Bangalore
City Office
Address:
Park View, 17 Curve Road Near Queens Circle, Tasker Town, Bangalore 560051
Operating Hours:
Monday to Saturday - 0915 hours to 1745 hours(LT)
Tel:
+91 80 22867999 (Economy Class)
+91 80 22867868 / 69 / 70
+91 80 22867872
+91 80 22867999 (First Class/Business Class/PPS Members)
Fax:
+91 80 22867899
Email:
blr_feedback@singaporeair.com.sg
Airport Office
Address:
1st Floor, International Departure Terminal Bangalore International Airport, Bangalore 560017
Operating Hours:
Monday, Thursday and Saturday - 1400 hours to 0200 hours(LT) Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday - 1000 hours to 1730 hours(LT)
Tel:
+91 080 25237053
Fax:
+91 080 25237053
Email:
blr_airport@singaporeair.com.sg
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Internet Helpline
+91 80 2867999
(0915 hours - 1745 hours, Monday to Friday)
Thursday, August 19, 2004
Saturday, August 07, 2004
Return to USA from Bangalore
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Saturday, July 31, 2004
Things for a South Indian Couple to Start afresh in the USA
Things for a South Indian Couple to Start afresh in the USA
----------------------------------------------------------
Things that should be bought only in U.S are marked as
(U.S)
Kitchen: (Samayal, saapaadu mudhalla)
1. Pressure Cooker (for paruppu mainly)
2. Paruppu/Rice eversilver vessels (that can fit
inside the cooker)
3. Electric rice cooker (U.S)
4. Vaanalai with bakelite handles and lid for curry
5. Medium size Rasam/sambar adukku(gaL)
6. lids for all of these
7. Rasam/sambar karandi -2, Saadhak karandi
(Annavetti), Kaay kilara
oru
karandi
8. thaalichchu kottradhukku chinna copper bottom
vessel with bakelite
handle
9. jalli karaNdi for vadaam appalaam, etc
10.Idly thattu (3 or 6 depending on..)
11.Non stick dosa/Roti thava
12.Non stick thiruppi (in wood or any non-stick
material)
13. kidukki
14. Knife (U.S)
15. Cutting Board (U.S)
16. Spoons in 2 sizes -each dozen
17. Shripet Jars big - 6, small -6 (for storing
things)
18. vadikatti (for keerai and all)
19. Tea vadikatti (if tea is taken regularly)
20. Carrot/thEngai seevum seevi
21. Chappaaththi kuzhavi
22. Anjarai petti (Spice box)
23. 110 V Indian Mixie
24. Eating plates
25. Eveilver tumblers /davaras (if you are attached to
indian way of
coffee
drinking)
26. Microwavable containers (all sizes) (U.S)
27. Microwavable/fancy Plates, bowls, cups (U.S)
28. 4,5,6,7 - can be replaced by a good Non-stick
Quality cookware set
(U.S)
(would help for
beginners and great for cleaning - no sticky,
theechal)
29. samaiththup paar pusthagam (beginners and whoever
needs reference)
30. 110 V Grinder - some people get this but half %
just get this and
never
use it.
Living room:
1. Decorative items depending on taste - wall hangers,
paintings,
dolls,
etc,,
Everything else (furniture, T.V, entertainment
system,....) you buy/get
in
U.S
Poojai room (or alamaari, whatever) (if spritual)
1. Vilakku
2. thirigaL
3. oothuvathti stand
4. maNi
5. Small box holders for kungum, vibhoothi, sandhanam,
etc
6. Slogha books
7. ofcourse your favorite framed/unframed swami/idol
Bedroom
1. Alarm Clock (you can get good ones in U.S also)
2. Pillow covers - good decorative ones
3. may be Indian bed spread(s)
4. Bed and Comforters/Pillows (U.S)
Bathroom:
Get everything in U.S only.
