Bangalore

Our main reason to go to Bangalore was to visit a friend of mine, Niyatee, someone I've kept in touch with since the time I lived in India. And, visiting her was a good way for me to see a new place, and for both of us to see one of the cities that is booming due to outsourcing.

Unfortunately, her grandmother's illness (and subsequent death) meant that she had to fly to Ahmedabad before we arrived in Bangalore. She called me about this, and told us that her husband was going to pick us up and show us around in her absence. We were a little nervous about that, never having met him, but it all turned out fine.

Niyatee's husband, Vijay and a friend of his, made a very tasty dinner for us the night we arrived. On Sunday, he drove us around town. We went to Lal Bagh, one of the gardens for which Bangalore is famous. We also went shopping in the main district, although I had no luck with anything. It was either too expensive, or I didn't like it. We saw the main government buildings, and got a general feel for the city. "Electronic City," where all the outsourced operations are located (Intel and such) are a little outside the city, so we never did make it there. But, all through town, you could feel the presence of this business.

Went to Pizza Hut that night for dinner and had a great time! They have quite a different menu, although some of the pizzas are the same, and I thought the hand-tossed crust pizza we had with some veggies tasted very much like it would in the US.