp? Burrp's an Indian website where you can find and share your views on local stuff such as restaurants, bars, nightlife, street food, juice centres, desserts, bakeries, etc. Started in Mumbai, it currently serves Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata.

On Aug 15th, Burrp turned 1. The very nice Meenakshi Goveas who works for burrp in Bangalore invited a bunch of local bloggers, burrpers (people who review for burrp) and blahers (people who write for burrp). It was a small, pleasant gathering. The birthday party was organised at Brewhaha in Koramangala. While it was nice to get an invitation because of the blog you write, it was nicer to meet other local bloggers and reviewers; each one of them having varied interests and passions. More here. Thanks Meenakshi!

The next time you want to read up about a local place before you go there, feel free to visit Burrp and read their reviews. Or if you want to post a review, you can do that too.

PS: If you find articles written by a 'Chitra' in Burrp Bangalore, well that is NOT me. :)

When it rains, it pours!

2007-08-30T20:00:00.000+05:30

Bangalore has been getting some really good rains of late. It has been pouring long and hard. If you are home, it is wonderful of course - sipping tea, enjoying the rains from within the comforts of your home, music in the background, etc.

But what happens to the roads - public's best friend? The city's main roads are in very good condition and the rains don't seem to be harming those too much. However, the way the rains have been pouring, the roads are almost always flooded. See pic.

Flooded

The minute you take a turn away from the main roads, and into the secondary main roads, the bumpy journey begins. Typically the prime main roads like the one in the pic above are also those that have some decent pavements for the pedestrians. From the secondary main road onwards the road is the only place for the traffic, pedestrians, animals, vendors, bus-stops, auto-stands, repair-works (road repair, cable, telephone, water supply) , parking lots .... well you get the picture. And when it rains, not only is all the chaos quadrupled, but the roads also acquire new damages. It is as if the rains are eating away the roads. See below.

Potholes
.

These pics were taken after the rains, not during. You can only imagine these during the rains. Also these pics do not reflect the worst case!

So when it rains, with the potholes, the mud water splashing, the honks, and the infamous traffic jams getting worse, you are in for one heck of a joy ride. Of course, you learn to take it all in, take a deep breath and "inch" forward. And if you are not frustrated, well then at least you are learning to be patient and accepting!

Know an awesome pediatrician?

2007-08-24T09:17:00.000+05:30

Practicing in Bangalore? If you know a good pediatrician and can recommend him/her highly, please share the info here in the comments section.

I have been quite disappointed with the ones we have been to. Especially when we went for our son's 2nd year physical check up. He is going to be 2.5 yrs soon. He is due for another physical now and how I miss our earlier pediatrician at Sunnyvale. I have said it before, and I cannot help but say it again. Dr. Kaye would spend as much time as was needed with us. We would go over milestones, height and weight gained, things to watch out for, what activities can we start doing with him to enable his development etc. Anyway, with our boy's 2 year physical, we had none of those. There was no accurate measuring of the height. We didn't go over his milestones. We definitely were not encouraged to ask questions. The pediatrician may be bored with all the intricacies, but this is our boy and no, we don't find anything boring! Anyway, this was the doc that came with a lot of recommendation! So, here I am asking my readers from Bangalore for recommendations. For a physical, I don't mind going anywhere in town to see a good doc. The interaction with the doc during physicals matters to me, a lot! For fevers and other small things, I don't mind going to the guys in the neighborhood.

What I would have liked is for one office to keep tab on the kids. But, I don't know if any doc's office does that. Like for example with Dr. Kaye, once he took us in, everything was taken care of from the day the child was born! Emergencies were attended to. Nurses were on call 24/7. If you had a child, and had good insurance plan, you were taken care of. Period. And at times, when he was not in town, we could meet anybody else from the Camino Medical group. I have not heard of offices here taking you in, as in keeping your child's medical records, tracking his/her progress, maintaining a vaccination record, etc. Do any docs here do that? This pediatrician here didn't even tell us that the next physical was at 2.5 yrs. We know this only because we have an older child!

I have been told how every doc has way too many patients here, be it a pediatrician, cardiologist, oncologist, dentist, anybody. Nobody has too much time for one patient. They have that many patients coming to them every single day! So, I guess individual attention is going to be pretty limited. Please share your pediatric visit experiences in Bangalore and your observations. It will be beneficial to us and some of the readers here too. Thanks in advance.

Nanha Munna Rahi Hun

2007-08-14T19:19:00.000+05:30

... so came my 4 yr old daughter singing from school one day! And I was totally taken in by surprise. When had I last heard that song? I tried to recall. Probably in the 80s, when DD was the only channel available and Chitrahaar was a popular family entertainment program. This cute kid in sepia would sing this song with full fervor. And to now hear my own daughter sing it after probably having heard it maybe 2 decades ago, well it was surreal! I had a silly grin on my face. She told me how her teachers were teaching all of them a bunch of songs. And when I asked her to sing the other songs that they had taught, she sang bits of 'Saare jahan se accha' and some from 'Hum honge kamiyab ek din'. This was in the first couple of days of August and of course it didn't take me long to realise that they were practicing for the Independence Day celebrations.

The sights, smells, sounds from childhood pretty much define home for me. As an adult, though the appeal changes and one seeks for other shores and other sights, the thought or the feeling of 'home' always kind of gives the warm fuzzy feeling. Some of the neighborhood sights of Bangalore, the feel of the lazy foggy mornings when Bangalore is still only waking up, the smell of the sampige, all define home for me. In the same way, though I was never raised in Kerala, the smell of the soil there, the total rustic scenes, the tunes of some of the native birds still manage to tingle this one corner of my heart. Similarly for my husband too, things that define home are, I am sure, pretty Indian. Why am I trying to define home? Let's look at it this way. What if we had continued staying in the US? Our kids would have assimilated the sights, sounds, smells of the place they are growing in. Nothing wrong with that. Just that those subtleties would have slowly defined 'home' for them. The sights and sounds in the US are something that we love too, but it would probably never feel like 'home', with such strong competition coming from various nooks and corners of our own childhoods; those are ingrained. And in this 'if' scenario, lets fast forward a few years. Our kids will still be our kids, but with a totally different concept of home, which is probably ok. But, I am quite sure it would not have been very ok for me. 'Home' is a lot more than a 4 letter word to me; 'kids' is another 4 letter word that means the world to me. And to have the kids not even remotely think of 'home' as anything that is 'home' for me would have probably been hard. I don't know. Maybe not too. I may have started defining it differently for myself also. Either way, I still would have had the warm fuzzy feeling for many things Indian, for things from my childhood here. We would have probably sent the kids to a bunch of Indian classes in the US, but unfortunately that would still not cut it, IMHO. And she may have never learnt to sing 'nanha munna'. :)

The world has changed a lot since when I grew up. So has India. Raising them here is still going to make the nuances that form childhood memories very different for them. Irrespective, at least there is hope that the 4 of us - kids, hub, and I - may end up having a couple of common things to identify our childhoods with. And in my old age, when I sit chatting with my daughter/son over some nice hot chai, if we can talk fondly about a couple of things from our past in Bangalore or India, then I am sure I will have our R2Iing decision to thank for hugely. :) What do you say?

Nanha munna rahi hun, desh ka sipahi hun,
Bolo mere sang, jai hind, jai hind, jai hind, jai hind, jai hind!

Happy Independence Day my fellow Indians! Happy 60th, dear India!

Tagged!

2007-08-06T11:15:00.000+05:30

I was tagged a while ago actually, but am getting to it only now. Sorry for the delay PoppinsMom and SS. Thank your girls for thinking of me. I must tell you both one thing. I like both of your blogs and can relate to you both. You girls are like my cyber-sisters. :))

PoppinsMom gave me a Thinking Blogger award! Thank you! PoppinsMom is an eloquent writer and is vocal about the topics she chooses to write about. Her writing style is really good too. She is a super-woman who does it all from raising a child, to working outside of home, to having a loving relationship with her hubby dear, to blogging very regularly, and everything in between!

Here are my 5 for the Thinking Blogger award.

Usha of Agelessbonding: Of course everybody knows Usha and her 'Agelessbonding'. Usha has been awarded before, but I wanted to give her the Thinking Blogger award myself. I admire you tons, Usha! Love your blog and totally love your style.

Vijay of Bangalore Blues: Vijay writes about our city, Bangalore and its issues, but and a big but, without venting! He writes everything with a huge dose of humour. Wonderful. Oh and not to forget his story telling skills. Absolutely delightful narrations from his colorful past.

Pradeep of Time and Tide: I have a lot of respect for Pradeep. He ALWAYS has his head on his shoulders. In fact, when I read his blogspot, it is his clarity of thought that stands out. Very mature, and good writing skills.

Mumbaigirl: She writes about a variety of things, both from her life and from the happenings around the globe. And whenever I visit her blog, there is always something different there. Very well articulated, her blog is always a fun read.

Mahipal of r2i2010: Mahipal started blogging fairly recently. And his blog is geared towards his and his family's goal of returning to Hyderabad from the US in 2010. There is a ton of planning that he is doing to enable the forthcoming move. I have immense appreciation for his earlier investments. He has informative posts about Hyd real estate too. Mahipal, all the very best!

I truly wanted to give the award to you guys. Please pass it on. :)

*********************************************************

SS tagged me for the kinds of people I judge and for the things I admire.

Lets get done with the unpleasant one first. :)

Whom do I judge?

Men who matter-of-factly admit that their folks are not great with their wives and in the same breath say 'but hey that is just the way it is'!!!
Women who openly talk ill of their in-laws to anybody who cares to lend an ear. This is a big one for me. On the same note, women who complain about the in-laws to their moms/parents . I think, this doesn't do anybody any good.
Idiots who drive.
Women who choose to not grow. By grow I mean, 'having the willingness to learn something new'. You do not need reasons to learn a trade, pick a hobby, read a book, watch a knowledge based TV program, anything really.
Neighbors who don't even say a 'Hi'. *Rolls Eyes*
People who do not value their grammar too much. (I am crazy!)
People who are not on the Internet. Not because they do not have access, but because they think the TV is enough!!! I don't even get that.
Older Indians who expect respect just because they happen to be older! What the!
Moms who feed junk food to their kids. Sigh!
Whiners who refuse to see the beauty in life. Life is beautiful, one must just choose to see it.

Anyway, now for the good part. Yay! Things I admire:

Good communication skills - written, spoken, anything.
Good listening skills.
Moms who do their best for their kids. Kudos to you gals and more power to you. I totally believe that the future lies in the hands of the mothers. If we do a good job, we have so much to reap in the future.
Men who actually think they are one half of the whole. Very few do.
Men who do chores around the house, who are supportive of their wives' efforts, and who are great with the kids - theirs and others'.
Good neighborly skills.
People who are in the know.
Kids that are inclusive of other kids. If you notice, a lot of the kids are totally into forming groups. :)
Talent. All kinds.
Patience. It is easy to lose it.

So there, I am done.
And for both the tags - 'Kinds of people I judge' and 'Things I admire' - I tag Vijay, Pradeep, Mahipal, Archana, Sloganmurugan, RK.

If you are into flowers or plants,

2007-07-27T20:09:00.000+05:30

then Bangalore is a lovely place for you.

A splash of carnations

Bangalore has been big on cut-flowers and traditional flowers for many years now. The market for flowers is huge here and florist kiosks abound the city. You see beautiful, colorful, fresh flowers just about anywhere - Gladioli, roses, chrysanthemums, orchids, lilies, carnations, asters, and dahlias are a sight to behold.

There are many nurseries too in the city. In fact, every locality has at least a few of them. Right in this neighborhood, there are 3 nurseries that I know of. I am sure there are many more that I am not aware of. My mom used to be big on gardening, not so much anymore. It was fun to visit the nurseries with her, carry back plants, and grow them at home. These days, there are many workers available to work on your gardens. You don't even have to soil your hands! The gardeners do a fantastic job of maintaining your plants/gardens for you and offer their services regularly by planting, pruning, and maintaining your plants for you!

When in the US, my hub and I managed to have a decent number of plants. But of course, we did the entire thing ourselves from bringing home the plants, to potting them, watering them, taking care of them etc. We loved buying plants at garage/estate sales. It was fun meeting the owners of the plants; some of them would gush about their plants before selling them. We hated buying plants at stores, it seemed too commercial! Also, with experience, we realised that the plants from homes survived much better than plants from the stores. Some of our weekends were planned around getting home plants and working on them. It has been 9 months since our return and all that already seems so far away. Sigh! Beautiful memories.

Like the vegetable vendors in Bangalore, you have plant vendors too. They carry potted plants on push-carts and bring them right to your door-step! Similarly, the flower vendors bring the traditional flowers like the jasmine, chrysanthemum, crossandra, etc right to your door step as well.

It is a pleasure to visit the local florist and the local nursery. The colors and the smells are enjoyable, espeically if you are a flower lover like myself.

PS: The much awaited Lalbagh's flower show is right around the corner. It is around the time of India's independence day, Aug 15th. We plan to head out early one weekend morning to avoid the crowds.

Some pics of flowers for your visual delight straight from the local florist/nursery. Each flower pic is clickable and can be viewed large.

Have a great weekend, my friends!
You are welcome to let me know the pics you liked! :D

Gerbera

Orchid

Yellow Daisies

Baby pink carnations

Red rose

White gladioli

Dahlia

Orange Gladioli

Double shaded carnation

Strawflower

Goldenrod

When can a child start LKG?

2007-07-16T17:52:00.000+05:30

I have had many queries about the age group for Kindergarten children here in Bangalore. Typically, each school has its own cut-off for when a child can start Kindergarten classes. On a broad scale, what I can say is that a child must be 4 to go to Lower Kindergarten, 5 to go to Upper Kindergarten, and 6 to go to First Standard.