For the Girl:
1. Some Chudidhaars
2. Jeans, formal pants, TShirts are preferrable - as
many as you want -
or
get them in U.S
3. Rarely you get a chance to wear pattu saree and all
the jighu jighu
jewels - so bring
them in small numbers only
4. Any addiction to Indian make - Soaps/face
cream/cold
cream/shampoos/sigaikkaay/etc etc
(but you need moisturizing soaps for U.S weather)
5. Sweater/saalvai, (winter, fall jackets should be
bought in U.S)
6. Depending on the weather of the city you might need
thermal wear,
Wollen
gloves, socks etc..
7. Sanitary napkins for initial days
8. Spare pair of eye glasses/contacts
9. Cooling glasses (for sunny places)
10. Sandals, shoes (or get them in U.S - better)
11. wallet/hand bags
Other:
1. Things of personal interests - Books to read,
Indian classical/cine
music
CDs Cassettes, veenai, violin, Painting tools, etc.,,.
2. Indian medicine balms for head aches, body aches,
etc, tablets
----------------------------------------------------------
Things that should be bought only in U.S are marked as
(U.S)
Kitchen: (Samayal, saapaadu mudhalla)
1. Pressure Cooker (for paruppu mainly)
2. Paruppu/Rice eversilver vessels (that can fit
inside the cooker)
3. Electric rice cooker (U.S)
4. Vaanalai with bakelite handles and lid for curry
5. Medium size Rasam/sambar adukku(gaL)
6. lids for all of these
7. Rasam/sambar karandi -2, Saadhak karandi
(Annavetti), Kaay kilara
oru
karandi
8. thaalichchu kottradhukku chinna copper bottom
vessel with bakelite
handle
9. jalli karaNdi for vadaam appalaam, etc
10.Idly thattu (3 or 6 depending on..)
11.Non stick dosa/Roti thava
12.Non stick thiruppi (in wood or any non-stick
material)
13. kidukki
14. Knife (U.S)
15. Cutting Board (U.S)
16. Spoons in 2 sizes -each dozen
17. Shripet Jars big - 6, small -6 (for storing
things)
18. vadikatti (for keerai and all)
19. Tea vadikatti (if tea is taken regularly)
20. Carrot/thEngai seevum seevi
21. Chappaaththi kuzhavi
22. Anjarai petti (Spice box)
23. 110 V Indian Mixie
24. Eating plates
25. Eveilver tumblers /davaras (if you are attached to
indian way of
coffee
drinking)
26. Microwavable containers (all sizes) (U.S)
27. Microwavable/fancy Plates, bowls, cups (U.S)
28. 4,5,6,7 - can be replaced by a good Non-stick
Quality cookware set
(U.S)
(would help for
beginners and great for cleaning - no sticky,
theechal)
29. samaiththup paar pusthagam (beginners and whoever
needs reference)
30. 110 V Grinder - some people get this but half %
just get this and
never
use it.
Living room:
1. Decorative items depending on taste - wall hangers,
paintings,
dolls,
etc,,
Everything else (furniture, T.V, entertainment
system,....) you buy/get
in
U.S
Poojai room (or alamaari, whatever) (if spritual)
1. Vilakku
2. thirigaL
3. oothuvathti stand
4. maNi
5. Small box holders for kungum, vibhoothi, sandhanam,
etc
6. Slogha books
7. ofcourse your favorite framed/unframed swami/idol
Bedroom
1. Alarm Clock (you can get good ones in U.S also)
2. Pillow covers - good decorative ones
3. may be Indian bed spread(s)
4. Bed and Comforters/Pillows (U.S)
Bathroom:
Get everything in U.S only.
For the Girl:
1. Some Chudidhaars
2. Jeans, formal pants, TShirts are preferrable - as
many as you want -
or
get them in U.S
3. Rarely you get a chance to wear pattu saree and all
the jighu jighu
jewels - so bring
them in small numbers only
4. Any addiction to Indian make - Soaps/face
cream/cold
cream/shampoos/sigaikkaay/etc etc
(but you need moisturizing soaps for U.S weather)
5. Sweater/saalvai, (winter, fall jackets should be
bought in U.S)
6. Depending on the weather of the city you might need
thermal wear,
Wollen
gloves, socks etc..
