in the land of the maharajas

Going to India for the first time, I expected to hear flutey music & Indian women clad in colorful sari greeting us at the airport. Like when I watch Disco & NG channels, images of India never fail to flash before you without that hypnotic swirly tune & some belly dancing. So I was quite disappointed when instead of that, we were greeted by mosquitoes, dark & healthy. Not just one or two but a platoon.

Outside, the place swarmed with dark-skinned men with fierce eyes staring at us like we were from outer space. I'm not used to people like that. From where I come from, people are friendly & smile at you in a snap. I was in the middle of a foreign land surrounded by turbaned men in all-white ensemble. Are they going to break in to a dance routine or something? Where are the women? I felt intimidated & out of place. I didn't belong, I couldn't blend with the crowd. Not this crowd.

Though late, the place was still busy, teeming with cab drivers & porters. Not to forget the mosquitoes competing for my attention. Noisy, the place was noisy, full of energy, honking of impatient drivers, gruff talk, bargaining for cab fares perhaps. I felt like I was in a marketplace.

I craned my neck to find our driver. How on earth am I going to find him? Before my wild imagination got the better of me, I found our driver bearing a cardboard "St.Mark's Hotel". Turns out he's a friendly guy. He told us to wait for him in the corner while he get the car, in English & mostly sign & body language.

While waiting for him, I looked around & couldn't quite believe I'm in Bangalore, in India. I needn't pinch myself, I felt a sting from one of the mosquitoes.

Just a year ago, my friend Donch & I were feeling like Kate Moss-ish & were contemplating on vacationing in India. (This, however, by some twist of fate is a buisnes trip. What could be better than free plane tickets & accommodation.) We searched the web for pictures & places to see. It's way different of course, when you set foot. So much better.

The car was small like most cars there. While Pinoys pattern after the Americans, Indians to British thus the European-sized cars. I wondered how our pieces of luggage would fit plus the 4 of us incl.the driver. I think Mr. Friendly Driver is such an expert in car stuffing, we did fit in!

The drive to the hotel was short. The city was still wide awake at almost midnight. The streets were well-lighted. Roads & fly-overs were quite new, some under construction. Same for some buildings.

This is another right-hand drive country like Thailand & HK. I have to be careful crossing the street lest I lose a limb. It's confusing, having grown up in a left-hand drive country.

(In my first visit to Bangkok, I was quite surprised why my supplier, Pawinee, brought a driver & yet chooses to drive the car. I thought maybe she brought him so she'd have somebody carry my luggage. This thought was running in my mind as I saw her walking to the left side of the car while I was already seated in the back. When I found out, the steering wheel was on the other side, I told her about it & we ended up laughing. We instantly became friends, to this day we correspond thru FB ;p)

A few days later, as I was really observing everything & trying to enjoy every experience in this beautiful & magical country, I saw a stat board saying some 4k people died in that major highway the previous year alone. (It was Mahatma Gandhi ave. I think. They have M.G. roads all over the country, I was told. Just as there are Rizal blvds & aves & highways all over the Phils.) That's about 10 a day. What a shock! And my Indian colleague, Ashutosh added that that's only the no. that gets reported. It could be more. What?! I consoled myself that maybe that's all over the country & not just that highway. Anyway, I have to take this crossing the street seriously, otherwise, I might end up going home with a missing limb or not get home at all!

In one of our factory visits, another Indian colleague of mine who drove me to the supplier's office could've just dropped me off on the other side of the road to save time & effort. But no, he drove all around & made a U-turn from afar just so he could drop me off to where exactly the bldg. was. At first, I protested. I said, I can cross the street, there's a traffic light anyway. He said, Indians don't follow traffic rules & regulations. Oh.

Yeah, they drive like crazy. Motorcycles weaving thru traffic is quite common & a headache I suppose for car drivers. Like those in Manila, only here, there's hordes of them. Even yuppies own a motorcycle.