The only thing is there are some schools that are extremely particular about their cut-off dates. For example, at Viday Sagar, the child MUST have completed 4 yrs as of May 31st, to start LKG on Jun 1st of any given year. But, there are lot of schools where they are not very particular and take in even 3 and 10 month olds into LKG. So, if you have a Jun born child, you do have to figure out how to go about the admission process; some of the schools may take in your child for LKG even if your child is completing 4 only in Jun and other schools may not.

In our case, our older one was born on Jun 1st '03. One of the reasons we moved in Oct '06 was to start her schooling here from Jun '07. The process in Bangalore is fairly long, what with schools giving out applications as early as Oct/Nov. Most of the schools are done with the admission process in Dec/Jan. And the important thing to know is, it is easier to get seats at LKG level than at any other. All of the seats are available, unlike for other standards when only a few seats are available for 'outsiders'. A lot of the good schools also restrict the number of students per class, so unless some kids choose to leave school, typically there aren't any seats available at higher classes. First Standard would be next bet, since some schools open up another section to accommodate more students. But from First Standard onwards, the kids have to go through aptitude tests etc to "qualify". So, R2Iing for LKG seemed like a sane choice. Please do share your experiences if you have gone through something similar.

PS: I have been so flickred, it is unbelievable! I have avoided flickr for a long time, because I knew how addictive it could be for the likes of me. But, now with the DSLR, flickr is such a default hang out. Sheesh!
I have not been active here, but I will. I promise I will.

Today is my Birthday!

2007-07-04T00:29:00.000+05:30

July 4th - I am 33 today. Typically, I do not write anything at all about myself on this blog, but today I am making an exception to that rule.

My birthdays mean nothing much to me. But, my husband makes it special and I like that. My parents are very happy, and I am happy for them. I understand now what it means to have a child and to know that your child has completed yet another year on earth. My kids wish me and have no clue what it actually means, but I love that! So, at the end of it, the day would have meant absolutely nothing without these people in my life! I love 'em and I thank God for having them in my life!

Some random 10 things about myself, and in no particular order:

I love the movies! They have defined a lot of things for me. I 'get' some of life's important lessons from the movies. Yes, there is the Gita, but give me the movies anyday! I must add that I cannot watch any and every movie. I am extremely choosy, but when I like a movie, I appreciate it whole-heartedly. I love some of the artsy/indie type, and of course I like an out and out romance or comedy movie. As long as they have a message, they have an audience in me. Some of the movies that I have truly enjoyed are listed in my profile, and of course the list doesn't cover 'em all.
I totally believe in love, marriage, togetherness, romance, growing old together, going all out to follow your heart, and all that jazz. People who know me will vouch for how much this is all true for me. That said, it does not mean that I am not pragmatic; in fact far from it! Go figure. :)
For a long while now, I have enjoyed the passing years. The teens and early twenties were turbulent! I have enjoyed the late 20s and the early 30s much more. The maturity and the feeling of contentment have been the big pluses.
I love taking pictures. Dorothea Lange once said "The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera." That is so true. If you look at things through the imaginative lens of the camera, everything will look beautiful. Of late, I have begun playing around with a Canon DSLR. Don't know how far that will go, but I am enjoying it right now.
I did my B. Arch in college. I chose Archi after my 12th for a variety of reasons; one of them being the creativity and the other being the ability to practice it independently and at a pace that I wanted to. I enjoyed the design aspect of it immensely as a student, but by the end of the 5 years, I kind of figured I had lost interest in the field. Sad! I did practice it for about 2 years, and I am glad I gave it up when I did. I then went off to the US and after doing computer courses, chose to work in the IT industry as a writer.
I love writing. I have enjoyed it all along, but now I know it; thanks to this blog!
I love colors! I appreciate all shades that are in nature. I have always wondered how the blind perceive color!
As for my future plans, I have a couple of ideas, and will slowly start working towards those. And as and when the kids are in school full-time, I will have something going on in parallel.
Selfishness, insensitivity, and apathy are a put off. I am a tad too sensitive about the world around me and can't digest injustice, oppression, harassment, and the rest of it. Sometimes, I avoid news if I have to. Most of the times, I wonder what I will tell my children in the years ahead?!
I am thankful for being a woman. I could have neither experienced pregnancy nor become a mom without being a woman! And I am thankful for both of those, especially because I started appreciating life only after becoming a mom!

When I started with this post, I had no clue that this was what I was going to write! But, I did. And you are welcome to ask me questions. :)

R2I - Work life, a sneak peek!

2007-07-01T22:10:00.000+05:30

Please Note

The following points cannot be generalized; they are just based on my discussions with my husband + a few interactions with some of his friends who have also R2Ied.
All of them work for American tech companies in Bangalore. So, most of the points mentioned here only cover such a typical set-up.

Age: One of the aspects that stands out is the average age of the employees - much younger when compared to the average in a typical US office. Hard to say if this is good or bad, but certainly different! The slightly experienced (3-5 years) software professionals are still aiming for opportunities abroad. In an MNC, it is quite common to find the bulk of the middle management to be an R2I crowd, i.e. a crowd that has spent a significant portion of its work life outside of India.

Work Hours: The good thing is that there are really no "working hours". Most of the employees typically start coming in at around 10.00 AM and end up staying late, whether it is required or not. However, based on what I hear, sticking to your preferred work hours is doable if you are disciplined.
In general, if you are particular about spending quality time with your family, you can communicate with your team about your preferred timings, so that they can plan for meetings etc during the hours that work for you. Typically, it is up to you to convey that you will not be able to attend meetings or discussions that are outside of your preferred work hours.
Sticking to your time is more doable if you are an independent contributor than a manager working in tandem with a team. The good thing is a lot more companies are opening up to the value of individual contributors.
Late night or early morning conference calls that you can attend to from home are a given; a majority of the work at middle-senior level will almost always involve working very closely with partners, colleagues, or clients in other countries.

Commute: On commute, less said the better! You have the choice of living close to your work place, which will work well. And if you cannot do that, you can choose to commute during off-peak hours - before 8.00 AM or after 10.30 AM and before 5.00 PM or after 9.30 PM. My husband leaves home at around 7.30 AM and starts from work at around 5.00 PM and it seems to definitely be working for him, since we cannot live close to his work for other reasons.

Work Culture: Apparently, things are more "casual" at work in general than in the US. People seem to chat and “hang out" more than in a typical office in the US, where people are a lot more focused. This may be relaxing or distracting, whichever way you choose to look at it.
For people who have not worked in India before: Typically people do not address their seniors as ‘Sir / Madam’ in this industry.
In general, there seems to be an eagerness to want the title of a 'manager'. It looks to predominantly be a cultural issue; it is kind of considered that you have “arrived” if you are a manager and have people reporting to you. However, this is slowly changing - where some of them seem to be opting for the role of individual contributors and are also more comfortable with the responsibilities that come with it.
And if there's a cricket match going on (especially an interesting one), things are a lot more flexible. You know how it is with cricket!!

Travel - Overseas/India: Travel of some sort is always a given. And if you are back with work experience from abroad, you are very likely going to be traveling overseas to meet your teams, clients almost on a regular basis. This cannot be avoided too much, and is part of the deal!

Interiors & Facilities: On the whole, very nice office spaces and interiors. In most of the offices, the cubicles are designed to seat 2, 3, or 4 people. Some companies do provide individual cubicles, however these are few and far between. Many companies provide gyms, pool tables, ping-pong tables, carrom boards, fooz ball tables, etc.

Cafeteria: There is good food for lunch in the cafeteria. Usually, you get really good Indian food. Some offices apparently have 3 different counters - one for North Indian, one for South Indian and the another serving "diet" food! (My husband wishes that they serve desi Chinese at his place of work! I am quite sure there are companies where they do this too.) In certain campuses that house multiple companies, there are food courts where different cuisines are served. In general the peak lunch hour is between 1.00 and 2.00 PM.

Please add your own experiences/thoughts in the comments section.

Going forth, I will be writing about work opportunities for R2Iers and also taking a general look at the market salaries for the returning Indians. Watch the R2Blore space!

R2I - Bangalore: Everyday commute options

2007-06-24T19:53:00.000+05:30

Before coming to the conclusion that cars are your only option for everyday commute after R2Iing, let us assess all the other available options. The only public transport that Bangalore has right now is the bus. There are a few kinds of buses for public transport; the absolutely basic blue-colored BMTC buses that you see in the pic below, the slightly better Pushpak buses, and the luxury Volvo buses. Unfortunately, the frequency of these buses and the rush of people in them will make you want to turn the other way when it comes to relying on them on a day-to-day basis. If you are a concerned citizen of the globe and want to really use public transport, you may have to wait for the Namma Metro project to complete. The Metro is made to seem like an all-in-all problem solver to our woes. Like always, I will wait and watch before getting too excited! Also, this project has recently kick-started, so we do have a long way to go.

Since there is almost no public transport option for now, you can consider relying on company provided transport for your commute to work. A lot of the companies provide real nice, comfy buses/vans for pick-up and drop-off. The only downside is that you will have to stick to their timings. But, I do know of people who are able to make this option work for them.

The next option would be a 2-wheeler. If you have been away from India for a while, riding a 2-wheeler may or may not be possible for you. Now, if you are going to be the dare-devil to try a 2-wheeler amidst this traffic, then the next deterrent is going to be the pollution levels, especially at peak hours. The smog will make you squirm on your 2-wheeler seat. My husband was one of those that considered a 2 wheeler for his regular office commute, mostly because he was going to be saving a little bit of time. Obviously, your ability to maneuver is far better on a narrow vehicle. Also you occupy much less space on an already crowded/narrow road, and in turn will help the insane traffic in your own small way. But after the initial few days of observing the traffic patterns, he just gave up the idea! :)
When I see all the bike guys halting at the red-light and balancing their 2-wheelers with their feet on the ground, I worry for the safety of their feet. One of my cousins was at the red light with her feet on the ground, and an auto just went over her right foot. Thankfully, the damage was minimal. Since all the vehicles are just inches away from you or your vehicle, the thought is scary. What if it was a bus that had gone over her foot? And of course, there are still others who have had many a fall from their 2-wheelers. Not to mention the inconvenience during the rains.

If you want to use the autos for your everyday commute, you will have to again cover your nose for the entire to and fro journey because of the vehicular exhausts. Whenever I take an auto, after a few kilometres I notice a fairly distinct smell in my hair; all the exhaust fumes taking their toll! The exhaust fumes also make me feel squeamish. The other factor of course is the meters - you may not want to see the auto meter reading all kinds of numbers, since most of the meters are rigged.

A sea of autos. Notice how our rear-view mirror is broken (bottom left corner of the pic).
A simple mishap when one of the other cars was very close to ours!

Your final option is the car. And because of the unbelievable traffic on the roads, owning a small sized car becomes a necessity as compared to owning a bigger one; your ability to maneuver on the already clogged Bangalore roads is a little better with a smaller one. And of course, you have the option of owning a 2nd, bigger, nicer, family car for your weekends and out-of-town drives since the freeways are quite good. Wouldn't you agree about the small sized car? Or is there any other way to look at everyday commute? Would love to hear your thoughts, more so because I like to encourage a more public friendly commute.

On R2Iing, buying a car will be one of your crucial decisions. The good thing is, there is a fair amount of choice for cars in the market, and definitely so for small sized cars. 'Cars' is an exhaustive topic and I will cover all the options available, over a period of time. I will write about the available small cars in the market when I write about cars next. I will also write about the available cars based on their sizes and their prices subsequently.

An R2I Tip: The traffic is really bad; can't stress enough. See pic below. If you are sure about your R2I plans, then the one thing you can already do is to slowly start losing your attachment to your cars/roads there. Things will not be the same here and preparing yourself for it in advance helps. And when you do get stuck in traffic here, you will have the choice of not letting it affect you. That way, YOU still have the power! And you can take that time to think about your true reasons for coming back. :)

Clogged traffic on Bangalore roads - A common sight

PS: If I sounded preachy in the last para, please excuse me. I hate sounding preachy!

Summer of '07

2007-06-17T13:51:00.000+05:30

(Alright, so I have Bryan Adams and his 'Summer of 69' in my head as I type the title of the post. Let it stay that way.)

Since the time I went off to the US, I planned all my trips to India during Decembers or Julys, just to skip being here in the summers, not a huge fan of the heat or the humidity. Also, since we had to make a few trips to other places within India during our short India trips, I was keen to avoid the Indian summers. In fact, when we decided to R2I for good, the Indian summer was a concern for me! I hate humidity that much. Anyway, now that we have been through a summer here in Bangalore, I am glad to say that it wasn't too bad. Bangalore was hot and we did complain about the temperatures during the peak; in fact for about a month or so, it was pretty hot. But we were lucky to get some rains and the temps cooled off tremendously, especially since the rest of the country was struggling through heat waves. We were blessed to have some tolerable temps, sometimes making it quite pleasant too. We realised this more so when we traveled to other much hotter places.

Some near-perfect days

Flora: Only when I was actually here, did I realise the familiar summer floral sights that I was missing being away. Not that I missed them particularly when I was actually away, because California has beautiful flora too. Spring would be awash with various hues and some lovely colors. This summer, here in Bangalore, the Gulmohar, Queen's Flower, Copper Pod, etc were everywhere. The splash of colors was beautiful and the Gulmohar seemed redder than in the past; almost like organic coral sprinkled against the clear blue summer skies.