7. Sanitary napkins for initial days
8. Spare pair of eye glasses/contacts
9. Cooling glasses (for sunny places)
10. Sandals, shoes (or get them in U.S - better)
11. wallet/hand bags
Other:
1. Things of personal interests - Books to read,
Indian classical/cine
music
CDs Cassettes, veenai, violin, Painting tools, etc.,,.
2. Indian medicine balms for head aches, body aches,
etc, tablets
Friday, July 30, 2004
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Coastal Karnataka pilgrimage tour
Just returned from an amazing pilgrimage tour of Coastal Karnataka. Here goes.
Dates are in the Greogrian calendar, Anno-Domini.
July 17 2004: Saturday
Hired a cab, all the way from Bangalore to Sringeri. It was quite an amazing drive. Lush forests of the western ghats & fields & wild-flowers, it was simply magnificient. Saw the holy river Tungabhadra, on whose banks Adi Shankara saw a frog in labour protected from the sun by a cobra (its hood); 2500 years back (according to Puranic history). The matt was awesome as well. When the Shankaracharya commenced his Puja of the Bhoga Linga (one of the 5 main Lingas Adi Shankara procured from Kailasha), I thought a cassette by a professional was being played. It turned out to be a group of three girls, whose singing was aided by the place's acoustics. They were simply magnificent. (They can certainly be professionals. C'mon Spic-Macay). The songs were in certain soulful favourite ragams of mine, which almost brought tears to my eyes; such was their rendition. This was followed by awesome reverberating Vedic chants, where I felt handicapped without my book. Stayed in the Matt house.
Saw Halebid from afar on the way. Didn't have the enthu to go in & wanted to reach Sringeri. However, did visit the Vishnu temple at Belur. It was simply an amazing temple with some great sculptures. However, the holy place of worship seems a commercialized tourist place, unfortunately.
July 18 2004: Sunday
Had a very enjoyable morning among the greenery, saw 'paakku' trees covered with pepper climbers, some beautiful flowers, and some very, very cute monkeys with kids. It was a small species of a monkey with a beard, it would be only till my thighs (I'm 5'6''), and there were quite a few baby monkeys tightly hugging its mother. So cute. Put some water of the Tungabhadra on my head, felt my sins lightened. :) All the way then to Hornadu Annapoorneshwari temple. This again was established by Adi Shankara himself. One can only imagine how he travelled to all these places so long ago (1500-2500 yrs back). I was convinced he would have travelled by Yogic powers. Drove through a dense forest, which was simply amazing, with some amazing sights. The rivers & green mountains & jungle sounds... It was mind-blowing. Nothing like a tropical rain-forest to cheer you up. And calm you.
We were driving through mists & fogs & clouds in-between. An amazing experience. And a little scary in the foggy nights.
All the way back to Udipi. The driver, a nice guy, informs us that it would be better if we'd travelled to Hornadu first, then to Sringeri. There were lots of cows in Udipi, being treated well, having their residence on the roads & waking up to human calls for food. :) It was funny & cute at the same time.
July 18 2004: Monday-Day three
Udipi-Kollur Mookambi-Kateel Jala Durga-Dharmasthala. Kollur seems established by Adi Shankara (again) during his search for Sringeri (for Goddess Saraswati's residence). The Sowparniga river was beautiful here. More river water on my head. In Udipi, Krishna had turned himself to the backside, for the sake of a pure-minded devotee, and had broken the wall with his Math. All devotees seem him from the back to this day. (The Brihadeeshwara Nandi had moved for similar reasons). There are beautiful ancient stories concerning Madhvacharya & Swami Vadeeshwara. Kateel had the Nandhini river, more of which disappeared on my head. :)
Night at Dharmasthala on the banks of the beautiful Netravati river. Dharmasthala is truly a Dhramasthala for the amount of people they feed unquestioningly. Vedic dharma certainly flourishes there.
Saw Aanai-Konda-Ganesha sometime in-between.
July 19 2004: Tuesday-Day four
Dharmasthala again in the morning, then to Subramanya. A wonderful drive again. Again situated on the banks of the river, Kumaradhara. This region is definitely naturally endowed. And so beautiful. Back to Bangalore from Subramanya.
