After a 9 hour flight from London to Bangalore, and about 4 hours of sleep in a 48 hour span, I was READY to see India. We landed at about 6:a.m. Bangalore time on Saturday, which was 7:30 p.m. Friday Boston time. We went through security, got our bags and got through "customs", picked up a few Rupees. ($1 US will get you about 54 Rupees).
As we approached the "cabbie line" there were probably about 100 people behind a fenced in area holding up signs with names on them for pickup. Then we found our cabbie, Vinay who will be dedicated to our needs until we leave next Saturday. He speaks English very well. Thus began our first experience driving in India. The first mile of roadway leaving the airport was lined with lush gardens of greenery. We had heard about what to expect but I'm not sure that we were totally prepared for this.
This was my first experience driving on the left side of the road. Not bad. There are lane lines painted on some roads but I believe they are ignored intentionally. No matter how fast we were driving, and how congested the traffic, it was not uncommon to have another vehicle less than 3 inches from our cab. I remember someone telling me that the cabbies honk almost non-stop. It seems like they honk every 15 seconds. The rest of the experience can be summarized as, "No Rules". We saw people walking against traffic along the median as cars and trucks wizzed by at 40 MPH, swerving just inches from them at the very last second. We saw packs of dogs fighting for scraps of food and patrolling their territories. We saw a family of 4 packed onto a motorcycle. We saw homes topped with many ornate carved characters.
We also saw a lot of road construction. The Airport is about 45 Km from Downtown Bangalore so they are building a non-stop highway to make the trip easier. Many buildings along the road were missing the front cinderblock walls as if they had been the victims of traffic accidents. We saw lots of government buildings, colleges and military properties. At times it felt like we were going in circles. In the end, we made it to the Leela Palace hotel in Bangalore. I will send pictures later but, it is a very lavish place. After we made it past the xRay machine and metal detectors to enter the hotel, we checked in and were escorted to our amazing rooms.
After getting settled into the hotel room, I tried to sleep but after a few hours, woke to the sound of a hammer drill or jackhammer in the building close to my room, so no more sleep for me until later. The hotel room has a doorbell, so when the hotel staff stop by to ask if they should refresh the fruit plate, they ring the bell. Shortly, we will be going to dinner with Madhukar and Puneet at a restaurant they have chosen for us. I can't wait to see more and share more.
Look for lots of pictures. Cheers!
As we approached the "cabbie line" there were probably about 100 people behind a fenced in area holding up signs with names on them for pickup. Then we found our cabbie, Vinay who will be dedicated to our needs until we leave next Saturday. He speaks English very well. Thus began our first experience driving in India. The first mile of roadway leaving the airport was lined with lush gardens of greenery. We had heard about what to expect but I'm not sure that we were totally prepared for this.
This was my first experience driving on the left side of the road. Not bad. There are lane lines painted on some roads but I believe they are ignored intentionally. No matter how fast we were driving, and how congested the traffic, it was not uncommon to have another vehicle less than 3 inches from our cab. I remember someone telling me that the cabbies honk almost non-stop. It seems like they honk every 15 seconds. The rest of the experience can be summarized as, "No Rules". We saw people walking against traffic along the median as cars and trucks wizzed by at 40 MPH, swerving just inches from them at the very last second. We saw packs of dogs fighting for scraps of food and patrolling their territories. We saw a family of 4 packed onto a motorcycle. We saw homes topped with many ornate carved characters.
We also saw a lot of road construction. The Airport is about 45 Km from Downtown Bangalore so they are building a non-stop highway to make the trip easier. Many buildings along the road were missing the front cinderblock walls as if they had been the victims of traffic accidents. We saw lots of government buildings, colleges and military properties. At times it felt like we were going in circles. In the end, we made it to the Leela Palace hotel in Bangalore. I will send pictures later but, it is a very lavish place. After we made it past the xRay machine and metal detectors to enter the hotel, we checked in and were escorted to our amazing rooms.
After getting settled into the hotel room, I tried to sleep but after a few hours, woke to the sound of a hammer drill or jackhammer in the building close to my room, so no more sleep for me until later. The hotel room has a doorbell, so when the hotel staff stop by to ask if they should refresh the fruit plate, they ring the bell. Shortly, we will be going to dinner with Madhukar and Puneet at a restaurant they have chosen for us. I can't wait to see more and share more.
Look for lots of pictures. Cheers!
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