On our first day after a business meeting, we figured in a road accident. Our driver, not the hotel driver, I think watched too many James Bond movies. We were weaving the streets like snakes, swerving left & right at a speed of a cheetah. Are we in a movie? Are there villains chasing us? Can the director pls. say, CUT!!!

We did stop because we hit a cab & our rogue of a driver tried to run away from it with us of course in the car. So, another round of swerving & chasing. Only this time, we were surely being chased by an angry cab driver. Why, aren't we stopping? I asked Ashu, I don't recall his response. Anyway, I thought to myself, Weeee!!! I'm in the movies! Where's James Bond???

The furious cab driver caught up with us, darn that red light. Next thing you know, our car was surrounded by onlookers. And the last to arrive, as in the movies are the police. I couldn't understand anything they were saying, of course. But both drivers were hostile at each other.

Anyway, we ended up taking the auto rickshaw to my delight. They're like Philippines' tricycles & Thailand's tuk-tuk. Enough road adventure for the day.

Yes, there were cows everywhere. Grazing on the side of the street, standing guard by the traffic light, taking a nap at the pharmacy store, checking out the rowsof restaurants. They're holy to the Indians so they're allowed to just wander around. Interesting.

Having had idle time before the trade show, we went outside the city to visit the guru at the Art of Living Temple. On our way, we passed by countryside scene including trucks decorated with garlands, with pop art like this one:

Anwhere we go I can't help but marvel at their colorful costumes, even old men wearing fuchsia, emerald green, turquoise blue. Wow!

At the temple, we had to take off our footwear as we were standing on holy grounds, not to mention, scorching hot. We sort of danced like birds on the hot red bricks as we sang, ouch, ouch in different tones on our way to the temple for photo op.

Lucky for us, the guru was there that day. I got really close to him as I waded in a sea of adoring pilgrims. I got to shake hands with him & I felt like I sort of received some positive energy of sorts from the universe. He looked amiable & at peace despite the chaos. I would later tell my Indian suppliers about my encounter but not too many were amused. Maybe they're just envious.

Driving back to the city, we feasted our eyes on the august European-style judicial & legislative structures surrounded by huge, ancient-old trees. I felt like I was home. Like UP Diliman.

I hope they take care of their trees. I love trees. I almost wanted them, every Indian I encounter, to pledge to protect their trees. I decided against it last minute ;p

Bangalore, by the way is the City of Gardens. They have some beautiful well-maintained gardens in the city. I was surprised to see a lot of birds. I was rather envious. You don't see that many in Manila. Not as big & black. Are those crows? OK, now I'm scared.

One of those perched on my window one morning. On my first morning in India. Imagine my shock, when I drew the curtain & the first to come to view was a big shiny black crow. I think I yelped. I got the hang of it later. They liked visiting me for some reason.

There were other places we went to like the Brigade Road where KFC was. Where people were more modern, mostly wearing jeans & t-shirts. Not too many were wearing traditional clothes, which to me was rather boring. I mean those wearing modern clothes are kinda boring. There were a few malls. Coming from a country with big malls, I wasn't impressed.

There were a lot of different temples in the area with idols of different shapes, sizes & colors. The men & women in their wonderful & vibrant hues of flowing saris & its beautiful contrast on their brown to olive skintone. The ladies actually adorned themselves with leis on their neck or on their hair. So pretty. The aroma that's disctinctly Indian. Is it curry? Chili? Turmeric powder? Or all of the above? All these add to the image that I have of India. And the pesky mosquitoes which were present even in the offices. Glad to note, none in the hotel.

Too bad for me & my companions, we didn't have much time to go around. We came here for work after all. We were camped in a beautiful exclusive resort off the city for about a week for a trade show. I wonder when I can go back to India again. Despite the chaotic streets, frenzy atmosphere, & scary birds & mosquitoes, India remains my favorite among my foreign travels for its unique charm.

I first visited India in 2006. This was initially posted in my other blog at traveljournals.net.