Road Trip

Yesterday was a road-trip of sorts, what with traveling from one end of the city to the other. But I must admit that I actually liked this road-trip, even though before I (or rather, we - my parents and I) set out, the prospect appeared a little daunting. My parents were here for the long weekend, and they really wanted to see the ISKCON temple in Bangalore. Now our apartment is near Whitefield, and the ISKCON temple at Rajaji nagar, and the distance must be a good 35-40 kilometers at least. Anyways, since we do not have a car (yes, in these times of rising fuel prices, we're amongst the lucky few ;) ), we decided to travel by the BMTC buses. Now I haven't traveled a lot by the BMTC (that's the government bus service), and honestly, I didn't consider it a very viable option either. So far, that is. But after yesterday, I've become somewhat of a convert! Yes, to the fold of people who would vouch for public transport. Well, so we set out early in the morning. Now there is no direct bus to Rajaji nagar, so we took the bus to the Shivaji nagar bus terminal, and decided that we would change buses there. Now, being a Sunday, the buses were a lot less crowded than usual, as were the roads. And luckily I got a seat by the window. For a change the sights of the city, which otherwise are a blur as we zip by on our motorbikes or cars, started holding my attention. The same streets of Bangalore which other wise seem so drab, seemed to come alive. A man selling potted plants by the road. The cobblers by the road-side getting ready to ply their trade. Kids running through the roads. Construction workers getting ready to start the day shift on the Metro Rail Project. The names of the areas which in spite of being in the city for just over two years now, were just that, names...  Up until now. Now as the bus found its meandering route through the city, I saw the city that really is Bangalore. Honestly, this is the best way to see a city, to explore it. Hop on to a bus, and then just soak in the sights, sounds and the smells. And suddenly, before I realized it, I was in love with the city. With its streets, the very streets which I'd often curse for the horrible traffic jams. Now instead of the car or truck or bike in front of me, I saw the tree-lined streets (alas, some of these very trees may be felled for the Metro Rail), and the various establishments that dotted them. All very mundane, and yet, today the ordinary seemed different. May be because I never stopped to look at the so-called ordinary goings-on. As in Davies' poem (Leisure), 

What is this Life if, full of care 

We have no time to stand and stare?- 

Indeed, yes, we scarcely have time to really see, observe the city around us, and the city within the city. And this road-trip gave me a chance to do that. Observe the city, hitherto almost unknown. And most of the route to Shivaji nagar, and then on to Rajaji nagar was through old parts of Bangalore. The city of Bangalore as it was 8-10 years ago. And so there were the wide avenues, tree-lined, old stone buildings rising up not more than three stories from the ground. The stone buildings harking back to the period when Bangalore was a pensioner's paradise - going about it's business in a slow, leisurely way. None of the concrete eyesores that we see today, filling the sky-line. Well, they say the journey is more interesting than the destination. How true it was, yesterday. Scarcely had I imagined that this trip would show me a different face of the city I've lived in for the last couple of years. 

IT (Impossible Traffic) City

OK, as you must have guessed, I'm about to start rambling about the traffic in Bangalore. Sorry to disappoint you, mate, but while this post is about the traffic in India's IT City, I am not going to curse and swear at the horrible traffic. Instead let me contribute my tuppence to another issue, which is definitely related to the traffic snarls. As I was driving to work yesterday, I was stuck in yet another traffic jam. Well, nothing unusual about this, except that the complete traffic stand-still was before 8 in the morning! And I had thought that commuting at non-peak hours would be pretty much of a breeze! So as I was stuck in the traffic, I just glanced around myself. And noticed all the cars around me. Now in a random sample of cars, I noticed that about 9 in 10 cars had single occupants. The odd car in which there were more (well, two to be precise) was a father dropping off his kid to school. A couple of days back I read a post somewhere about how the state of California guzzles more gasoline than all of India. The post went on to remark how almost every family member there has a gar of his/her own, and BIG cars, at that. Now, while we are still a fair distance away from this situation, I would say that we are getting there - in the metros or IT cities (like namma Bengalooru). OK, so every family member definitely does not own a car here. But because of the sheer numbers - the population - the situation is alarming. Now besides the environmental aspect - fuel demand, quality of air, there is the aspect of the traffic snarls that this gives rise to. In the absence of a good Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, people cannot be faulted for resorting to private transport. But think about the snarls such as the one I was caught in - and I'm sure many of you must have been in, too. The situation can only get from bad to worse, if the government and public do not do something about it. On it's part, the public can definitely resort to car pools, or using the company transport. Or taking a two-wheeler and commuting at non-peak hours. The government can do it's bit by proper urban planning. Whoever thought of putting a two-lane bottleneck in the way of traffic from a four-lane highway?! (That was the bottleneck I was stuck at, and I couldn't help but be exasperated by the lack of planning.) And starting a good MRT system. And once such a system is in place, heavy dis-incentives for private transport. And finally, creating awareness through print and electronic media. Otherwise, it woudn't be long before our cities are shrouded in haze and a clear blue sky becomes consigned to picture postcards.....

Winds of change...

And so it's time for a change... I'm talking about a change of jobs... Friday was my last day at Siemens, and I'll be joining Samsung from Monday. The two years at Siemens were a lot like Life - a mixed bag of experiences. I must say I learned a lot in these two years... As I look back at those two years, I feel that yes, He indeed gives one what one needs, not what one wants. The real world is a place infinitely more complex than University, and He gave me what was necessary to deal with this world. To deal with different kinds of people - it takes all kinds of people to make a world! To deal with situations when things do not always go your way. But most importantly, to have a positive outlook irrespective of the challenges Life throws at you. Sometimes, you do not realize the significance of the goings-on around. But I'm a great believer in Destiny - whatever happens, happens for a reason. There were times when I thought, "Man, why am I stuck with this lousy work?", or, "Definitely, this is not what I'm here for!". But as I look back upon such times, I feel that those were the times that shaped me. I guess when we are fresh out of University, we all have very lusty ideals, about the kind of work that we'd want to do. And when the script doesn't play the way we want it to, we start feeling disappointed, or frustrated, or both. But then, everything has a place of its own. You just have to slug it out. And be patient. Yes, I think that is a virtue which is the most important in this world. And my first job taught me that. Finally, I think a part of learning is to learn How not to do things as much as how to do them right! Well, I've made my share of mistakes on the job. Each of them taught me something. Success is what you get when you achieve what you set out to do. Experience is what you get when you don't.... I'm looking forward to start a fresh innings tomorrow, learning from the successes and experiences of the last couple of years....

Cheers!