The resplendent Gulmohar lining the streets, making for some very pretty sights

Fruits: The summer fruits in India are a delight - mango, jackfruit, guava, musk melon, papaya, pineapple, chickoo, palmyra (kAti nongu) etc. Though mango is the king of fruits, and summer is the peak season for all its varieties, I have this weakness for jackfruits. And I hadn't eaten any in all the years that I was out of India. So, I made up for the loss this summer! The nice thing was both my kids took to jackfruits as well. So, I had some nice, crazy company to enjoy this (strange) fruit. Jackfruits always remind me of all my summer vacation spent in my ancestral native, Kerala! Just the thought of Kerala conjures up a splash of beautiful images that mean nothing but home - my beautiful exotic home! Though I am a Bangalorean at heart, Kerala will always be home for my soul. The absolute rustic scenes, the down-to-earth temples surrounded by mystique, and of course the food! Thankfully, the jackfruits were aplenty this season in Bangalore and I had a ball, to say the least!

Yummy Yum Yum!!

We enjoyed some kAti nongu too. Some of the vendors take the fruits out right in front of you like the vendor in this picture.

Summer Camp: Our (then) almost 4 year old daughter went to a summer camp for 3 weeks and within walking distance! I wanted something close by and there was one at the nearest Ramana Maharshi Center. What is unbelievable is the kind of positive influence just the 3 weeks there had on her. She used to take at least about 3 hours to relax and start interacting with non-family members. After the 3 weeks at their summer camp, she was quite comfortable talking to everybody and in a 'nice' way. I am thrilled with this development. At the end of the summer camp, all the children put up a nice show for the parents and family members at their auditorium. Splendid! Our daughter learnt a few of their shlokas, some small dance sequences, and some good social skills. I am thrilled! The summer camp was for 3 hours, 6 days a week for 3 weeks. I paid a whopping amount of Rs. 100/-!!! Unbelievable! (A lot of the commercial places and private schools hold summer camps for 2 weeks or so and charge more than Rs. 2000/-) Overall, she had a lot of fun and loved her summer camp!

Not being sure of how the summer would go, at the end of it, I am happy to say that it went off very well. Isn't that nice .... when you are not sure of how something is going to turn out and later realise that things actually went off well? Applies to all things in life, doesn't it? :)

Schools for autistic kids in Bangalore

2007-05-30T16:18:00.000+05:30

Recently, I have had a couple of requests from readers of this blog for info regarding schools for autistic kids in Bangalore. This is such a co-incidence mostly because for the past few months, I have had an opportunity to meet and interact with a few autistic kids, and the experience has been quite touching, to say the least!

So, when I got the request for special schools, I set out on this task of finding the most recommended school for special kids, here in Bangalore. I discovered that Academy for Severe Handicap and Autism or ASHA for short, comes with very good recommendation. One of the special education teachers that I know speaks very highly of this school and its founder, Ms. Jayashree Ramesh. And when I spoke with KPAMRC*, they too recommended ASHA highly.

1) Academy for Severe Handicap and Autism (ASHA)
L-76/A, (Opposite to L-50) Kirloskar colony,
HBCS 3rd Stage, 4th Block, Basaveswarnagar,
Bangalore - 560079

Phone: +91 80 23225279 / 23230357
Fax: +91 80 22258103
Email: info@ashaforautism.com

On talking to the nice people at ASHA, I have 2 more special schools for autistic kids, recommended by the people at ASHA.

2) Sunshine Autism Trust
280, 6th Cross, Domlur Layout,
Bangalore - 560071

Phone: +91 80 65360892
Email: rao_vanitha@yahoo.com, Sunshineautism@vsnl.net

3) Apoorva Centre for Autism
c/o Lions Club of Sarakki,
21st main, 1st cross, Marenahalli,
J P Nagar Phase-2,
Bangalore - 560078

Phone: +91 80 65710445 / 9243195154 / 9845076140
Email: apoorva@SAIautismcenter.org

If any of you know of other good special schools, please email me or leave info in the comments section and I will add it to this post. I do not want to add schools that I get off of the Internet to this list. If you have a personal recommendation, that will be wonderful. Thanks!

* KPAMRC (Karnataka Parents’ Association for Mentally Retarded Citizens)
Phone: + 91 80 26564608
Email: jpkpamrc@vsnl.net

R2I - Together time

2007-05-24T20:15:00.000+05:30

Since R2Iing, my husband and I have been able to get some time to ourselves, here in Bangalore. In the US, after the arrival of our second one, we hardly got any time for ourselves. It was one chore after another. I had my hands way too full. And I didn't feel comfortable hiring baby sitters for the kids just so that hub and I could step out. That meant that we had to take the kids along wherever we went, and can you imagine the torment that was for the two of us and the kids! Sigh! It was alright when it was just one child, we did manage to get away on road trips, and even on a cruise once. But, with the second one coming into the household, it was almost impossible for the two of us to actually have time for ourselves. If the kids were older, I am sure any of our wonderful bay area neighbors would have been glad to keep the kids for a while when we stepped out. But, the kids were young and we were really not sure if they would have been on their own with anybody else. But here, things are quite different. Since we have my parents near by, and since they are ever so willing to watch the kids, it is so easy to get a little 'together time'. A dinner or a drive or even a movie together! Especially a dinner, it was such a joke trying to step out with the 2 young'uns. It was so much of work to get the kids fed, that we would hardly even be left with an appetite.

Yesterday, for instance, I decided to go, meet my husband at the end of his work day. His office is half way across town. Given that we have a driver now, (I had mentioned here about hiring one) I did not have to worry about getting to the place in peak traffic. Mid-way, it began to rain. And boy, what a downpour that was!? Nothing was even visible and the roads were almost flooded. See pic below to get an idea.
But, I had no worry in the world. The kids were home with my parents and the wheel was in the driver's hands. All I had to do was sit back and enjoy the rains! Such carefree joy! And then, when I met my hub, we went out to this nice Italian place that my husband has been insisting on taking me to. This restaurant, 'Little Italy', was really nice. And through the entire dinner, I was neither worried nor feeling obligated about the kids being with my parents! Here's a pic of the dessert, only because it was lovely!

Brownie, Vanilla ice cream, with sizzling hot chocolate sauce. Who knew brownie was available in India?!

It is also this same 'together time' that we enjoyed in the initial years of our marriage in Calif .... that which I will always cherish. Those were some of the best years of our lives, with travels, on-the-spur-of-the-moment road trips, drives, movies, dinners etc., and to get some of that back is wonderful! Yes, the traffic is crazy, the place ... noisy, and yes the roads have tons of potholes, but if you do get a little time to yourselves with a dash of romance, the rest shouldn't matter too much. ;) What say?

PS: To my readers who are looking for core R2I info, those posts are coming as well! :)

Funny!

2007-05-22T12:21:00.000+05:30

While in the US, hubby and I liked certain brands and one of the brands that we preferred for him was the 'Timberland', especially their shoes for guys. So, he has a few pairs of those. These are primarily designed for the outdoors. He has this particular pair that is quite rugged and cool-looking and he prefers wearing these with his jeans, even to work sometimes.

Now, here in Bangalore, he has this American colleague at work. And sometime last week when that colleague noticed this pair of shoes, with a smile, he asked my hub, "You expecting snow anytime soon?". And the outside temps were in the warm 90s (Fahrenheit) !

When he mentioned it to me, well, we had a hearty laugh ...

The disappointment

2007-05-17T10:25:00.000+05:30

Indian politics has been a source of distress for a very long time. We see a few moments of spark at times, and then these sparks die just like the fireflies. I am not thrilled blogging about this, because it is very disheartening.

From the late 1989 - mid 1991 and from mid 1996 - early 1998, when we had multiple Prime Ministers for short durations, I felt very unsettled and disappointed. I was just a teenager during the 89-91 phase, and kind of felt like nobody cared about the masses. It was clear that people came to power for their own selfish reasons. Anyway, then there was some "stability" from 1991 - 1996. And then again we went through a few Prime Ministers over a course of 2 years from 1996 -1998. There was wastage of national money and to think that the very people who were not responsible for their actions and were indulging in 'by-the-minute' coalitions also had the power in their hands was pretty scary! The lack of accountability and the nonchalance were glaring. Now, all of this instability happened right around the time of my cross-over from adolescence to adulthood, and looking back I can see how that phase has a big influence on our perspective of the world around us. The political instability brought about a basic distrust. I had become quite cynical and indifference seemed like the only way out. I was happy to get out of the country, happy to go away to far away America.

While in the US, I was content to just keep track of the happenings in India from a distance. And over a period of time we got involved with the events in the US. We discussed and analysed the political scenario there - Clinton's 2nd term, Bush vs Gore, Gray Davis vs Arnold Schwarzenegger, Iraq war, the varied allegations against Karl Rowe etc. It was an involvement from my head (and not from my heart) and some of the emotions that I experienced were intrigue, anger, sarcastic awe (!) etc. Interestingly, I never 'felt' like how I did while in India; betrayed or cheated or anything as basic as that. Mostly because, as Indians, I don't think we can ever get affected by politics anywhere else as much as we do here. It is just the sense of belonging showing up, I guess.

Since R2Iing, a lot of things have been going on here in Indian politics. And with the recent forced resignation of Dayanidhi Maran over a family feud, the Prime Minister having no say at all in the matter and being at the receiving end of the coalition forces' whims, the feeling of disappointment is returning. (As an aside, it is funny to see how President Kalam is all for the 2-party system, and in the US, people want more choices and not be left with just the republicans and the democrats.) Slowly, I can see that all those feelings that I left behind are creeping back in. At the end of the day, I can sense the same cynicism, and the same indifference. Sad, but true. Sad, because personally I think indifference is the most harmful. Somehow, the years away in the US had helped keep the earlier negative feelings away. I am discovering that the feelings are right there, around the corner, waiting to peep out and give a grand show, at the behest of those in power.

PS: These 3 paragraphs have been quite hard to work on. I know a couple of you were wondering why I hadn't posted anything. From the time the 'Maran' issue cropped up, I have been working on this post!

Flying domestic in des

2007-05-07T18:50:00.000+05:30

It was ages since I had been to Bangalore's domestic airport. Recently, we had to make a quick trip out of Bangalore and chose to fly. I was pleasantly surprised to see a whole different airport than what I remember of it from the 90s, when I had been there last. The whole airport was quite clean and fairly organised. Now, we went on a Wednesday afternoon when it is least likely to be crowded, so I have no idea how it is on weekends and other peak hours. I have heard people liken it to local bus-stands!!

Now a days, there are many airlines competing to ferry the masses within India. There's Air Deccan, Kingfisher, GoAir, Jet Airways. Some of these operate very cheap, like the SouthWest airlines in the US. So, a lot of people are able to afford and travel by air. Not to forget, a lot of people make a decent dough to afford it too. All of this, a good thing. I got this pic on the right in a forwarded email from a friend and couldn't believe the billboard competition in the sky, literally. Just goes to show how much of a market there is for flying here.

Image Courtesy: Forwarded Email

After getting off of the taxi, this is the domestic terminal we came to.
The waiting lounges all along the gates. This was more than sufficient on a Wednesday afternoon, but I really wondered how it would be on a Fri evening or Sat morning, especially because of the comparison of the airport to a bus-stand.
The air conditioning worked moderately, so the temps were on the warmer side. I prefer it that way, than see tons of energy being spent to keep everybody cold when it is quite hot outside.

A small shop for snacks. It has definitely lost the look of the old government-type coffee shops.
Unfortunately, I didn't use the restrooms to see how they were. After all, in an Indian government setup, I think, the restrooms say it all. :)

The view from the waiting lounge.
The waiting 'Kingfishers'. Kingfisher is not a low-cost airline and chooses to keep it quite nice for its customers. We flew Kingfisher and were impressed with their timing, service, and their overall working ability. The insides of the Kingfishers are pretty good too and makes flying a pleasant experience.
As we took off, here's a shot of good ol' Bangalore.
There's of course the new Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) coming up in Devanahalli. And when that becomes functional, the current HAL Bangalore International Airport is going to shut shop. I hope they put the existing airport space to good use then. Personally, I would love it if they continue to use the existing set-up for a domestic airport. However, that is not going to happen. Now, what remains to be seen is how we are all going to get to the airport that is all the way in Devanahalli, especially when some of us have to only take a 45 min flight to someplace. Yes, they are planning on an elevated exclusive expressway to the airport. We will see! We have to also account for the time lost in security checks, boarding, alighting, etc. It maybe wiser to just drive down to these towns and cities than fly! What with the freeways being quite good?!

Life, death, and everything in between

2007-04-27T14:13:00.000+05:30

Being a fairly young Indian couple in the US, hub and I were friends with people in similar age groups. In fact, I think the oldest person we were friends with in the US was in his late 30s! I doubt if we socialised with anybody in their 40s or older! This was not by design, but just the way things ended up being. Now, obviously death is not a very 'in the face' thing for people in that age group. All we spoke about was the opportunities in the tech world, start-ups, stock market, kids, schools, day-cares, weekend getaways, and the like. Not really vain, but definitely not covering the gamut of life. The only older people we got to mingle with were the older parents of our friends and relatives who were there on a vacation. And even then the topics spoken with them were fairly limited. It would typically be about their tickets, airlines, air travel experiences, immigration, comparisons between India and the US, their failing health, etc.