I hope to spend like 3 nights or a week in a tropical Indian forest sometime. That should be wonderful. And tremendously refreshing.
Hope this itinerary helps others with similar ideas plan theirs.
Trip itinerary in a nutshell:
Bangalore-Halebid-Sringeri-Hornadu-Udipi-Kollur-Kattil-Dharmasthala-Subramanya-Bangalore
Better itinerary:
Bangalore-Halebid-Hornadu-Sringeri-Udipi-Kollur-Kattil-Dharmasthala-Subramanya-Bangalore
Dates are in the Greogrian calendar, Anno-Domini.
July 17 2004: Saturday
Hired a cab, all the way from Bangalore to Sringeri. It was quite an amazing drive. Lush forests of the western ghats & fields & wild-flowers, it was simply magnificient. Saw the holy river Tungabhadra, on whose banks Adi Shankara saw a frog in labour protected from the sun by a cobra (its hood); 2500 years back (according to Puranic history). The matt was awesome as well. When the Shankaracharya commenced his Puja of the Bhoga Linga (one of the 5 main Lingas Adi Shankara procured from Kailasha), I thought a cassette by a professional was being played. It turned out to be a group of three girls, whose singing was aided by the place's acoustics. They were simply magnificent. (They can certainly be professionals. C'mon Spic-Macay). The songs were in certain soulful favourite ragams of mine, which almost brought tears to my eyes; such was their rendition. This was followed by awesome reverberating Vedic chants, where I felt handicapped without my book. Stayed in the Matt house.
Saw Halebid from afar on the way. Didn't have the enthu to go in & wanted to reach Sringeri. However, did visit the Vishnu temple at Belur. It was simply an amazing temple with some great sculptures. However, the holy place of worship seems a commercialized tourist place, unfortunately.
July 18 2004: Sunday
Had a very enjoyable morning among the greenery, saw 'paakku' trees covered with pepper climbers, some beautiful flowers, and some very, very cute monkeys with kids. It was a small species of a monkey with a beard, it would be only till my thighs (I'm 5'6''), and there were quite a few baby monkeys tightly hugging its mother. So cute. Put some water of the Tungabhadra on my head, felt my sins lightened. :) All the way then to Hornadu Annapoorneshwari temple. This again was established by Adi Shankara himself. One can only imagine how he travelled to all these places so long ago (1500-2500 yrs back). I was convinced he would have travelled by Yogic powers. Drove through a dense forest, which was simply amazing, with some amazing sights. The rivers & green mountains & jungle sounds... It was mind-blowing. Nothing like a tropical rain-forest to cheer you up. And calm you.
We were driving through mists & fogs & clouds in-between. An amazing experience. And a little scary in the foggy nights.
All the way back to Udipi. The driver, a nice guy, informs us that it would be better if we'd travelled to Hornadu first, then to Sringeri. There were lots of cows in Udipi, being treated well, having their residence on the roads & waking up to human calls for food. :) It was funny & cute at the same time.
July 18 2004: Monday-Day three
Udipi-Kollur Mookambi-Kateel Jala Durga-Dharmasthala. Kollur seems established by Adi Shankara (again) during his search for Sringeri (for Goddess Saraswati's residence). The Sowparniga river was beautiful here. More river water on my head. In Udipi, Krishna had turned himself to the backside, for the sake of a pure-minded devotee, and had broken the wall with his Math. All devotees seem him from the back to this day. (The Brihadeeshwara Nandi had moved for similar reasons). There are beautiful ancient stories concerning Madhvacharya & Swami Vadeeshwara. Kateel had the Nandhini river, more of which disappeared on my head. :)
Night at Dharmasthala on the banks of the beautiful Netravati river. Dharmasthala is truly a Dhramasthala for the amount of people they feed unquestioningly. Vedic dharma certainly flourishes there.
Saw Aanai-Konda-Ganesha sometime in-between.
July 19 2004: Tuesday-Day four
Dharmasthala again in the morning, then to Subramanya. A wonderful drive again. Again situated on the banks of the river, Kumaradhara. This region is definitely naturally endowed. And so beautiful. Back to Bangalore from Subramanya.
