Jagadesh took me to The Forum Mall today, so I could pick up some more stuff for my apartment. I was pretty excited to a)get out of the office, b)spend more time with Jagadesh because I looooooove him, and c)shop in a store with a regular inventory. As I mentioned before, my apartment is in walking distance to many shops, however, because of India's lack of transportation infrastructure, most stores carry very random things. You can find something you like in a store one time, and never find it there again. They seem to get whatever is in the truck when it comes to drop things off, rather than a set supply of goods that is constantly replenished.
The Forum is totally westernized in style, but filled with mainly Indian stores. My excitement wore off quickly once I realized how much more expensive everything was in comparison to the little local shops. Still, I managed to find some things worth buying while there, and got the chance to eat at McDonald's!
I don't remember the last time I set foot in a McDonald's in the states, but since Indians generally don't eat beef, I was totally down to check out the menu. They did have some chicken sandwiches, but there were a bunch of different veggie burgers to try. I settled for the famous McVeggie Burger, and it was pretty fucking awesome. It did not even attempt to be a meat replication - instead, it was a crispy crust filled with slightly spicy veggies and potato. Very into it. Which is saying a lot, because I absolutely detest my other Western fast-food options here. Pizza Hut and Dominos are both terrible at home, but they are even worse here. The sauce tastes funny, and they put on weird/shitty toppings that have absolutely no place on a pizza, i.e., corn. Also, they call "stuffed crust" "liquid cheese explosion," and the cheese actually is liquidy and white and frightening. But enough about food.
On the way to and from the mall, Jagadesh drove me by a bunch of cool landmarks, some of which are pictured below.
Vikasa Souda
The Vidhana Soudha
Karnataka High Court
I have to go back to work tomorrow, but the week is almost over already, yay!!! And I already have multiple invites from co-workers to hangout and explore more of the city, so this weekend should be fun, and there will hopefully be more opportunities to take pictures for you.
UPDATE: Here is a picture of Jagadesh!! He is excited that you are all going to see his photo and make him "famous" in America!
How old a city is Bangalore?
ReplyDeleteAccording to Wikipedia, "historical references to the city predate 900 CE", but "a modern written history of continuous settlement exists only from 1537." Is that old? I think it's kind of old.
ReplyDeleteHow about like, non-trivia style? Are most of the buildings newish? Or is there like a new section built around an old town? You know what I mean.
ReplyDeleteNeither? It's weird. A mix of totally brand new/luxurious and total third world. Like before when I said there was a metal shack between my hotel and a really nice house.....there are neighborhoods like that everywhere, with brand new beachy-looking modern mansions right in the middle of ghettos where whole families live in one room with a sheet for a door.
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