When it was just the two of us, all this was quite perfect for us. And, because we spoke often to our own parents back home, we would hear of other happenings in our extended families, and neighborhoods. But, after my daughter was about 2 years old, and when she started grasping things around her, I was quite sure that the limited social exposure was just not going to be enough in the long run. Yes, she was going to grow up and meet her own friends and get involved in their lives, but still I really wanted the kids to get involved in the myriad of life's experiences that a place like India offers, more so because we have our family in India. One of the very important events that made this a certainty for me was when one of my uncles in India died. Typically, there are multitudes of ceremonies and rituals that happen after somebody passes away. And if you are in the immediate family circle, you take part in most of these rituals. Now, why are these ceremonies important? I am not sure I am aware of the significance of the exercises themselves; however I know that these events make strong impressions in our minds, and such impressions are very important to our own growing self. When I was a young child, I lost my grandfathers, both in a period of 2 years. I was at an impressionable phase, and I was part and parcel of the happenings around me. When my paternal grandfather died, we had to rush to our native place, because my dad was the eldest son, and hence he had a lot of responsibilities back home. This happened in March, just before my 6th standard exams were to start. Now, I was one of those school toppers, and academics was the most important thing in my life or that is the way it had been laid out for me. But, when my grandfather passed away, we dropped everything, took permission from school and just went. Somehow, that helped put certain things into perspective then, and continues to even now. The entire family had gotten together under one roof and we all went through the motions for those 13 days. I was just a child, but a very observant one. Death is anything but scary even to this day because of those few days in my life. And personally for me, I did not want my kids to miss out on such of life's experiences. There is more to life than what meets the eye! Death is definitely one of the vital aspects of life. I definitely didn't want 'death' to be just a concept; something that happened to distant relatives in a faraway land called India, or what happened to innocent victims of random crazy acts in the US.

Another big factor is, in India, not everybody we know is in the tech industry. We know different kinds of people having different kinds of successes and struggles in life. Again, in the US, within our own immediate tech circle, it was going to be very difficult to bring in a variety for our kids. There were probably 2 kinds of people we knew amongst our bay area Indian friends - the fairly well off and the very well off. But here, I am glad that we know people in all strata/classes of society. My kids get to see my maid and her family at close quarters, and then some relatives who continue to live in our native places and leading very different lives than ours, and yet some that are right here in the city and still leading a very different (read non-tech) life. I cannot be anything but thankful for this exposure that they are able to get without any added effort. I really wanted the kids to grow up with empathy. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to provide the required environment there.

In the bay area, almost all of us threw wonderful birthday parties for the kids. The kids, like butterflies, could flutter from one party to another. Each one giving and receiving tons of wonderful gifts. Every kid’s parents being able to afford it all. That was limiting, very limiting. Also, one of the reasons to return back when the kids were really young; before they start missing out on the "good" things after we returned to India.

The uniformity of every Indian family we knew in the US was very good in its own way. We didn't have to think twice about what was appropriate and what was not. We could talk the same kinds of things with everybody, and have "intellectual" conversations with everybody we knew. That had its own charm. But when it comes to raising the kids, we do have the responsibility of exposing them to varieties of things. Also, the reason why I am not ticked off at the lack of infrastructure here. I really think it is alright to grow up with some short-comings in our immediate surroundings. Nothing wrong with that! We grew up with many, many more, and turned out fairly balanced, IMHO! To not have a little electricity from time to time, to use water wisely, and to not have everything great around you in general, can only add value to their little lives.

All that said, there's really no easy formula to raise kids. Here or there, as parents, we have to go through our own battles to raise our kids, and to raise them well. Hopefully, this decision of moving back will be one of those factors that helps us. Keeping my fingers crossed...

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Hardly any answering machines!

2007-04-18T17:00:00.000+05:30

If you have gotten used to the answering machines in other parts of the world, it will take you a while to get used to the never-ending ringing on the other end of the phones here in India. Typically, there aren't any answering machines. Surprisingly, the cell phone services do not include the answering machines by default! In fact, my hub got the answering machine service for his cell, but nobody left him a message because they were not used to it! So, he just went ahead and cancelled it. Sometimes, it gets a little frustrating, because you just have to call back the person when you could have just left a message.

Interestingly, there's this concept of 'missed call.' (Some of you reading this may be familiar with it.) Typically, if a person is at work or some place where s/he has access to make 'free' calls, people call her/his mobile and let it ring once and cut the call. That person then realises that s/he has had a missed call from a so-and-so and calls the person back from the 'free' phone and now both can talk without having to pay for it from either ends! Amazing use of technology!

6 months later - An R2I look back

2007-04-10T11:03:00.000+05:30

We recently completed 6 months of stay in Bangalore. Overall, I don't think there were any major surprises. But for a person planning on an R2I, I think what would be of more interest are the things that we missed the most on returning. I expected to miss and do miss all of the following:

Roads and regulated traffic - The city traffic situation and the road conditions are so bad that going out is not in the least bit pleasant, unlike in the US. No amount of writing about it will paint a picture of how the traffic situation actually is. Whenever I have to step out, I try to almost always do it in the non-peak hours. Luckily, I have the freedom. Unfortunately, my husband who works outside of home has no choice but to navigate the traffic at peak hours. He is actually a very good driver and almost always has driven in India whenever we came here for our vacations. However, these days he is considering getting a driver to help him out. Lets see. Here's a pic from Wikipedia of a city road in SF bay area.
I terribly miss the sidewalks and the lovely walks I enjoyed when we were there. The pic on the right shows a typical sidewalk in the SF bay area. Here, unless you live in a huge community that offers some kind of walking/jogging track, it really is no fun! Sidewalks are non-existent or illegally used leaving the pedestrians to use the roads for walking. The traffic situation is so bad that you have to think twice before stepping on the roads. Add 2 little kids to the equation! Gosh! I am glad we will be moving into a community that promises some of these facilities, because the city doesn't offer the pedestrian any infrastructure. You are really on your own out there in the cramped, jostling city jungle.
Pictures of beautiful parks in Cali is all I have left here. There are some parks in a few neighborhoods here. However, after having enjoyed the lush manicured lawns, the ponds and the ducks, the children's play area, picnic tables, rest-rooms of the parks in the US, it is difficult not to miss 'em. The park you see in the pic below, well we lived right opposite to it.
The entire family misses the public libraries that you find in the US and in almost every city in the SF bay area. I often find myself salivating at the thought of those libraries. The innumerable number of books on every subject, DVDs, CDs, videos, children's books, children's learning material, the quiet, the rest-rooms, the views from the reading areas. Sigh! I would take the kids every week, and we would pick loads of age-appropriate books for both the kids. The kids enjoyed picking them out themselves. The easy use of the online library sites that helped us put things on hold, search the library catalog, etc. And to think that the whole thing was for free! How can anybody not miss it? (I do not have a pic of the Santa Clara city library. If you have one, and if you don't mind me using it for this post, please send it to me.)
Lastly, I definitely miss the doctors back in the US. Yes, I did write here about how cheap the medical care facility was, which I still think is the case. For regular everyday issues, it is still alright to go to the neighborhood doc and quickly get a prescription for our illness. However, the experience of a visit to the doc's office in the US is not available here. We had an exceptional pediatrician when we were there. He was good at his job and was wonderful with the kids. We were so pumped with general knowledge of how a child must be doing at every well-baby check! It was almost a disaster here, when we went for our second kid's 2 year well baby check, because of how little the doctor spoke to us about how our child was doing overall, and if he was meeting all the 2 year milestones.

Adding a few more points from my comments, about the docs there: (Apr 18th 5:15pm)

So, in all these 6 months, what has been worth coming back to?

Family. It has been wonderful to meet our folks as often as we have. Nothing to beat the closeness, and it is so light on our nerves being physically near and not worrying about their health problems from half a globe away.
Hub and I also think that India offers multiple work/business opportunities to do anything that we may want to. Whether we will make use of the opportunities or not remains to be seen, but at least we are in a happening place. :) And to think that the happening place is in our own country is exciting, to say the least!
All the manual help that we can get very easily here. A maid, or a driver, a cleaner, a painter, a carpenter are all very easy to find and very affordable. Since, you tend to do most of the chores in the US by yourself, sometimes it is so hard to have a life what with the kids needing your attention too amidst it all.
No extra effort to get the kids to talk in their mother tongue. We have neighbors who talk the same mother tongue as us, and then the grand-parents and all the relatives. Helps with their sense of belonging too.
Access to a whole range of alternative medical sciences. There's ayurveda, homeopathy, siddha, unani, and tons more. This works for somebody like me who doesn't believe in popping a pill for most anything. I am glad we have access to so many more treatment options, and not worry about insurance coverage to heal ourselves!
For me personally, the temples! Not all, just those that truly matter to me. In the US, I could not relate to the temples at all, just the knowing that they were fairly new and didn't have a "history". Yes, some of the temples there are about 25+ years old, but really nothing like a thousand year old temple. I can relate better to the 'Gods' in such old temples. Yes, if you believe in God, you also know that God is probably everywhere and without form, but the visit to some of these temples does make a difference in the way I feel. And for not an overtly spiritual person like myself, the 'extras' definitely help. And to think that I do not have to cram up all those visits in a month long visit is wonderful. As an added bonus, the kids love meeting the elephants in these old temples! :)

As a concluion, I think coming back has been good. Though I do miss the things that I have listed, and will most likely continue to miss them, I definitely enjoy the pluses. Also, I think I am happier(?)! There, so that's what it is after 6 months! :) Your comments/reactions please.

R2I - Tips for an R2I move

2007-03-28T10:51:00.001+05:30

In my previous post, I made a list of things that you can take and some that you don't need to take with you if you are winding down and returning to India for good. On the same lines, here's another post with some pointers for your move back home. Some of which maybe useful to you.

Do you have kids? Would you be carrying back diapers for them? If so, use all the diapers that you will be taking back for future use as fillers in packing. They keep everything in place and provide good support! :) That's what we did, and everything came back in perfect shape, almost exactly like how we had packed it back home.
I had already mentioned the shipping service that we used here. They are called WorldWide Ocean and Air Shipping Lines Inc. We didn't have any issues either in the US or in Bangalore. When the boxes arrived in Bangalore, they called hub. He went to the warehouse where custom officials checked the boxes. All this was very easy and there were no problems whatsoever. I have also heard from others that all shipping companies do a good job and typically make it all very easy for the customers.
It took exactly 2 months for the boxes to arrive in Bangalore. So, definitely pack the stuff you need for the first 2 months in your suitcases.
Do see if you can ship your stuff a little ahead of your flying out. The reason is, if the boxes are shipped out, then you can focus on your suitcases. Will contain the chaos. :) We shipped almost 2 weeks ahead of flying out.
I took care of most of the selling and giving away of the stuff in our Calif home. I used 'Craigslist' tremendously for selling things. You almost get buyers for everything.
I was also a member in the local 'Freecycle'. So anything that I wasn't selling and that my friends also didn't need or want, I gave it away to people in the Freecycle mailing list. Very useful!
Another helpful tip: We sold both our cars on Sulekha. Initially, we tried selling them on Craigslist, but that didn't work. Dealers list their cars for selling on Craigslist. This clogs the listings on Craigs Autos a lot. However, on Sulekha it was very easy to find Indian buyers who were honest and who made it easy for us. Typically, they also let you keep your car till the last day and arrage for picking it up only when you are completely done! Awesome, eh?
It will get pretty hectic over the last few weeks; especially the last couple of days. However, do make time to visit your friends and relatives for a goodbye. I think we enjoyed that the best. :)

Anything else? Do let me know.

R2I - What to take and what not to take?

2007-03-17T18:26:00.000+05:30

If you are planning on an R2I, one of the things you will find yourself wondering about is what to take back and what not to take back. Though I may not be able to provide a comprehensive list, I can paint a picture of what is available here and what is not.

What to take

Definitely toys. The same toys here cost you double of what it would cost you in USD there. For example, a Fisher Price magno-doodle board costs about $15 (Rs. 690) in Calif, but costs about Rs. 1500 here! So, I really put toys over and above everything else! Really, it is a great deal for you to shop there and ship, than to buy them here! I would also recommend getting Ryan's Room's toys only because they would be very unique here, and I have not seen anything like that here.
Stuff from Ikea, if you like Ikea things. Please limit it to smaller things, like useful things around the kitchen (place mats, heat pads, spice racks etc) or for the bathroom. Some knick-knacks maybe. As for furniture pieces, you can get them custom made from an Ikea catalogue!! It is sad, but true. You get lots of Ikea furniture replicas here.
If you like and use the reusable kitchen towels, then definitely those because I haven't seen any of those here. I find those VERY useful to keep all the counter surfaces clean.
Branded clothes for the whole family, if you want. The same stuff is more expensive here. You do get Dockers, Levis, and the like, here. However, you are so much better off shopping at an outlet mall there.
Good quality children's clothes are expensive here, compared to the US. You can consider buying a few bigger sizes of clothes for the kids from Mervyn's, The Children's Place etc when they have a sale going on. Clothes here are cheaper compared to Gymboree. :) Just trying to give an idea about the pricing here. But the quality of clothes there is definitely so much better for children.
You do get varieties of microwavable and air-tight box containers here for the kitchen. However, just for style, maybe you can get a few from there.
Branded perfumes. I have seen some malls carry branded perfumes here. In fact, I have seen Hugo Boss here. However, I have not seen Chanel, Burberry, Prada, etc.
If you have cell phones that will work in India, definitely do not leave them behind.
If you like anything in particular from Bed, Bath and Beyond, Cost Plus, Discovery Channel store, or any of those specialty stores.
Bedding sets. We liked the comforters and fitted sheets, so we got a few of those. But otherwise, you do get some lovely bedding sets here. However, I am yet to see any fitted sheets anywhere here.
Medical and dental records. Typically, you will have to apply for them at your doc's office. The offices will need about a week or so to process your request.
Consider taking back with you a US phone number. It will be especially useful for the first few months after coming to India. You can get a VoIP service such as Vonage, which works with any broadband service in India. You get a US telephone number and calls to any number in the US are free. Calls to Canada, UK, Italy, Spain and a few more countries are free too. This helps you "feel" connected even after the move. The usage of such a service itself is in the grey, here. Some say it is illegal. So, please do it at your discretion.
Lastly, all things that are close to your heart. If you are sentimental about anything, please pack 'em and don't think twice. You may not forgive yourself later. :)

What not to take

Furniture. Bangalore has really come far in terms of style and variety. There are tons of fantastic furniture stores and you get tons of really good pieces. You can skip bringing furniture from the US. By skipping the furniture, you can keep the volume of your shipping down.
Kitchen pots and pans. You get tons and truckloads here. You can skip the Corelle kinds of tableware, cause you do get those right here.
Mattress - I wanted to very badly lug ours across the globe. But we didn't. I am glad, cause we got to choose from some very good ones here.
If you are paying for the shipping, I would suggest you skip carrying back TV sets, refrigerators, washing machines, dish washers etc, because you do get all kinds and varieties here. If the shipping is paid for, then carry back anything you want. I must add though, you do get very good plasma and LCD televisions here.