I hope to spend like 3 nights or a week in a tropical Indian forest sometime. That should be wonderful. And tremendously refreshing.
Hope this itinerary helps others with similar ideas plan theirs.
Trip itinerary in a nutshell:
Bangalore-Halebid-Sringeri-Hornadu-Udipi-Kollur-Kattil-Dharmasthala-Subramanya-Bangalore
Better itinerary:
Bangalore-Halebid-Hornadu-Sringeri-Udipi-Kollur-Kattil-Dharmasthala-Subramanya-Bangalore
Sunday, June 20, 2004
San Jose to Bangalore (BEC) to Chennai
Here goes, after a looong sojourn. Have had an eventful first two weeks in India, on here in a business trip.
June 8th 2004:
I was surprisingly not excited, at the prospect of coming to Bangalore, India. I was booked in 3 different airlines: San Jose-Tokyo:American; Tokyo-Singapore: Singapore; Singapore-Bangalore: Indian. And the adventure starts...
I give my tickets & boarding passes to the flight counter attendant; and she tells me: "I've checked in all your baggage to Singapore". Thank God, I caught that; I asked her to check-it in to Bangalore. "We don't have an alliance with Indian airlines, so not possible. You gotta manually check-in"! Okie, gotta change my return plans. Tried calling up my biz-trip predecessors but without success.
Tokyo: After awful veggie food in American (they even forgot my stuff, and then prepared something for me); landed in Tokyo; had some food. Liked the nice, respectful bows of the Japanese & bowed back. Got an idea; asked the airline personnel: Can you have my baggage directly shifted to Bangalore? "Yes, possible, please wait". Awesome! "Sorry, your baggage is already checked in; go to that peson in ... She may be able help you". Okie! One problem. The new person was not very comfy with English. Giving details that she manually transmitted to Singapore to the Baggage service agent there, she asked me for the colour. "Violet" I said. "Wine red?" "No Violet"! "Wine-red?" "Give me a piece of paper, I'll write it down" "No... show... me... here..." Showed here the baggage details....
Singapore: Landed past midnight there. No personnel to confirm the baggage info. Slept uncomfortably in the seat. (Maybe should have checked-in to a transit hotel). Found that I had to get past immigration to get to the baggage, which obviously wasn't possible. (Ah! That American airlines personnel!) Sought baggage confirmation 1 hour before departure. She sent a request to the baggage personnel. "Can you please call up & confirm like in Tokyo?" "This is not Tokyo, this is Singapore! Your baggage would be there in Bangalore!" "Errr.. Okie..."
Indian: Was prepared for the worst, after people told me that the airlines were not as new & clean as one would like. However, found the service to be really nice; had some good food after a long time, airline was old, but clean. Also, had some interesting travel brochures relating to India, and I stored away some portions like Arunachal tourism in memory.
In Bangalore-June 10th: Felt some excitement for the first time. Was awfully tired. Got my baggage fine! Check-out & immigration was much faster than my earlier experiences in Chennai. Had recd complaints about size of the airport, but found it nicely decorated with tourism stuff, and well organized. Got some Indian currency, but poor exchange rate. Had a driver waiting for me. "Do you know where to take me?" "Yes, Oberoi!" (Cool, my request for a better apt had been taken into account). That turned out to be false. Was taken to my original apartment (Elite Enclave). (Digression: There, Cabbies & other business guys usually know: English, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi). There, my room wasn't available, the guy supposed to check-out had delayed; and would check-out only a few hours later. And the room guy knew only Hindi (& Bangla). Racking my brains of my rusty Hindi vocabulary, that I picked up in my North Indian trip earlier, I was talking with him. He called up someone, and was offered a temporary room to freshen myself. Only problem, the room was occupied (by a Siemens professional). Promptly called up & complained to my office, and had a most extraordinary exchange. "Were you planning to come to work today?" "Yes" "Then, why don't you come over, and come back in the evening?" In a more raspy tone... "T*****, I have just landed after a long flight, and I need to freshen up. Please make appropriate arrangements" The manager had returned by then, apologized for the grievous error committed by the room-boys; and was finally shifted over to a different place, with the assurance that I wouldn't be shifted again. It was 3:00 PM by the time I had completed brunch; and fell into an exhausted, jet-lagged sleep; woke up at 10:00 PM. There was cook in the apt complex, and he had prepared: Chukka Roti, Sabji, Dal & Rice. For Rs.60! For lunch & dinner! Decided not to eat here anymore.
