the traffic in bombay, i thought was the pits. but in b'lore, it's anarchy!! bad pavements force you to walk on the road. horns blaring, two-wheelers brushing past, choking on particulate matter, getting knocked down by a car n getting screamed at n blamed for by a passing-by middle-aged aunty!! not a word of apology or helping hand from the god-cursed lot.
i mean, the locals seem just so hostile to outsiders...or was it my imagination? the rick guys are another animal. i always thought delhi was the worst. but these guys win hands down. rude arrogant conniving pack of foul-mouthed thieves. o i hate them. the insane one-ways coupled with their refusal to speak any other langauage, made travelling around b'lore a complete nightmare.
the bangalore palace, lavishly portrayed in all the tourist brochures was firmly on our radar. so off we went after much haggling in 3 rickfulls. no other tourist in sight, save the prince himself n his guest, the portly ex rail minister jaafer sharief. entry fee 100rupees! no printed literature they had nor guide book. but enough arrogance to say take it or leave. n if u don't pay 100bucks you cannot take pictures either! so a huuuge showdown with this really rude security guy who actually kept shoving us off...
by then the entire noro clan had had enough and piled on mercilessly. o it was such fun, but left us feeling just so bitter.it must've been a nice place but now hurtling towards imminent disaster :(
10 comments:
It is very sad to hear about the change in Bangalore. I stayed there for 4 yrs, some 7 yrs ago, and it was such a pleasure -- the roads were neat and wide, the city was safe and accessible, with plethora of weekend getaways, pubs, X-sagar restaurants spread out everywhere, cheap movie tickets... plus good weather. Since the last 2 years, my friends have been telling me that B'lore is not the same as I left it -- it has really become a nightmare.. and ironically it was once called the garden city! :(
d: those nice places are still there - koshy's pico's blossoms, etc. but c'est la vie!
The funny thing is that bangalore has carefully crafted image of 'adjusting' 'friendly' city of wonderful people.
And actually its just the opposite. I found people ready to fight with you at the slightest pretext - especially when they know you dont speak the local language.
Now where in the world one learns local language on a 2 day visit? And the sign boards and buses display destinations only in local language - almost as if - i dont want u here mr non-local - just get out right now. This whole mess about kannada everything great makes one cringe now.
Well,
Sorry to hear yet another account of a person harassed by what I have to call "Bangalore-iyat"!!
The truth is, in Bangalore, its a seller's market, simply because the buyers have no time to raise a voice against the inferior quality service rendered to them everywhere from restaurants to shops to everywhere! The fact that I have lived in at least 7 different states in India, hopefully, gives you an idea that I have seen a lot!
Fact remains that Bangalore is a seriously deprived city! I had never in my life bought a movie ticket in advance! But, here, you can't imagine of planning watching a movie just like that! Plus, it now even costs Rs 300 for some movies on weekends!
About the price, its an artificial situation created by some people out to fleece the corporate population! Now, even the locals have to face the brunt simply because some idiots jacked up the prices in order to earn a quick buck, and now, everyone, including the "not-greedy" locals also bearing the brunt of price rise!
Bangalore sucks way more than any other city I have been to / heard of! (I live in Bangalore, bdw!)
Also, add the fact that some politicos thought that harnessing the self-respect-lacking and self-confidence-lacking people here by blackening every signboard with Hindi on it, adds to the hostility to their own brethren! Why exactly did they not blacken the English boards (they really loved their masters it seems!) is a mystery! I suggest they also try announcing their own separate country now, but yeah, they shouldn't communicate with any other country that doesn't speak Kannada! Hypocrites all!
You have actually been kind to the city.I lived in Bangalore for a nightmarish year.The hostility of the local people is unbearable.There are flag post every 100 mtrs or so ,bearing the karnataka flag.Seems that this is another country.Everyone in the city just wants to rip you off.'North Indians' are viewed as enemies.
The autowalla's beat their Delhi counterparts hands down.They demand for more money even if u have paid them what you had originally settled for.They wont be shy to even do a old fashioned brawl with you.
Coming to food.I used to love south Indian food before I came to Bangalore.You cant get decent food in Bangalore unless u empty your pockets.
When the aged Kannada filmstar 'Rajkumar' died, the whole city irrupted into violence.People claimed it be a conspiracy.Who on earth would conspire to kill a old filmstar who is not even known outside the state.
I have lived in 3 different states in India and in North America.Bangalore is by far the worse place that I have ever been to.
bangalores claim to fame:
one for the worst environments for businessman
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Bangalore/Entrepreneurs_give_Karnataka_the_thumbs_down/articleshow/3849037.cms
47% of the people exchange votes for cash
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Bangalore/Vote_for_cash_Karnataka_tops_national_shame_table/articleshow/3888477.cms
Agree.I have lived in many states and seen and lived abroad too.bangalore really sucks.just that my job forces me to live here.puts expensive as hell for no reason.
I love everything about bangalore...Depends on your point of view at the end of the day..I find people helpful,climate,water,good..Clean and green area with plenty of tress all around.I love this city...
Arrogance is what best describes the locals out here ... though quite a few are goondas too!
Absolute dadagiri on streets,never feel you are in your own country....
Beat this,felt more homely in London than Bangalore.
God save B'lore and His cursed lot,the B'loreans.Amen.
FYI
It has gone from bad to worst...incase anyone is wondering. Stay away from this city
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