Hope this helps. And if you are wondering about anything in particular, let me know and I will add it to this list.

Help stop the stray dog killings in Bangalore

2007-03-12T19:21:00.000+05:30

Reproducing a mail forward from Usha. PLEASE READ and do what you can! PLEASE! Yes, 2 kids were mauled to death by dogs, but the killings is not the solution!! We cannot let this happen.

I just want to give the links to a couple of posts that I have written about the stray dogs in Bangalore.
On Bangalore Metroblogging - New Kids on the block
Earlier on my Blog - Street dog menace
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Please help to save the stray dogs of Bangalore from indiscriminate killing ... Here's how you can help:

please read the email below to understand the issue, and to see why Animal Birth Control is the only strategy that is both humane and effective in controlling the stray dog population.
please sign this Online petition
please read these related blogs - savebangalorestrays , catsofbangalore (note: they describe the cruelty being inflicted on the dogs, and they are not easy reading)
please take a few moments to blog about it and spread the word...
please write to the media expressing your protest.

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Dear Friends,

Excuse me for taking your time - but this is a shocking tale of how an inefficient administration unable to do its job well can recourse to barbarism to find short-term solutions to its problems. So please, please read - and pass on the message to anyone who cares that the BANGALORE LOCAL AUTHORITIES ARE BRUTALLY MURDERING THOUSANDS OF DOGS ON THE STREETS!

I would begin by regretting deeply the two incidents of children getting mauled in Bangalore. For those who are not from Bangalore, allow me to bring you up the curve - these were two unfortunate incidents of children being mauled by stray dogs recently in semi-rural Bangalore. Anyone living in a city would be familiar with such incidents - an urban "Man-Animal Conflict" phenomenon which is sad and avoidable. Both incidents have happened in peripheral areas where the CNVR program (Catch Neuter Vaccinate Release/ABC) has NOT been implemented.

Obviously, the media of this city went to town over this, glossing over the menace and pointed fingers at the local authorities. The authorities passed the buck on to the NGO's, without any compassionate or scientific understanding of the problem. What followed was a diktat of the worst kind: a death sentence to all dogs on the streets of this so-called advanced technopolis.

This solution suggested by the Bangalore authorities to KILL EVERY STRAY DOG (numbering in hundreds of thousands) is the most primitive and barbaric one can imagine, and only points to their ineptness and apathy to the real problem at hand.

In a knee jerk reaction to unwarranted hype, thousands of animals have been subjected to death by strangulation, crushing their skulls with boulders after bleach thrown in the eyes to make the animal blind and docile. After living and working in 4 metros, I cannot recall any city ever coming up with such a solution to the challenge of strays.

We followed a dog-catching vehicle (KA03 9906) this morning to the KR Puram CMC Office where we were brow-beaten and forced to retreat. The secret information was that the animals would be taken the same night for execution in a village outside Hosakote. The sentence: To be beaten to death or crushed with stones.

But what I saw will live in my memory forever: The physical abuse that the white female was going through was horrific: I stopped one catcher from beating her with a Plank embedded with two nails - you can see the blood spouting and staining the catch-leash.

In the cage we have seen two animals had died of strangulation and the bodies dumped inside. Other dogs were on the on the point of suffocation: the atmosphere was dreadful with howling and wailing, possibly with the knowledge of impending death.

Here I must mention that I petted many of these so called ferocious animals without any problem.

The insane aspect about the entire exercise is that the tame dogs who have no fear at all of humans are the ones being caught as they come willingly to the dog catchers when called, who are getting paid Rs.50 for their "fearless" acts. These animals have no fear of man, but an understanding and a relationship with man, which is often their undoing. Hence, like the tame animal with the red collar and Clipped ear we saw being caught, they can be easily caught and tortured to death.

Tragically almost all the dogs have already been neutered and vaccinated. Their absence will allow potentially dangerous animals to penetrate into the area from rural surroundings where there is no control on disease or Rabies.

The rational solution, which any person with an iota of sense and sensitivity will see, is not by eliminating every dog but by scientifically controlling the population to keep out the real strays that have not been neutered and vaccinated. As mentioned earlier, in many peripheral areas around Bangalore, where the CNVR program(Catch Neuter Vaccinate Release/ABC) has NOT been implemented, there is a problem. But this Hitleresque "Final Solution" is definitely not a step in the right direction.

The situation can best be termed as barbaric and deplorable. We request all to appeal to the CMC's and put pressure on them to immediately stop catching dogs if they are Collared or have been Vaccinated and Neutered.( Identified By Clipped Ear). All un-neutered dogs should be caught and sent consequently for the CVNR program.

We have taken photographs of what we saw this morning. But they are disturbing, and we decided not to include them in this mail. If you want to see how "man's best friends" are being treated in this city, please write back and we can forward them to you. Please forward this message to all you know who care. Especially those in the media - please help by bringing this news out to the public as you can make a difference and stop this bloodbath.

Thanks,
Jeremy & Anirban

Jeremey D'Souza: +9198450 72484, 28516894

Anirban Bhattacharya: +9199456 89828

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"If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between dogs and men." - Mark Twain

Fantastic Freeways!

2007-02-24T15:53:00.000+05:30

We have been on the desi freeways a few times since our return. And overall, I am impressed! The quality of the roads is fantastic. Not a single bump will you notice. The last time we were on the Bangalore-Mysore freeway was about 5 years ago, when we were here on a vacation from Calif. Then, it was like a village road, filled with pot holes and very narrow. Coming from the US, it was really sad to notice the absolute contrast. But now, you have these beautiful 4 lane freeways that can easily compete with the freeways in the west for quality. See pic below.

The engineering is very good. The roads are banked well. Banking was never done on the Indian freeways before. You had to navigate the ups and downs, and the turns and curves with the clutch and brake. Now, you can simply step on the gas, much like on any freeway in the US. You can touch 120-140 kph! The pic to the left shows the banking pretty well. This pic and all the following pics were taken on the way to Chennai.

The roads also have boards with National Highway number, the different places that the roads lead to and the respective distances in the typical green board, just like in the west. Also notice the shoulders for pulling over. Amazing, isn't it?

And like a typical Indian road, some stretches also have trees lining the roads, making it scenic and enjoyable.

Unfortunately, it is not all good. You still face some typical Indian problems while on the freeway. The road sense is fairly lacking amongst the users, making it very difficult at times to predict what you will meet with on the road. You actually have people driving in the opposite direction on a divided freeway!!! Since the freeway is divided, they just assume that they can use the side of the road that most satisfies their individual needs. So, as you drive on these beautiful roads, you can very well expect a vehicle to come right at you!!! It could be a huge truck too! Unbelievable! You just have to make way and "adjust". Once, we saw a tractor guy actually arguing with the police who was reprimanding him for being on the wrong side of the road. The tractor guy just didn't get it that he was wrong! Sigh!

You have all kinds of vehicles using the freeway. Everything from a cycle, auto rickshaw, tractor, to the cars, buses, trucks etc. Since the moving speed of every vehicle is different, you can't really cruise at your own speed. You will always have to be watchful, and not miss a cyclist by accident. Scary, eh!

And when the freeway cuts through a town, like in the olden days, the freeway magically transforms into the main downtown street of that town/village! This considerably lessens your speed, and you have to navigate through cows, pedestrians, bus-stops, vendors, etc! The pic below kind of typifies the scenario.

This is mostly never the case in the US. The freeways pretty much stay out of towns and even if they do cut the towns, the town traffic can get in and out of the freeways only using ramps/exits. I say 'mostly' cause in old cities, the freeway still transforms into the main street of the town/city. For example, the 101 in San Francisco.

The Indian freeway is still just a road for the pedestrian to cross/jay walk. Pedestrians magically appear almost anywhere. And when the road is wide, and the sun is bright, and you are speeding at 100 kph, you can only imagine the difficulty in even noticing the jay walker. And at times, the freeway actually has a zebra crossing! What the !! Do the road designers except the speeding motorist to suddenly come to an absolute halt at a zebra crossing? Cause there are no signals at such crossings!!! Notice the zebra crossing and the pedestrians below. Notice also the lack of signals.

The shoulders typically are also spots for a variety of activities. and these activities can actually spill onto the freeway!!! The first pic below shows some political activity happening right next to the freeway. Look at the number of people standing along. The second pic shows a typical shop set up under the trees. People pull up and shop right there on the shoulder/freeway.

Having listed the +es and -es, I still have to say that the roads are a 1000 times better than they ever were. And with Sri. Vajpayee's Golden Quadrilateral, the largest express highway project in India, coming to completion, we can actually travel around India on road!

Image source: National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)

I still fondly remember all our innumerous road trips in the US. We always preferred the roads, mostly cause it was so easy! And not to mention, very pretty! Some of California's and Oregon's freeways along the Pacific coastline are also some of the most scenic. To think that we can do similar road trips here covering most of India is exciting, to say the least. And with India's varied culture and landscape, it will be an absolute pleasure to go on a Golden Quadrilateral road trip. :)

Pre-schools in Bangalore

2007-02-14T15:20:00.000+05:30

This topic is primarily for folks who are interested in pre-schools in Bangalore and who have emailed me for information.

There are lots and lots of pre-schools in all areas of Bangalore. And, there are also lots of pre-schools that are new and have modern, read western, methods of teaching young kids the basics. Typically these newer pre-schools have lots of learning equipments in the classrooms. And the ratio of the teacher to the students is very good. The modern/western, friendlier pre-schools are also the more expensive ones.

Some of the pre-school chains that I am familiar with and those that have branches in Bangalore are listed below:
Please Note: The numbering has nothing to do with their ranking. I am just listing the ones that I have heard of.

Eurokids - See my earlier review. Eurokids has about 23 branches in Bangalore.
Kidzee - One of my friends sent her daughter here for nursery and was pretty happy with the school. Kidzee has about 16 branches all over Bangalore.
Neev - I first heard of Neev from Silkboard, when he mentioned it in the comments here. Since then, I have also met parents who send their kids to Neev, and they have only good things to say about the school. In my review of Eurokids, the couple of things I said I was not really happy about were the very few hours at school everyday and the number of closed days in a year. Neev is good on both of these counts. They have longer hours and are open on most holidays. This school, however, only has 2 branches. One in Whitefield and the other in Indiranagar.
Kara - I personally do not know kids that go to a Kara school. But, from the little I have heard, it sounds good. They have 2 branches. One in HSR layout and another in RMV 2nd stage.

Apart from these chains, there are some good preschools that I have heard of. Each of the following seems/sounds very good.

Gaia - Comes with very high recommendation from parents who send their kids here. So, I am guessing it is really good. I have known some U.S-returned parents who cannot stop talking about this school. I have not visited the school, and so wouldn't know much personally. The school is in RT Nagar.
Buddhi - I have been to the campus and it looked pretty good. The school is not restricted to pre-school. The campus is in RMV 2nd Stage. You can learn more about the school and it's programs on the website.
Prayag Montessori - I know nothing about this school. However, when I searched online for pre-schools in Bangalore, I came across this school's website, and it seems to be a true Montessori. It is in Padmanabhanagar.

Most of the schools that I have already listed here also have pre-schools. If you know of some other good pre-schools, please let me know and I will include them here.

Bangalore FMs

2007-02-05T19:20:00.000+05:30

The good thing is there IS FM in Bangalore. I hate having to pick and play music in the car. I love that there is FM radio, and even happier that there are about a dozen* channels! What is wonderful is you also get to hear some old Kannada and Hindi songs, the ones that I grew up listening to. My mom played the Vividh Bharati regularly when I was a child and the melodious tunes still bring out a happy cheer in me. I had almost forgotten some of the songs and didn't realize how easily I could still sing along. There is a good mix of English songs, and you actually even get to hear classic rock!

The bad thing is the 'teenage cacophony' (as my hub calls it). The radio jockeys (RJs) are very young and really can only appeal to the teens. I have hardly heard anybody speak naturally and easily. They do make the "effort" to sound energetic and "very" alive. Very tiring. It is a lot of noise and chatter. Every station's tagline is repeated ever so often that it is exhausting on the ears. In comparison, the American FM channels are very easy on the ears, and hardly seem to interrupt the music. I guess the maturity of the FM industry shows. The main difference between the Indian and American FM stations is the age group of the hosts. American hosts are older, more mature, and pleasing.

The other thing I learned here is that no private FM stations in India can relay news, unlike on the TV. So, you only get to hear the government sponsored news on the FM radio, which is on the All India Radio station.

What we must have is an Indian National Public Radio (NPR is an independent, private, non-profit membership organization of public radio stations in the U.S. The programs presented are very intellectual and cover a huge variety of subjects, including news and cultural programs. It is a treat for the common man seeking more from the radio than just music) With the number of educated people in India being in many millions, NPR is something that we will do good with. A forum to discuss the progress of the nation, to bring corruption into focus, to discuss movies intellectually, to offer cacophony-free knowledge based programs etc.

