Bangalore is a nice place, though. But the food is expensive, living is expensive, and transportation, very very expensive. There are no rickshaws, no shuttles, hardly any taxis, one or two buses, and mostly all autos. And the autos there are different from here. Autos in Calcutta ply on specific routes for not more than ten rupees. In bangalore, autos are like taxis. They'll take you anywhere, they'll run on meter if you're lucky or they'll name their price and you'll have to comply.
The streets are full of black belchy autos. Arrey, what happened to LPG yaar? Even Kolkata has more green autos than over there. Ironically, you also see a lot of Revas in bangalore. You know, those tiny electric cars running on battery. Cute.
M.G.Road is probably the New Market of B'lore. And Koramangla seemed really posh, like Saltlake. But thats only to draw some comparisons.
And the airport.. oof, just TOO GOOD.
Coming to Mysore. I have to say, that was the best part of the holiday. Stayed up late both nights, and toured the city during the day. Hardly got any sleep, but it was worth it. The food was alright. Although, please make a note, South Indians CANNOT, for even their own sake, make biriyani or tea. Tea. They dont know how to make liquor tea. Can you believe it?
So carrying on with my tea-less journey, we toured Mysore in the relentless blazing heat.
Never go to Bridavan Gardens. Just don't. I mean, go only if you can bear being in a crowd of hundreds of jobless, obnoxious, perspiring tetuls who god-knows-why have nothing else to do than visit their own tourist spots on a Monday evening. The fluorescent attire, the overbearing stench, their sheer behaviour will bring you close to nausea. I have seen many crowds in Calcutta, believe me, but never THIS. Never this.
Hindu temples, of course, are like money-making machines. Ten rupees for a handful of flowers shoved into your hand, which you ultimately have to throw at some earthen idol, which are later picked up and sold again to some gullible tourist - yes, thats only the least of it. They'll make you keep your shoes with people who dont give you receipts, and I nearly died worrying about my new Gladiator kicks and their fate. Luckily all shoes were recovered.
The monkeys there are satanic. One of them snatched away a banana from an unsuspecting man in front of our very eyes.
I did get to feed a little hungry puppy, and a cow. They finished off a big pack of Parle-G biscuits I'd bought for them.
Ooty was the final blow. The hotel, small, cramped, dingy, unkempt. Room service was slack. Vegetarian food everywhere. The location, in front of a dumpster. If you opened the windows, the room filled up with flies. A eunuch accosted my friend on the street.
Locals clog up the tourist spots - the boathouse, Doddabetta peak, the Botanical Gardens, you name it. Again, I have no idea why. I came back with the impression that Southerners have very little work to do and a LOT of free time on their hands. And so they frequent cheap tourist locations every day of the week.
Another interesting point - EVERYTHING in South India has a ticket. Entry free, time deposit fee, boating fee, camera fee, shoe-keeping fee, flower-throwing fee, driving fee, parking fee, air-breathing fee.. whats left? Also, the price for foreign tourists is more than ten times the fare for Indians. Beware if your hair is blond.
The service in South India is atrocious. Absolutely terrible. I have a right mind to propagate this fact and put a stop to their income from tourism. Then we shall see who dares to behave badly with guests.
All in all, when you're planning your next vacation, don't go to South India. Anywhere else is fine. Go to Nepal. Go to Sikkim, a beautiful place. Go to Puri, even. Just dont go down under near the peninsula where you'll need to plug your nose in order to survive.