June 11th: First day of work in an Indian office. Spent time familiarizing with the surroundings, people. It has been an excellent experience so far, that day & the next week. Parents also arrived on that day, and spent the weekend.
Got Visa papers in order & rechecked everything. Found that I'd forgotten one set, and my friend promptly responded, scanned them; and gmailed it to me. Visited the Someshwara temple, and when asked the Sthala Puranam; the priest could only tell me that it was founded by a Rishi some 5000 years back, and he asked us for some material, if possible. Visited the Bannerghatta national park. Saw Bears, Wild Bisons, Lions & tigers in the wild. It was an awesome experience. It was also very green. Took some snaps. Saw the zoo later, and felt very bad; that those animals were in cages, even monkeys, bears & elephants. Should write to some authorities to get atleast some animals release to the wild open space.
Also found that the company had negotiated a pretty bad deal with the cab company by Indian standards. Should request renegotiation.
Guys took me to various places for lunch, worked late, guys in BEC dropped me back close to Ulsoor lake. Visa papers' photo was not the right one, took a different one; and resubmitted the next day. One idiotic terrorist guy causes September 11, and the everyone else suffers owing to the stringent documentation requirements.
Tipping: One Avis guy asked me for tips, and I asked him for a receipt. "No receipt, no tips". Later, I found the awful deal negotiated, and took a much more stringent view of cab-tipping. Did tip some guys, but not the others.
The security guy in front of TT Services asked for tips! (Why?) Just because I asked him for some directions! Refused.
Plan to meet more friends next week.
Got a cell-phone for the first time. Was excited.
Was shifted to a newer, nicer place on Friday. Nice owners. Was good. Travelled to Chennai via train for more adventures. More on that in the next one.
June 8th 2004:
I was surprisingly not excited, at the prospect of coming to Bangalore, India. I was booked in 3 different airlines: San Jose-Tokyo:American; Tokyo-Singapore: Singapore; Singapore-Bangalore: Indian. And the adventure starts...
I give my tickets & boarding passes to the flight counter attendant; and she tells me: "I've checked in all your baggage to Singapore". Thank God, I caught that; I asked her to check-it in to Bangalore. "We don't have an alliance with Indian airlines, so not possible. You gotta manually check-in"! Okie, gotta change my return plans. Tried calling up my biz-trip predecessors but without success.
Tokyo: After awful veggie food in American (they even forgot my stuff, and then prepared something for me); landed in Tokyo; had some food. Liked the nice, respectful bows of the Japanese & bowed back. Got an idea; asked the airline personnel: Can you have my baggage directly shifted to Bangalore? "Yes, possible, please wait". Awesome! "Sorry, your baggage is already checked in; go to that peson in ... She may be able help you". Okie! One problem. The new person was not very comfy with English. Giving details that she manually transmitted to Singapore to the Baggage service agent there, she asked me for the colour. "Violet" I said. "Wine red?" "No Violet"! "Wine-red?" "Give me a piece of paper, I'll write it down" "No... show... me... here..." Showed here the baggage details....
Singapore: Landed past midnight there. No personnel to confirm the baggage info. Slept uncomfortably in the seat. (Maybe should have checked-in to a transit hotel). Found that I had to get past immigration to get to the baggage, which obviously wasn't possible. (Ah! That American airlines personnel!) Sought baggage confirmation 1 hour before departure. She sent a request to the baggage personnel. "Can you please call up & confirm like in Tokyo?" "This is not Tokyo, this is Singapore! Your baggage would be there in Bangalore!" "Errr.. Okie..."
Indian: Was prepared for the worst, after people told me that the airlines were not as new & clean as one would like. However, found the service to be really nice; had some good food after a long time, airline was old, but clean. Also, had some interesting travel brochures relating to India, and I stored away some portions like Arunachal tourism in memory.