A list of Bangalore's FM radio stations and their frequencies in MHz:
I am a new listener to the local FM stations. So, I can't claim to be an authority of any sort. The info listed below is from my own listening and from research. Please feel free to correct me in the comments section. I will gladly edit the post if any info is found incorrect.

91.1 - Radio City plays a mix of Hindi, Kannada and English music. I haven't heard enough to comment about the RJs here. Official owner: Star TV
91.9 - Radio Indigo is an English only station and plays different genres, including Rock, Pop, Hip-Hop, Rap, Jazz, and Dance. On weekends, the station includes internationally syndicated music charts, such as Casey Kasem's American Top 20 and Ryan Seacrest's American Top 40. Of the lot, the RJs here seem the most westernised. But, it is also true that this is the only station that is only English and very "American". Official owner: Jupiter Capital (new group formed after the sale of BPL Mobile.)
92.7 - Big 92.7 FM predominantly plays Hindi music with Kannada songs every now and then. Official owner: Adlabs (Anil Dhirubai Ambani group)
93.5 - S FM is a Kannada only station. Very hyper RJs, I must say! They want to sound 'oh-so-cool', but fail miserably. Their talk is a bad mix of Kannada and a put-on-accent of English. Terrible! Official owner: SUN Network
94.3 - Radio One offers a mix of Kannada and Hindi music. Official owner: ?
98.3 - Radio Mirchi is a Hindi and Kannada station. Official Owner: Times of India Group
100.1 - Amrutha Varshini is a channel exclusively for Indian classical music. It is a treat for all classical music lovers! This station is AIR's effort to make available the rich treasure of its classical music archives. Official owner: All India Radio (AIR) ?
101.3 - AIR FM Rainbow is run by the government's All India Radio. It features Hindi and Kannada songs and occasional English songs along with hourly news in English, Kannada and/or Hindi. Personally, I like the RJs on Rainbow, mostly cause they are pretty down-to-earth and contemprory. No jazz, more me! Official owner: All India Radio (AIR)
102.9 - Vividh Bharati Not very differnet from the Vividh Bharati of yester years. Official owner: All India Radio (AIR)
104 - Fever Thanks to Kamlesh, I started listening to Fever. The station is pretty good and hardly has any RJs. The music is a mix of Bollywood hits, Indipop, and English music. Official owner: HT Music and Entertainment and Virgin Radio
105.6 - Gyan Vaani is an Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) station that is informative, but very boring. A typical olden days DD kind of set-up. Official owner: IGNOU

I have been told that Radio City and Radio Indigo are the more popular ones. From the little I have heard, I seem to like Radio Indigo, Fever, and AIR FM Rainbow.

*-Bangalore has a total of 12 FM stations, the highest in India. Source: Wikipedia

Street-dog menace

2007-01-27T11:10:00.000+05:30

It has been very worrying to read one news item after another for the last 1.5 months about the street-dog menace on the streets of Chandra Layout in Bangalore attacking children and adults alike. The worst was this news where a pack of street dogs mauled to death an 8 year old girl! Chilling! What is appalling is, there have been several such news items appearing in the newspapers for the last 1.5 months and it doesn't look like the situation has improved much. Please look at the links below.

Dog bites 20 people
Dogs maul an 8 yr old girl to death
Dogs attack a 7 yr old girl
Dogs continue to attack

Dogs have always been on the Indian roads. However, I have mostly known the street dogs as being fairly docile. So, reading news about dog attacks has come as a total shock. Apparently, there are lots of illegal meat shops in Chandra layout that dump old meat on street corners, empty sites etc! The stray dogs there having got used to the meat, are becoming vicious is what the Bengalooru Mahanagara Palike is telling. Coming up with a solution to this problem is going to be tricky. What with the animal rights activists and the local residents not seeing eye-to-eye on this subject matter.

The typical problems faced because of the street dogs:

The dogs are fairly territorial and kind of have their boundaries. When a newer dog steps into a street that other dogs have their "claim" on, there ensues a very noisy barking altercation. Lots of such noisy incidents happen at nights too and disturb the residents.
Driving on 2-wheelers in the darker hours is also very difficult, cause the dogs chase the fast moving bike, and the riders an lose balance and meet with accidents. The dogs can also easily reach out for the riders' legs for a bite!

March 13th - Update: On March 1st, we had the misfortune of losing another child to dog attacks. It was very unfortunate. I was extremely upset by all the incidents. However, in this case, it was apparent that the boy was playing in a place that had knee-deep of garbage! Where were his parents? How can anyone allow a child so young to be outside with no one apparently there? If not for dogs, mustn't we at least keep an eye on the traffic for the child if he is out on his own?! He was 4! I was shocked that anybody could have let kids play by themselves in such a filthy place. In this day and age, we have traffic, pedophiles, kidnappers, etc on the roads. How can we possibly assume an innocent child's safety? It is such a pity!

It is also reported that there are lots of illegal meat shops that were dumping old/waste meat in the neighborhood vacant lots. This had encouraged the unsterilized dogs to develop a pack and become aggressive, way more than a regular docile stray dog. And with all these news reports, there is mass hysteria and a lot of people want all the stray dogs taken away, away from anywhere near their sight. The government reacting to the mass-anger, has started catching any and every dog that comes their way. And since it is so much easier to catch the docile ones that don't have human fear to begin with, we have been losing the friendly dogs from all neighborhoods in Bangalore. More info here. All this is SUCH a knee jerk reaction! Apparently, many of these dogs have been stoned, clubbed, crushed to death!! I am devastated. People, if you are reading this, and want to help, pl go here.

Yes, I was very upset with all the news reports and wanted the government to take action - meaning to sit down with experts in the field and decide on a course of action that was long term. Instead, when they chose a route that was short-sighted and diplorable like killing the stray dogs, I was speechless. I can never support indiscriminate culling. I have no objections to people taking away the aggresive ones, as long as they are not culled! If the diseased ones are put to sleep humanely, that is not too bad.

Bangalore's shameful violence!

2007-01-22T12:09:00.001+05:30

Image Source: Deccan Herald
I have digitally edited the original image

It was very disheartening to see communal violence in some parts of Bangalore. I have mostly known Bangalore as a peaceful place with warm people. To see news channels carrying violent images of Bangalore was shocking. This morning's local newspapers were spalshed with news and pictures of Bangalore's horror stories. There was violence on Friday as well. I am not sure if there are any ulterior motives to whatever was seen on the surface. I am also not sure if there were any instigations by some political or fanatical elements. Whatever the reasons maybe, the common man pays a huge price for no fault of his. As Bangalore bled, my heart cried!

Lessons learnt: Stay put whenever there are large gatherings of any sorts. If not for anything else, at least to avoid the traffic. Ugh! Friday's traffic mess.

PS: The rest of Bangalore was untouched by these disturbances. In fact, we realised about all the violence only when we watched the news on TV. We even had relatives visiting us, etc.

Bangalore's trees are its glory

2007-01-19T12:30:00.001+05:30

But for its trees, Bangalore's city scape would have been quite ugly. The city has nothing noteworthy to offer for your visual pleasure. The tree-lined roads are fairly unique to Bangalore and thankfully make up for the lack of other things pretty. The localites do complain about how the number of trees are dwindling. I agree with them. But, I do not see how the city can keep all of its trees amidst such unexpected growth. I am happy that we have the trees that we do.

The difference I notice from a few years ago to now is that Bangaloreans are not keeping quiet about losing their trees. I am positive that the awareness will help protect the existing trees. The corporation is doing its bit of planting saplings when it must cut down trees. The corporation is also maintaining green patches throughout the city by developing small parks (another post.)

These pictures were taken in the afternoons when the traffic is not clogging every inch of the road. The pics are digitally manipulated a little to accentuate the greenery. :)

Happy Sankranthi/Pongal

2007-01-15T18:57:00.001+05:30

It is the Sankranthi / Pongal season. Sugarcanes are everywhere! We enjoyed taking the kids out yesterday to buy sugarcanes, fruits, and flowers for today's pooja. The roads were filled with festive joy, with people buying all the pooja items and enjoying the sugarcanes. I loved buying strings of jasmine, tuberoses, chrysanthemum, roses, oleanders etc for the pooja room.

Sugarcanes and Flowers

It was fun to actually decorate the pooja room with sugarcanes. I was never really into festivals, but since the arrival of our first child I have changed a lot in this regard. Now, I actually look forward to celebrating the different festivals with the kids. And when we are amongst people who are also celebrating the same festivals, it is really fun!

Happy Sankranthi/Pongal ..... from our home to yours!

Eurokids - A review

2007-01-12T11:55:00.000+05:30

I had mentioned earlier about the pre-school, Eurokids, that our older one is going to in Bangalore. She started almost immediately on coming here. She just completed 3 months there. Overall, we find the school pretty good, especially since their philosophy is, Learning by doing - a child needs to 'touch', 'explore', 'learn' and 'enjoy' to understand the world around him. Our daughter seems to like her school and she has some friends as well. Typically, a class has about 12 students. Each class has a teacher and an assistant. Each class also has a bathroom+toilet. The flooring is laminated and is maintained clean. Kids leave their footwear outside in the shoe rack and are bare feet inside the classrooms. The facility includes a decent amount of play area that has some Little Tikes play structures, a few of Little Tikes cars and the like. Lots of assistants are sprinkled around, and I know that kids are watched over when they are playing outside.

Right now, each Eurokids pre-school has the following class groups:

Playgroup for kids between 1.8 and 2.5 yrs of age
Nursery for kids between 2.5 and 3.5
EuroJunior for kids between 3.5 and 4.5
EuroSenior for kids between 4.5 and 5.5

At the nursey level, she is being taught a lot of things in a fun and interesting way. She gets to do a lot of things with her hands. And best of all, they maintain a folder for all of her activites through the week and send it home on Friday. All her work sheets are for us to keep, and we need to only send the empty folder back on Monday. The teacher teaches almost everything using props. The kids get to see, touch, and eat the fruits that they are being taught about. They get to use their sense of logic in different activities. For example, there was this work sheet where they had to choose the right kind of transportation for air, water, railway tracks, roads etc. Every child gets individual attention from the teacher while doing the job in class. The sense of satisfaction and pride is evident in my daughter when she explains her work sheets to her parents or to her grand parents/relatives.

In these 3 months, they have already had a few parties like the Diwali party, the Christmas party, a children's day, a sports day, and a few field trips. Overall, I am very happy with all these extra activities, especially the field trips. My daughetr comes home and tells me about the fruit shop they visited and the differnet fruits that they got to see. She also got an opportunity to go see an ambulance van, and visited another Eurokids facility on another field trip. I have met her teacher and she seems really nice. All of their teachers are trained by Eurokids and are given a Eurokids certification before being offered a job.

Some gripes:

Our daughter goes to the nursery class and typically has classes for about 3 hours, that includes a half hour play time and some snack break. My daughter can easily stay at school for another hour. She definitely can use some more mental stimulation and challenges.
As parents, we are not invited to involve ourselves in school activites within the school premise. We are not invited to their Diwali/X'mas celebrations. So, we don't get to take pics of our children at such events. :( I was used to being very involved at her Montessori in SF bay area and loved seeing my child being on her own outside of her home. The only Eurokids invites we got was for the sports day, which I must say, was nicely organised.
Quite a few closed days. They have about 50 closed days for various occasions and are again closed for 2 months in summer.

Typical fee structure for '06-'07:

Admission fees - Rs. 5,500
Tuition fees - Rs. 1,350 per month. You have to pay for a minimum of 6 months or 9 months or 12 months. Which means, even if your child is going to go only for 7 months, you have to pay for 9 months. (You pay for the 2 closed months of summer by default.)
Registration kit - Rs. 1,100
Books - Rs. 200

Please Note: There has been no additional fees for their Diwali/X'mas parties, sports day celebrations or field trips. Everything has been covered in the fees that we have paid towards tuition.

* I am not sure if the fee structure varies based on the place. I would expect all Eurokids pre-schools in Bangalore to have the same fee structure.

Big reason for this review: Eurokids is a big chain of pre-schools in India and has over 200 pre-schools all over India. The sheer number called for a review.

R2I - I spoke too soon

2007-01-08T12:06:00.001+05:30

... here. We arrived in Oct '06 and were doing well for about 5 weeks, and have been continuously sick ever since. Amongst the 4 of us, we have fallen sick 13 times in 7 weeks!!! Unbelievable! I am tired, being sick myself or having to care for sick kids everyday for the last few weeks. My older one has hardly fallen sick in the US, and is now compenating for all that. We have been passing the virus around and the cycle seems to be endless. Since the start of winter in November, the weather has been varying a lot in a course of 24 hours. Cold at night and pretty warm during the day.

Having my parents close by has been the biggest boon. I have no clue how I could have possibly managed without them.

PS: If you are planning on relocating, please allot a few months just to get your bodies adjusted to the local climate. I am not sure when we are all going to actually be absolutely fine, but I am really hoping it is going to be soon.

A list of good schools in Bangalore

2007-01-02T09:50:00.000+05:30

Since the start of the blog, the biggest query so far has been about schools in Bangalore, especially by NRIs with kids. I have compiled a list and will be updating this list over a period of time. I welcome all inputs from Bangalore parents.

Please Note: This is not how I want to present this info. I want to include some contact information for every school. But, I have been having tons of issues accessing 'Blogger' and having even more issues with the Internet in general. But, I will make it better over the next few days.

