Bangalore

Bangalore has a great location.  Located in southern India, the city sit atop a mesa and therefore has excellent weather all year round - never too hot, never too cold, never too humid.  The city has been the favorite retirement community of India's educated for many decades, but in the last 10 years has turned into a corporate mecca.  Intel, HP, and Dell all compete for India's IT talent, while many other foreign companies fight for the the non-technical pool.  There are huge office parks surrounded by huge office campuses mixed with Raj buildings and small bungalows.  Although the population has exploded in the recent years, Bangalore still has a charm you do not find in Delhi.

Life in Bangalore moves just a tad slower than in Delhi.  People seem less aggressive and the overall feel is less intense.  People take a little more time to enjoy life rather than rushing from place to place. There is still traffic, but it has neither the density or volume of Delhi.  The streets are tree-lined and shady and the city proper seems to be more thought out than the rapid growth in the north.  Some part of the city actually remind me of Ho Chi Minh City.  This is still India, though, so I speak in degrees, but compared to Delhi, it is a pretty pleasant place.

I stayed at the Leela Palace - Kempinsky which they claim is a 5 Star hotel.   Upon arrival, one might conclude it lives up to its billing.  You are greeted with a huge open air entry area that is straight out of the Disney playbook.  It immediately reminds you of the picture of Indian palaces that the movies have created over the years with the large open air rooms and dentiform archways.  The rest of hotel is pretty much the same - a kind of Disney theme hotel with overly exaggerated details, many palace paintings and furniture that is both period and mass produced.  This is, though, India, so although the goal may have been to create a 5 star Indian, Disney-like experience, it, like so many other Indian projects, falls just a tad bit short  

Hotel entryway looking out into the driveway

The rooms were very, well, plush with large over-designed, cluttered, pieces of furniture adorned with gold and heavy details.  The room was fairly large, though, so it all kind of fit together.  My initial impression was Tony Soprano would love this place.  I was not a huge fan as my tastes run toward the simpler, less ornate, but if you were looking to host a New Jersey Mob/Union gathering, this should be on your list.   I will say, though, that the rooms were quiet and bed was comfortable, so from the "Trip's Hierarchy of Hotel Needs" they had two of the important basics covered (eat your heart out Maslow).

Nothing really more to say

I spent most of my trip yelling at vendors and looking at factories, but we did spend some time doing something unique.  My company gives huge sums of money away to mostly children's causes, about $3 million a week, throughout the world and my team has given money and volunteer hours to a special needs children's school in Bangalore called The Spastic Society of Karanataka. My Bangalore team, and I  about 10 of us, took one morning and went to this unique school to work with the children and get to know the staff.  I was asked, ironically, to speak to a class of 10th-12th graders with learning disabilities (i.e. dyslexia, dysgraphia, etc).  They were really interested and had a great deal of questions since I was the first person with whom they had spoken who had a learning disability and was in the "main stream."  In India, there is a stigma around any type of disability, so for the most part these kids are segregated and labelled slow if they stay in the state schools.  This school allows them to learn at their own pace and gives them confidence to go out into the world  A large portion of them, and even some of the children with more severe disabilities, actual attend university.  This is no small feat considering the very low percentage of the population without disabilities that obtain higher education.

The class listening attentively to yours truly

My company has also donated an Assisted Technology Lab,  This is a computer lab for children with severe disabilities that allows them to learn everything from basic communication to advanced subjects.  This has had an immediate impact of the pace of learning in the school and has allowed some of the more dire cases, who were simply concentrating on basic skills, to move into more advance learnings.  As well, this lab is one of the first of its kind in India and will be used as a model for the entire country.


We then went on to volunteer some time with children with more severe forms of disabilities. We were asked to help create a collage of transportation modes with a group of 10 year olds.  They were very engaged and happy to do something different.  We spoke about what types of transportation they take to school; what does their dad drive; and what do they see on the street?  Overall, it was a great morning and we plan on making this a routine when I travel to Bangalore.

Some of my team discussing transportation with the kids

The rest of the week went by quickly and tomorrow morning I will be on my way back on the 6:30am Kingfisher return flight to Delhi.  It is 93 degrees there and humid and I am contemplating missing my flight!