In Bangalore-June 10th: Felt some excitement for the first time. Was awfully tired. Got my baggage fine! Check-out & immigration was much faster than my earlier experiences in Chennai. Had recd complaints about size of the airport, but found it nicely decorated with tourism stuff, and well organized. Got some Indian currency, but poor exchange rate. Had a driver waiting for me. "Do you know where to take me?" "Yes, Oberoi!" (Cool, my request for a better apt had been taken into account). That turned out to be false. Was taken to my original apartment (Elite Enclave). (Digression: There, Cabbies & other business guys usually know: English, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi). There, my room wasn't available, the guy supposed to check-out had delayed; and would check-out only a few hours later. And the room guy knew only Hindi (& Bangla). Racking my brains of my rusty Hindi vocabulary, that I picked up in my North Indian trip earlier, I was talking with him. He called up someone, and was offered a temporary room to freshen myself. Only problem, the room was occupied (by a Siemens professional). Promptly called up & complained to my office, and had a most extraordinary exchange. "Were you planning to come to work today?" "Yes" "Then, why don't you come over, and come back in the evening?" In a more raspy tone... "T*****, I have just landed after a long flight, and I need to freshen up. Please make appropriate arrangements" The manager had returned by then, apologized for the grievous error committed by the room-boys; and was finally shifted over to a different place, with the assurance that I wouldn't be shifted again. It was 3:00 PM by the time I had completed brunch; and fell into an exhausted, jet-lagged sleep; woke up at 10:00 PM. There was cook in the apt complex, and he had prepared: Chukka Roti, Sabji, Dal & Rice. For Rs.60! For lunch & dinner! Decided not to eat here anymore.
June 11th: First day of work in an Indian office. Spent time familiarizing with the surroundings, people. It has been an excellent experience so far, that day & the next week. Parents also arrived on that day, and spent the weekend.
Got Visa papers in order & rechecked everything. Found that I'd forgotten one set, and my friend promptly responded, scanned them; and gmailed it to me. Visited the Someshwara temple, and when asked the Sthala Puranam; the priest could only tell me that it was founded by a Rishi some 5000 years back, and he asked us for some material, if possible. Visited the Bannerghatta national park. Saw Bears, Wild Bisons, Lions & tigers in the wild. It was an awesome experience. It was also very green. Took some snaps. Saw the zoo later, and felt very bad; that those animals were in cages, even monkeys, bears & elephants. Should write to some authorities to get atleast some animals release to the wild open space.
Also found that the company had negotiated a pretty bad deal with the cab company by Indian standards. Should request renegotiation.
Guys took me to various places for lunch, worked late, guys in BEC dropped me back close to Ulsoor lake. Visa papers' photo was not the right one, took a different one; and resubmitted the next day. One idiotic terrorist guy causes September 11, and the everyone else suffers owing to the stringent documentation requirements.
Tipping: One Avis guy asked me for tips, and I asked him for a receipt. "No receipt, no tips". Later, I found the awful deal negotiated, and took a much more stringent view of cab-tipping. Did tip some guys, but not the others.
The security guy in front of TT Services asked for tips! (Why?) Just because I asked him for some directions! Refused.
Plan to meet more friends next week.
Got a cell-phone for the first time. Was excited.
Was shifted to a newer, nicer place on Friday. Nice owners. Was good. Travelled to Chennai via train for more adventures. More on that in the next one.
Saturday, June 05, 2004
Kalaripayattu in Bangalore
27500 kalaripayattu
#213,kalyannagar, Bangalore India
091-9844170126 kerala
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr5.htm
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/505019.cms
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr1.htm
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr10.htm
http://www.newstabs.com/archive/2002/nbo/issue6/kalari.htm
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2003/06/30/stories/2003063000490200.htm
#213,kalyannagar, Bangalore India
091-9844170126 kerala
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr5.htm
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/505019.cms
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr1.htm
http://www.kalaripayattu.org/pr10.htm
http://www.newstabs.com/archive/2002/nbo/issue6/kalari.htm
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2003/06/30/stories/2003063000490200.htm
Wednesday, June 02, 2004
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