NPS and DPS

National Public School Indiranagar Phone: 25280611, 25275665
National Public School Rajajinagar
National Public School Koramangala - National Games Village, Opp RBI Block, Koramangala Phone: 25705171, 25705172
National Academy For Learning, Basaveshwarnagar
Delhi Public School, South Bangalore
Delhi Public School, Yelahanka, North Bangalore
Delhi Public School, East Bangalore

Other good schools

Sri Kumaran Public School, Basavangudi
Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan (of the Chennai fame), 75/A, Hulimavu, Bannerghatta main road, Bangalore Phone: 2648 2901/02, 2550 1050
Sishu Griha English School, 3, HAL 3rd Stage New Thippasandra, Bangalore - 560075
Vidya Niketan School, 30, Kempapura Village, Hebbal, Bangalore - 560024
The Valley School, Kanakapura Road

New schools off of Sarjapur road

Gear Innovative International School Phone: 2844 0919/17
Inventure Academy, Whitefield - Sarjapur Road, Near Dommasandra Circle, Bangalore - 562125. Mobile numbers: 94489 36678, 94489 36681
Green Wood High School
Prakriya, The green wisdom school - 70, Chikkanayakanahalli Road, Off Doddakannelli, Sarjapur Road, Bangalore-560035 Phone: 28440925 / 57636391

Old Convent schools

Baldwin Boys High School
Baldwin Girls High School
Bishop Cotton Boys School, Residency road
Bishop Cotton Girls High School, Residency road
St. Joseph's Boys' High School P.B. 25003, No.27, Museum Road, Bangalore 560 025

Other Convent schools

St Germain High School
Stella Mary’s Girls School, Vyalikaval
Bethany High School, Koramangala CA-12, 20th Main, 6th Block K.M. Layout Bangalore 560034 Phone: 25532189, 25531519
Cluny Convent High School, 11th Main, Malleswaram, Bangalore - 560003
Frank Anthony Public School, 13, Cambridge Road, Ulsoor
Sophia High School, Palace road
Sacred Heart Girls High School
St. Joseph's Indian High School

International Schools

The International School Bangalore, NAFL Valley, Whitefield - Sarjapur Road, Near Dommasandra Circle, Bangalore - 562125 Phone: 7822550
Mallya Aditi International School, Yelahanka

International Residential Schools

American Friendship Residential School, Gudibanda, 84 kms. North of Bangalore
Jain International Residential School, Jakkasandra Post, Kanakapura Taluk, Bangalore (Rural) District, Karnataka - 562 112. Phone: 7577013 to 44

R2I - Extremely affordable medical care, comparatively

2006-12-20T10:17:00.000+05:30

So, I fell ill. Nothing major. Just a temperature, with a very bad throat, and dry cough. I was hoping it would heal on its own, mostly cause I don't typically like to got to the docs, and kind of hope for the body to fight the infection by itself. Anyway, this time around, I had to go to a doc, cause it got really bad. So, I went to this doc that my mom recommended highly. I liked the doc, talking was easy with her, and the diagnosis was quick. As I was leaving, I asked her how much was her fee? I was blown-over when she said "Rs. 30/-" (65 cents)! However, I must agree that her office was pretty basic and had no pleasing interiors, unlike a typical doctor's office in the U.S. The prescribed medicines cost me Rs. 120/- ($2.6!), now this included an antibiotic as well. Overall, it cost me $3.25!

In the US, with the PPO plan we had, I would have to just pay a co-pay of $15 at the doctor's office and about $5-10 as co-pay for the antibiotic. The cough syrup would have probably been covered 100%. Anyway, this is just from my purse. The insurance would have been charged 100s for the whole thing!!! Where is $3.25 and where's 100s of dollars?

We had to take my kids a while ago to a pediatrician. We took them to one of repute. We were pretty happy with his office/setup, his interaction with the kids, the speed of diagnosis etc. Each visit cost us Rs. 150/- ($3.25) and the total cost of medicines for bothe kids about Rs. 200/- ($4.35). Overall costing us a total of $10.85 for both my kids, consultaion and medicines inclusive. In the US, 2 consultations would have a co-pay of $30, and the meds probably fully covered, cause there was no anti-biotic.

And here's the clincher, all of this medical expenditure is covered 100% by my hub's company, where as in the US the co-pay is from our pocket. So, the same exercise cost me $0 here, and would have cost me about $55 there! And this is only for a regular cold+fever. If it was anything more, and required a slight procedure, then what would cost about a couple of thousands of rupees (approximately $50), will cost thousands of dollars in the U.S. And in the PPO insurance plan we had, we would have to pay upto 20% of the total expenditure and other hospital fees. Sometimes it makes you wonder how much fluff encompasses the actual medical cost there.

"Iron-man" at your service

2006-12-16T07:48:00.000+05:30

A few days ago I wrote about the common services that you can enjoy at your doorstep in Bangalore, here. But I consciously did not write about the ironing service, because THIS service deserved its own post. I am not really dependant on this service, preferring to just iron my clothes at home. My husband, however, is a true appreciator of the "iron-man". Hub has always HATED ironing his shirts and trousers, mostly cause he found it extremely painful to get the creases right. I am sure a lot of us will agree that men's clothes are so much harder to iron than women's. In the SF bay area, he often wore clothes that were either easy to iron, or those that retained some from a previous wear! However, here he is getting spoilt silly!
Typically, this service has a "working model". It is mostly family run, with all the nuclear family members involved with one setup. The 'iron-family' that has our area under its "jurisdiction" consists of 3 people - dad, mom, and a young son. There is an unsaid law amongst the 'iron-men'. They don't infringe on the next guy's area/customers. This family always comes to our street early every Sunday morning. Their usual spot is under a particular tree on the pavement. The boy goes to the homes of his regular customers and collects clothes for ironing. He does not pain the others who are not his usual customers by begging for business. However, others are welcome to give him their clothes if they want to.

He then takes the collected clothes to their mobile ironing board, which is nothing but the flat push cart that is used by street hawkers and vendors. A couple of huge and heavy iron boxes heated with coal accompany the board. They fill the heated coal from the top of the iron box. The heaviness of the iron box makes all the difference in the result of the finished product.

The 'iron-man' and his wife do a fantastic job of ironing. The boy delivers the ironed clothes - nice and very crip, ready for use.

Those familiar with this service will know or recollect from memory the distinct smell of these ironed clothes. I guess the unique smell is from the old iron box, the coal, the backing cloth that is used on the ironing-board etc. I have come to associate this smell with crispness!

It costs Rs. 2.5/- (about 5 cents!) for a piece in this area. A piece can be a shirt, trouser, dress, etc. Sarees cost Rs. 6/- or more. Now, these prices may vary depending on the area. In apartment buildings, there is usually an 'iron-man' in the basement parking lot. And mostly he is there everyday of the week at your service.

My husband is actually in the heaven of ironed clothes now. :)

For a cuppa filter coffee

2006-12-13T11:54:00.000+05:30

One late afternoon, I was on MG road trying to kill time before meeting my husband. I was browsing through some stores and doing some shopping/window shopping. Since my return from the US, I have been getting used to my mom's first class South Indian filter coffee everyday at around 4.30 pm. Typically, I don't drink too much coffee and am not an afficionado by any measure. Infact, for all the years in the US, all I had on a daily basis was a cup of instant coffee with hot milk in the mornings. :) When on the road, I have enjoyed Starbucks too.

Anyway, as I strolled along I realized that it was my coffee time, 'mom's South Indian filter coffee' time. I was at The Bombay Store, and the nearest coffee joint is the Cafe Coffee Day(CCD), which is adjacent to it. I went to the counter to take a look at the menu. There were the typical espressos, cappuccinos, lattes, decafs, and the like. So I asked the guy at the counter if they served the regular South Indian filter coffee, after all I am in South India, aren't I? And there was no such coffee available. Also I noticed that the per cup coffee prices ranged from the early to the late 30s. I next headed towards Barista, further down from CCD. I could smell the cappuccinos and espressos as I neared Barista. I didn't even bother going in. I wanted my South Indian filter coffee, and that was that.

I walked down further and the very familiar coffee smell greeted me from the India Coffee House (ICH). I walked in and to my surprise the table right next to the big window overlooking MG road was available! I sat at the table facing the window and ordered for a coffee right away. The waiter brought me a cuppa Kapi. No frills and no jazz, just the way I wanted it. The saucer had water droplets, having just been washed. It was a nice big cup of fresh South Indian filter coffee, just like mom's.

After I got the coffee, I ordered a masala dosa. He brought it almost immediately. Nice and very home-made. Loved the simplicity of both my dosa and coffee. I noticed that the menu card hadn't changed in all the years. And the prices were down right low! Right in the middle of MG Road and I just had to pay a total of Rs. 22/-!! Amazing! (Any coffee at CCD was around Rs. 35/-)

I enjoyed the window view as I cleaned off my cup and plate. Nothing had changed. The ICH has probably remained the same for all the 60 odd years. The same old ceiling fans, a few old posters and hangings on the walls, the same red+white uniforms on the waiters, a few tourists, and some regulars. It had the old Bangalore colonial hangover and I was almost transported back in time.

View from the window

There has been the rumor that ICH is going to be razed to the ground, like everything old in the city. The location is very prime. In fact, I am surprised it is still standing what with the espressos becoming the norm in the trendier parts of town. I don't know for how long it is going to be around, but thanks to ICH, I hardly missed my mom's coffee that evening. And my hub got to meet a happy camper!

Auto, an (in)convenient mode of transport

2006-12-10T09:30:00.000+05:30

Well, the auto has been around for a long time on the Indian roads and needs no introduction. It is an easy mode of commute. The biggest plus is that you can just hop in and out. You don't have to worry about the lack of parking space for your car or the availability of public transport, the bus. You definitely don't have to drive, especially in the crowded/narrow roads. An auto ride is not too expensive. It is Rs.6/- per kilometer, with a minimum of at least Rs. 12/- per ride.

The downside is that you are exposed to the air and noise pollution, since the auto is open on both sides. By the time you commute for about 10 kms, you have a distinct exhaust smell in your hair and clothes. The exhaust smell can also make you feel nauseas. Since the smog checks have become fairly strict, the cars, 2-wheelers, and some autos are almost smoke-free. However, there are some autos and buses that are still very polluting. See pics below.

Smoke from auto exhausts

The second issue is that of the auto fare meter. Most autos still have the "dreaded" mechanical fare meter. Why "dreaded"? Cause they are most often tampered with and read anywhere between 5-20 % more than the actual price. There are very few autos that do not have tampered meters. How do I know this? I have had to go to the same place everyday from home and I have been engaging autos by default. However, I am yet to come across 2 mechanical auto meters that have read the same price at the destination! So, what have I been doing of late? I just tell the auto guy that his meter is faulty and that I have been doing the exact same route everyday and know the exact distance and price. Amazingly enough, the auto guys just accept what I say without any arguments. Clearly implying that their meters are faulty!

The electronic fare meter is SUCH a welcome change. It not only shows the running price, but also the running distance in kms. Makes it very easy to know the exact price for the ride. Unfortunately, the digital meters are seen very sparingly in the Bangalore autos.

Another very positive development is the "identity display system". Every auto must display certain details (see left) of the driver. In case you need to go to the police for some reason, you have enough info to track the driver.

Bangalore also has the "pre-paid" scheme. But the pre-paid autos are only available at some fixed spots like the railway stations, Bangalore city bus stand, M.G. road, airport, etc.

Overall, in Bangalore, an auto is alright if you have to just get from place A to place B, on occasions. But, it definitely cannot be a mode of transport for your regular everyday commute, more so because of the continuous exposure to air pollution.

The peddling Bollywood celebrities

2006-12-08T08:12:00.000+05:30

It is astonishing to see how Bollywood celebrities peddle anything and everything! Celebrity faces adorn every hoarding, wall, screen, gadget that there is to adorn. If you go to an appliance store, you can easily identify every LG appliance that there is in the store, cause all of them have a big huge face of Abhishek Bachchan's on them. When you are at an appliance store, it is real funny to have Abhishek Bachchan stare at you from all corners.

Amitabh endorses a huge range of products - Pepsi, Emami, Dabur, Parker pens, Reid and Taylor, Eveready batteries, Cadbury's etc. He is truly the Lord of Endorsements. Shahrukh Khan can easily be called the Ad Khan. He endorses Pepsi, Hyundai, Airtel, Videocon, Sun Feast, Tag Heur, Emami, Mayur Suitings, Lux(!), ICICI and more.

Hoardings with stars and their products can be spotted through out the city. You have the Bachchans, Khans, Aishwarya Rais, Kareena Kapoors staring at you from everywhere. All of this is really good for the product brand name, but not so much for the celebrity brand name, IMHO. After all, the "stars" just become peddlers at the end of the day. Such an overkill.

In contrast, you hardly ever see Hollywood stars promoting products in the US. They do promote goods in other countries for very hefty amounts, but at least you are not seeing them endorsing goods in the US. The paparazzi cover them enough and the stars appear on enough and more TV talk shows to promote their movies/books/agenda. If they were to endorse goods as well, it would have been a bit much.

What prompted me to write this post was seeing this new Shahrukh Khan's Videocon ad.
.

Seriously, what is he doing in this ad? :-O

R2I - No ocean to keep families apart

2006-12-05T11:46:00.000+05:30

The proximity of our near and dear ones is a big plus on returning home. Typically parents are getting old and their dependencies, increasing. It is very easy on the nerves to not have the oceans and mountains keeping you apart, especially when there is a health crisis.

Both hub and I are only kids to our respective parents and we wanted to be here for emergencies that might arise. I would have hated to receive a really tragic news in the middle of the night and not be able to come home right away. What with 2 young'uns and all. Though both sets of parents have visited us before, I didn't see it happening again cause of different health complications. And that wasn't comforting at all.

