Bangalore - Bengalooru

Today I landed in Bangalore, today renamed as Bengalooru. The airport was laid back, there was a que for the bus, there was also a patient que until they opened the door to get out of the apron into the airport building.

I realized my old Bangalore had not changed, it was still the laid back city, irrespective of the pressures of development.

NO one was in a hurry , you could differentiate the locals from the outsiders by their speed of movement .

The Volvo bus politely waited until it was 5 minutes after its scheduled time of departure to allow the last passenger with a cup of coffee to saunter into the bus. NO one seemed to mind!

The Volvo bus has a governor these days so it takes it some time to reach town. The road was congested and narrow, the traffic was chaotic, but the city had not lost its charm.

The weather was hot and awful once I got off the Volvo bus, here is where the old Bangalore charm of the garden city or air conditioned city was missing.

The city is now dusty, crowded and miserable in most parts, the place seeps with construction and flyovers and slow-moving traffic.  The once beautiful lakes have all vanished, gobbled for real estate.

But still Bangalore  has a life of its own, it is laid back and courteous. people still have time to answer questions and no one is  in a hurry.

Landed in the club in the afternoon, one card of the four was missing, it was rectified in half hour, a far cry from the five minutes of Mumbai... Well you need to slow down, and enjoy the climate and greenery.

Well to conclude the old Bangalore is still around, you only have to look for  it as you deal with the locals and the local institution.

It is still a pensioners paradise at heart even after being  Bangalored by the global IT industry.

Jai ho Bangalore, may you retain your old world charm and graciousness.