Sunday, 10 January - Out in the city again

I actually slept Saturday night fairly well. I woke up a few times, but didn’t have any trouble falling back to sleep. The curtains and shades in my room are great. They are more room darkening than anything I have at home. I woke up for the day at 8am, and felt well-rested and ready to go.

I have a few more “characters” to introduce today:
· Maria – Maria is a manager in New Jersey. Maria and I have worked together before as a part of the tax technology team. She and I also worked together this fall on a training project.
· Ronda – Ronda is a manager from the Irvine, California office.
· Mickey – Mickey is the partner in charge of all tax at the Bangalore locations. He is in India on a two-plus year assignment.
· Amy – Amy is Mickey’s wife. She is here for the better part of each year when she isn’t spending time in the US with their two college daughters.
Today, Amy picked up the girls at Mercure to show us some of the sights of Bangalore. She and our driver, Santish (not sure of the spelling), took us to the Bull Temple, Bangalore Palace, the public library, the government buildings, and to brunch at the Gardenia Hotel.

The traffic was lighter today than Saturday, and I definitely felt safer inside an SUV. Santish added priceless commentary to the sites we saw in addition to the history.

When we arrived at the Bull Temple (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bull_Temple), we had a few small children begging us for money as we climbed the stairs to the site. It is definitely difficult to see these small children asking for money for their families, and it is just one of the many signs as you drive through the city that we are in a developing country.

We went into the Bull Temple (without shoes) and walked around. There is one place on the bull that is considered the “lucky spot”, so we all had our picture taken in that place. After the Bull Temple, we headed to the Bangalore Palace (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangalore_Palace). We were able to snap a few pictures outside before the armed guards told us to stop. I certainly was not going to challenge an armed guard.

The government buildings (old and new) are quite ornate and we were able to see them from the road. We also saw the High Court (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attara_Kacheri) and the public library near the government buildings. Our driver made frequent comments about the corruption within the state and local government. He said there is much irony in the “Government work is God’s work” which is posted on the old government building.

We went back to Commercial Street with Amy and she showed us a few good shops. Maria and I started on the street buying some bangle bracelets. We decided to buy them together in order to get multiple colors (including pink, of course). We went into a textile shop and all five of us started looking through the various piles of scarves/pashminas in all materials and patterns. Items in this store ranged from 4 to around 300 US dollars, and I kept myself at the $4 pile. Dearest family members, you’ll be happy to know I raked in the souvenirs at this shop. Natalie and Maria were interested in some Indian dress, so we also went into numerous shops with clothing. I found a “cute” shirt to wear in one of the shops. Watch for future pictures!

Our next destination was Sunday brunch. Brunch on Sundays is quite a tradition and many hotels have elaborate champagne brunches. We dined at the yet-to-be-opened Gardenia Hotel. I did become a little more adventurous with foods, but to be honest, I was still very cautious. Brunch was wonderful, and we all were quite full after dining.

Amy allowed us to stop by their house to see the neighborhood and home where she and Mickey live. It is a beautiful two story home. After this, we headed back to the hotel. Another day complete after being “out and about”.