It is an absolute joy to watch the children interact and play with their grandparents. And it seems to be doing a whole lot of good to the grandparents as well. Something to keep them young and spirited .... company of the very young. The nearness and proximity is easy on their nerves as well. For them, the huge geographical divide and the tiring and long international air travels are things of the past. :)

R2I - Our boxes are here!

2006-12-02T09:48:00.000+05:30

And it feels so surreal. All the meticulous packing in our Calif garage, then sending the boxes away in a truck and now seeing them here in our Bangalore home, feels strange. It took exactly 2 months for these boxes to travel the seas and get here.

We used WorldWide Ocean and Air Shipping Lines Inc. for shipping. We are really very happy with their service. They picked up the boxes from our Calif home and delivered it at home here. They also delivered it in the promised time frame. They kept the paper work easy and simple. After the boxes arrived here, my hubby had to go to the customs to get the boxes cleared, and pay some duty. Once the boxes were out of the customs, the shipping company did the rest of the delivery. It cost us about $1 per pound (lb), though that is not how they charged for the shipping.

Seeing our stuff from there made me miss our Calif home. We loved our home, the community, our wonderful neighbors, the beautiful mountains, park etc. When I missed everything, I was just glad that we still had our home there. We may never really go back for good, but when I do miss our home, I don't have to feel real terrible. :)

WalMart will be here

2006-11-29T13:13:00.000+05:30

India's Bharti Group (yes, the same group that owns Airtel - the largest mobile service provider in India) struck a deal with US retail giant WalMart to launch the first mega-retail store joint venture in the country. The joint venture is apparently planning on several hundred stores across the country.

Other mega-retailers in the Indian market: Big Bazaar is a chain of super-stores in India currently with 29 outlets, owned by the Pantaloon Group. Reliance Fresh of Reliance Industries opened new retail stores in Hyderabad earlier this month. European-based Metro AG launched its wholesale Cash & Carry stores in Bangalore in 2003.

In a city like Bangalore, there really isn't the kind of space for a super-store within city-limits. That will push these stores to the periphery. The roads and the traffic make commute to and from anywhere a nightmare. That said, I am not sure how much of an effort a regular guy would make just to get to a WalMart. However, the current Big Bazaars are attracting a decent amount of crowd. People, I think, are making the extra effort to get to a Big Bazaar just for the novelty of it.

It is said that India has over 15 million small shops, the highest density of retail outlets in the world. The tie-up between WalMart and Bharti is meant to be a direct assault on these small shops. I don't see the super-stores completely taking over the small guys, only cause the small shops are such a part and parcel of everyday Indian life. People are used to just walking to the nearest mom-and-pop store to buy stuff. But if the retail giants do manage to uproot the smaller guys, that will change the Indian city scenario. I will definitely miss the India specific shopping experience if WalMarts become the norm. Ugh!

Regular small shops in Bangalore

The Bharti-WalMart venture promises low prices, especially for the estimated 300 million-strong middle class. It is reported that the regular shops are too small to offer the choice or discounts available to a major retailer that buys globally like WalMart. Yes, that maybe true. However, the personal feel of a small store can NEVER be got at a WalMart. It does look like the price and the novelty of a super-store is likely to decide the future of the Indian retail industry.

Big Plus: WalMart has been sourcing clothing and textiles worth billions of dollars from India. The continued exporting opportunity will definitely benefit India and Indians.

"The secret of successful retailing is to give your customers what they want" Sam Walton wrote in his autobiography. How much of that will hold true for the Indian consumer is to be seen!

Service at your doorstep

2006-11-27T13:23:00.000+05:30

One of the best perks of living in Bangalore is that literally everything is delivered or available at your doorstep. The local grocers are more than happy to take your orders over the phone and get their boys to deliver the grocery right at your doorstep for free! So is the local pharmacist now. Trust Chemists and Druggists is a pharmacy chain in Bangalore. (I am not sure if they have stores in rest of India.) If you call and ask for a refill of your medicines or order over-the-counter medicines, you can have them delivered at your doorstep between 9 am and 9 pm. The only clause is the distance from the store to your home. As long as it is within reasonable distance, they will do it for free. The milk vendors deliver milk everyday for a nominal charge. And the newspapers are ofcourse delivered to your door.

Not to mention, the variety of hawkers/vendors who do their business on the streets. They sell all of these and more at your doorstep - vegetables, fruits, flowers, puffed rice, stainless steel pots and pans, plastic boxes and containers, cleaning supplies, sarees, some electrical appliances, etc.

A local vegetable hawker

Hawkers are a familiar sight on any Indian city/town street and often sell their produce/goods for a cheaper price than the store prices. The produce that they sell are fresh and good. One must not discount the personal interaction that comes with such a setup. Typically, hawkers have some regular customers, and provide their loyal services to these regulars. (The boy in the above pic comes by everyday to check if my mom needs any produce!)

Greater Bangalore

2006-11-25T08:53:00.000+05:30

The State Government has set in motion the proposal to constitute a Greater Bangalore Authority by merging the following areas:

1. The areas already in the jurisidiction of BMP
2. City Municipal Councils (CMC) of

Rajarajeshwarinagar
Dasarahalli
Bommanahalli
Krishnarajapuram
Mahadevapura
Byatarayanapura
Yelahanka

3. Kengeri Town Municipal Council (TMC)
4. 111 villages

1 village in Anekal taluk
46 in Bangalore East taluk
37 in Bangalore South taluk
27 villages in Bangalore North taluk

Image Courtesy: The Hindu

The new authority will have 140 wards compared to the existing 100 of the BMP.

Apparently, there has been a long-pending demand for including the areas around Bangalore into the corporation area to ensure a comprehensive and uniform development of the city. The Government has taken the first steps by setting in motion the proposal to constitute a Greater Bangalore Authority. Now, the progress and the success of this authority remains to be seen! *rolls eyes cynically*

Info Courtesy: The Hindu

Desi food in Des! Slurp! Slurp!

2006-11-22T09:08:00.001+05:30

Nothing to beat it. Hot and Spicy ... very nice! From the 5 star hotels to the road side dhabhas/darshinis, food available here is simply superb. I had always HATED the coconut chutney served in the US, no matter how good the rest of the food was. And now here, I get to have the best spicy/hot coconut chutney. Finger-licking good!

The coconut chutney that eluded me! Yummy!

Not to mention having access to your mom's, MIL's, aunts', cousins' foods! And of course the temple and wedding foods! Yum, yum, yum! The full-fledged authentic meals served on banana leaves, now THAT is something you will never get in the US! If it was the banana leaf meals that I missed, it must be something else for another US Indian.

Special banana leaf meals

The bay area does have a decent number of temples and these temples do offer lots of food for people visiting the temple. However, the authenticity was what was missing from those foods, IMHO. Nothing like the specialty pulliyogre, laddoo, vada, etc that you get in the temples in India. This doesn't mean that I am a regular temple goer, hardly! But, when I do go, I definitely enjoy the authentic and yum-tasting prasads.

Lastly, being a vegetarian doesn't limit you in anyway when you are on the Indian road. :)

What am I missing out on right now being here?

2006-11-18T04:39:00.000+05:30

The price war for toys currently happening between Walmart and Toys"R"Us. I would have loved to buy toys for the next year if I were there. I am told about the toy shops here, but I am yet to visit a store. I do know that the regular American toys sell for about 4 times the retail price in the US!

PS: Hub and I also missed watching FOX news when the Republicans lost! We did get to watch CNN International here, but nothing like watching FOX when the Reps lose!! :)

Why not to choose Bangalore

2006-11-15T09:38:00.000+05:30

Before the 'why not to', let me briefly say why we chose Bangalore. Actually, there really wasn't a choice. Being from Bangalore, having family and property here, and with all the job opportunities here, we wouldn't have moved back to any other city in India.

However, if we didn't have family here, we may have thought long about moving to Bangalore. Simply because it is unnecessarily expensive and very very clogged. Going anywhere in the city is such a task! The roads are clogged almost all the time of the week. Just a few wee hours and a few hours on Sunday is all the break you get from the bumper-to-bumper chaotic traffic.

The real estate is a whole different story. The prices go up every day!! A 3 bedroom apartment will cost you about 60+ (everything inclusive, not just the basic cost) lakhs today to buy, if its cost was about 50+ lakhs 6 months ago!!! Unbelievable! and the typical finishes given are just vitrified tiles and flush doors! I was told by some property developers that there are two reasons for the prices to be soaring high:

The government put a clamp on converting agricultural lands. So, the land that is already available is all there is for development.
Apparently, a lot of Mumbai based developers/business people are investing in properties in and around Bangalore, solely for the sake of investment. So, there is an artificial demand of sorts that is hiking the price.

The 60+ lakhs properties are pretty much from the tier 2 developers. If you want quality 3 bedroom apartments from tier 1 developers like Adarsh, Sobha , Total-environment, Prestige, you will not get one for less than 75 lakhs (everything inclusive, not just the basic cost). The prices go upto as much as 1 crore+ for 3 bedroom apartments, depending on the floor number, luxury/super luxury, size of the apartment etc. Now, isn't that atrocious by all standards? And since there really is no land for mass development within city limits, all these developments are happening on the city periphery. So, please also account for the commute to and from work if you reside in these places.

All this said, there isn't much logic trying to set up a place here from scratch if you have no family or property here. Personally, I don't see the point. Yes, the job opportunities, and the weather are pretty good. But, the traffic, real estate prices, lack of immediate family, school costs (another post) are all huge deterrents for non-Bangaloreans trying to re-locate to Bangalore from elsewhere.

PS: If you are reading this and want any kind of additional info, pl let me know.

Weather! Can't say enough!

2006-11-13T20:26:00.000+05:30

Beautiful weather. So pleasant, so lovely. But ofcourse, having been brought up here in Bangalore, I know that it has changed a lot over the years. No more fog-filled slow mornings (sigh!), an actual need for a fan/AC (!!!), absolutely no need for warm clothes, and very hot Apr/Mays!!! Things have changed, but in spite of all that, the weather is AWESOME! I want to kiss this place. I can wear capris in December! Woo Hoo! Somehow, I find that so hard to get.

In contrast, winters in North Cali suck! The wet, very cold, dark days with nothing to do with the kids. And the colds and fevers! Gosh! Hated it! Hated especially the darkness from 4.30 pm till 7.00 am! Ugh!!!!! Depressing, gloomy days! Alright, alright, will stop with that! But, I am so thrilled to be here with so much of light and activity in Nov. Seriously, how can anybody be depressed or gloomy in India? :)

PS: Springs in Cali are so beautiful, they make up for all of winter's bad and more! :)

Traffic! Less said the better!

2006-11-08T12:16:00.000+05:30

OK, to begin with I must confess that I am a Bangalorean and love Bangalore, always have and always will. So, I am not going to do any 'Bangalore bashing'. However, it is really hard not to be frustrated with the traffic.

I am alright, in the sense, I am home most of the time and try and work/do stuff from home. But my hub needs to go to work on all weekdays. And by gosh, it sucks! His work place is a mere 12 kms from home, or 7.5 miles. And it takes him 45 mins one way on a good day. And it has taken him 2 hrs sometimes to commute 7.5 miles!!!! On most days, my hub is pretty tired coming home in the traffic. Then alone, he really is almost keen to move back to the SF bay area, where the commute and traffic are supposed to be "bad". We were about 10 miles away from his work and it took him anywhere between 15-25 mins to commute.

My cousin who lives in Nagarbhavi must commute to Whitefield on an everyday basis for work. Nagarbhavi is on the extreme west and Whitefield on the extreme east, but the distance is no more than 30 kms or about 19 miles! And he has a company provided van that picks up/drops off a bunch of people from his neighborhood to and from work. They leave really early to beat the traffic and it takes him about an hour in the morning, and about 2.5 hrs in the evening!!! Averaging about 3-4 hrs everyday on commute.

Work around for hub: Work from home on broadband. Leave home at 11.00 am and leave work at 4.00 pm. He is yet to put this plan into action. When he does, I will keep the blog updatted.

Familiar road sights ...

Can you imagine the plight of the patient in that ambulance?

School, the first order of business

2006-11-07T21:34:00.000+05:30

Our oldest one was going to a montessori school in the bay area for almost a year when we moved. And since we moved in the middle of an academic year, Oct, school was pretty much our first priority on coming back to Bangalore. Since my parents live in Bangalore and since we were going to be staying with them for a start, I had asked them to look around for schools in their neighborhood even before we left Cali.

I made note of a few schools, but had pretty much made up my mind about the pre-school. She would go to one of the many Eurokids schools. Eurokids is a chain that provides Pre-School education in India. Eurokids website

Our daughter had already done phonics, writing and reading some 3 letter words. In comparison, she was doing slightly easier things at Eurokids. For her age (3+), she was eligible only for the nursery level. So, we went with it. Yep, she was going to forget a bit of her writing and reading, but that's all she was going to get for her age in any school here.

The reason for our move in Oct was also to be here for the application process to Kindergarten for next year into some of the good schools in Bangalore. The process starts now for Jun, next year. She turns 4 on Jun 1 and will be eligible for LKG. Since, we also plan to settle in the Outer ring road/Sarjapur road area, we will be applying for schools in that neighborhood. (Another post :) )

She started school here a couple of days after we landed! So far, she seems to like it at Eurokids. That's all we care right now. :)

Returned to Bang bang bangalore!!

2006-11-07T21:02:00.000+05:30

Hub and I had always wanted to return to Bangalore from the U.S for a variety of reasons. There was not the typical x+1 factor for our move. We came up with the basis for the timeframe of our return ..... when the second child was about 1.5 yrs old. :)) We worked towards the move from around the time our second child was born. I am not wasting too much of my blog space for the pre-move, but am pretty much dedicating the blog to our post-move experiences. Hoping the postings will help the couple of souls who may find this blog!!