It's the little successes that count

Just came back from my first outing, alone, on foot today. I made it back, all in one piece. I can't say I went very far but I certainly felt 50,000 miles away (I have no idea how many miles away it really is but 50000 sounded good). I asked the oh-so-polite concierge about walking to the High Court of Karnataka building which happens to be across the street from the National Library. He said it was indeed walkable - about 1 km away. So with my long pants on, camera and video camera in my bag I headed out. Because I clearly do not look like I am from Indian, I have taken the liberty to look like a true tourist. (Note: once I move into our apartment, I will revoke this idea.) Anyway, not 5 steps off the grounds of the hotel did I encounter a rather aggressive Indian asked me if I wanted to take a rickshaw ride. "No thank you," I politely answered and kept walking. Apparently in India, "no thank you" means, "No please, walk with me and keep asking because I just might change my mind." So, I had to break out the not often seen or heard, Forceful and Aggressive Kathleen for him to get lost. Not 2 minutes later, he pulls up beside me, in his rickshaw waving a 10 rupee bill. I think he was offering me 10 rupees to ride with him No one loves a bargain more than I but again, unpolitely I said no.

As if this wasn't enough to make me rethink my pleasant walk, I found myself walking along this not so walkable sidewalk.


The yellow wall surrounds our hotel. This is literally on the other side of it.
















At the end of this stretch of sidewalk was my first intersection that I had to cross. It was more of a rotary intersection than a true intersection so I waited for a break in the traffic. (The picture above is deceiving because there actually was way more traffic than appears.) So I continued to wait. And wait. And wait. Now, there were some Indians who took their chances but I don't know. I kept seeing the signs listing the number of car accidents flashing in my head. Instead, I took a left so I didn't have to cross. The next street wasn't very long and there was no rotary at the end, so I figured my chances would be better at that intersection. But again, I waited for what felt like a good 10 minutes. I think I was waiting for someone to take pity on the foreigner and stop. Many people stared but no one stopped. Finally, I followed the man next to me halfway into the street, waiting for a scooter to pass and then ran the rest of the way across the street. My first successful crossing on foot. I think I actually smiled to myself. From that point on, I was a champ. It's like I'd been dodging traffic for weeks. And so that my mother and grandmother don't go nuts thinking it is all that dangerous, the cars really don't go all that fast. And I did actually witness cars, at one intersection, stopping at red lights. It's perfectly safe.

I took some video of the traffic but I may need some time and assistance figuring how to upload that. And I've posted some more pictures from my walk.

I learned one another thing today - if you are ever asked if you would like - or think that it would be a good idea to try - Bitter Gourd Juice, just say no.

George met a British and an American woman at work and they invited us to brunch on Sunday. Our first new friends.

Addendum: Who said I couldn't figure out how to upload the video I took?

Pictures

See the "links" section to the right. It should link to a photo album. They are mostly of the hotel where we're staying but that's where I'll post them.

First Impressions

Growing up, my brother and sisters and I would sometimes amuse ourselves by concocting something to consume - usually, but not always, a drink - made up of the most unusual ingrediants we could find in the refrigerator/cabinets. (Thinks ketchup + mayonnaise + pickle juice) We'd then dare one another to drink/eat it. Sometimes, it wasn't all that bad. That's what Bangalore is like so far. The smells, the cows, the dirt, the beautiful new buildings next to shacks, the business men (and women) mix with the guy selling guavas and beggars in the road - none of it goes together but somehow, it works.

Before we left, everyone (most of whom had never been to India) commented on the smell. "Oh, it's awful...or so I've heard." True, it smells different, but it's not that strong and more like spices then say, body odor. Then there is the traffic. Cars, rickshaws, stray dogs, cows, scooters and people (see guava seller above) all share the same road. Sure there are traffic lights but try telling a cow, "green means go." So, no one pays any mind to any sort of traffic laws; they just beep their horns incessantly. They do however, keep a running tally of accidents and injuries and post them on billboards. I think this is to get people to drive more safely but I think it just makes people feel lucky - 3 million people, 3000 accidents = lots of millions who aren't in accidents. So, I wouldn't really say this is a "walkable" (nevermind run-able) city. No marathon for me this year. After you get past the traffic scene, you can pay attention to everything else - which includes the lovely high rise office buildings and the not so lovely shacks. I've been trying to figure out how to describe them but I think I'll have to get a picture to do it justice.

No pictures of that yet though because we spent yesterday looking for a place to live. We met up with someone who works with IBM to help with housing. She showed us about four places in the "diamond district." Before coming, we had heard that this was a nice area to live. I was expecting a neighborhood, perhaps with lots of jewelery stores. But no. The "Diamond District" is the name of a massive apartment complex complete with pool, restaurant, health club and small grocery store. We liked what we saw but weren't ready to commit. So our friend, whose name we forget, showed us some other places. We did decide to live in a similar complex called "St. John's Wood." It was not as large as the Diamond District but had all the same amenities and was newer. A few words about the strangeness of the day:
1. The landlord who met up with us in the Diamond District apparently also owns (or manages) the properties we saw in the other 2 complexes. One of his men from the Diamond District accompanied us to the other places. This seems sketchy to me although I don't think George found it as odd.
2. A few of the places we saw seemed to be occupied but we were assured they were available "immediately."
3. All of the places had TVs in all the rooms. George asked if it would be ok if we wanted to buy a TV and upgrade and our friend said, "if you want a new TV tell the landlord and he will buy one." Or if we wanted to make one of the rooms an office, they would set us up with whatever we needed.

So we have an apartment but no move in date yet. Here are two views of the place - not mine, I found these on the internets.



We took a long nap yesterday when we got back and were up at 4:45 this morning so we're still a little off. Hence the long post I've written very early this morning. George just went to work so I'm going to see about this health club here and maybe explore some more of the Taj West End.

That's all for now. We have so much to learn/explore.

P.S. The Indians refer to Bangalore by its Kannada (language spoke here) name of Bengaluru (Beng-a-loo-roo) so I'll be referring to it by that name too.

P.S.S. My husband also has a blog if you want a shorter but more boring account, click here.

4 Days and counting

I'm finally adequately immunized and have some malaria medication. Sadly, we will be leaving our fun-loving neighbors and high-class town for Bangalore in 4 short days. George is just giddy with excitement while I am busy laboriously cleaning the apartment and moving all our junk.

We're looking forward to learning about different cultures and traditions but also hoping to take in all of life's lessons along the way. Already I've learned a few things:

1. Cleaning an oven is a horrendous task and I'm guessing a self-cleaning oven is well worth the investment.
2. Going forward, I vow to go through kitchen cabinets and refrigerators at least every few months (and by "go through" I mean, throw out anything I haven't used/eaten in the past few months).
3. Going forward, I vow to get and pay all bills online. Who needs piles and piles of useless but important papers?
4. Getting rid of shoes and clothes is not as easy.

Those are my thoughts thus far. I'm excited to add more to my list and channel the Alanis Morrisette in me.