Monday 9 August 2010

You know you're in Bangalore when...


So I compiled this little list of differences that you notice only because you live in another country and haven’t visited your own for almost a year. I make it a habit to visit India every summer, for at least a month and half. I’ve done it for eight years now, and these are things that hit me on even the very first day – both positive and negative.

You know you’re in Bangalore when:

all announcements in the aircraft are repeated in Hindi.

as soon as the plane has landed on the runway, mobile phones are whipped out and switched on, even though the plane hasn’t come to a complete stop.

there is no trolley available for your cabin baggage. If it’s heavy, too bad. I learnt that the hard way as I walked the 232,343 miles till immigration carrying three bags.

Indian passport holders are let through with barely a murmur while foreigners are ordered to provide their boarding passes at immigration as proof of their legal travel.

nobody waits in line.

you just have to point to your luggage at the baggage claim and three porters will run and get it for you.

the minute you step out of the airport, a blast of cool breeze hits you, blowing your hair back and automatically making you smile and breathe it all in.

the breeze doesn’t stop, ever.

passers-by stare at you, look at you up and down, look at your luggage, and form an opinion about you as you’re greeting your family.

you pay extra for small things like parking just because you smile and say thank you, which leads them to consider you as a non-Indian.

you hear car horns, auto horns, and bicycle bells ringing non-stop out on the road before you even get into your car.

people spend less time concentrating on their driving and more time yelling at other drivers.

nobody sticks to their lanes while driving. Hell, most of the time there are no lanes.



But all these things make you realize that finally, you are HOME. And after all, home is where the love is.

14 comments:

  1. nyc nyc Mriii!!!

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  2. i know what you are talking about. Karachi, my home town, is pretty much like that as well. But you know what, the very first thing u notice when u land and immediately get out of the plane there, is that people that are already waiting in the lounge to board the same plane stare and glare at you with such hatred and fiery like it was your fault the flight didnt come 15 minutes earlier. And by the time you reach your car from there, you have been already eye-raped a hundred times, and that counts just for ugly people like me. If you are good looking, then God help you. . . :P

    But to be honest, I had a weird feeling when i came back to Karachi after a year from Malaysia. Even though i was back 'home', there was some thing that never let me settle back in. Not sure exactly what it was but to be honest i felt so much better when i visited Malaysia again during my summers. And even today as i sit in my room looking at the tiny calendar right behind my computer, i cant wait for September 16th. Because that's when i get out of here and spend a year abroad with someone extremely special.

    But yea at the end of the day, it is my home. :)

    oh and btw, i am planning to visit india next year. :)

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  3. "...people that are already waiting in the lounge to board the same plane stare and glare at you with such hatred and fiery like it was your fault the flight didnt come 15 minutes earlier.: - so true! And eye-raping happens so often that you cant call it offensive - its normal.

    Hmm, maybe, but you really should have had that feeling of 'OMG I'm back HOME' when you landed in Karachi, irrespective of whether you're looking forward to next year or not.

    Well that's nice! Why though?

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  4. yea i know i SHOULD have. I get a lot of 'lectures' from my parents in that 'genre' everyday. I have my reason to be that way, and to be honest i do not regret feeling that way.

    India is just so close and it will be a shame that i do not visit one of my neighbours. And that is the only country around Pakistan that i can and want to visit, Afghanistan and iran i cant because of the obvious reasons. :P and i would rather go to India than China any time of the year. Plus i have got a few friends there, and you. So ive got my reasons for that as well. :)

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  5. Yea I think I'm somewhat there are as well - I didn't feel like home because of my family (who are with me in Malaysia anyway), but more because of the place; its the place I've grown up in, have so many memories, and its just so familiar. Maybe that's why.

    Yea cool, we'll all meet up!

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  6. Yea i know what you're talking about. Maybe after you come back from the UK is when you are really going to find out how much you actually missed being away from your home.

    Yea, sure, but i'll only come if i get Bangalores visa. Otherwise maybe not.

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  7. Yea.
    You'll get an Indian visa, there's no such thing as a Bangalore visa.

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  8. Erm, for us theres no such thing as an Indian visa. the authorities only issue it for a limited number of cities.

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  9. lol!
    I know exactly what you're talking about! I feel that I have two homes, one in the U.S. and one in Mexico. I live in Texas, but pretty much grew up in Mexico. (I live in a border city to Mexico) But yea...one is bound to stumble unto a huge list of things that identify HOME!
    Even though some facts may be ridiculous, one still loves it....cause it's home!♥ Nothing can beat that! :)

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  10. Ali - It's all because of who you are!
    Natalie - So true!

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  11. Nice post! I cant really comment on it since I've lived in Sweden my entire life!

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  12. i've lived in the states for all my life too, but when i go abroad and come back, i get the same feelings too. i'm not too attached to the states and i love travelling, but its sometimes good to be back.

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  13. Thanks for visiting my blog :)

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