A trip to South India: Bangalore

I have finally set foot in South India! My dad and I went for a quick 2-day trip to Bangalore  - or should really say "Bengaluru" (this is the Indian name of the city).   Bengaluru, dubbed the "Silicon valley of India," is the capital of Karnataka

A Map. Yipee.

Our yummy snack for the flight.  Note: the Hindi written on the bottom sandwich box literally says "Airwich"

The view from our hotel

Bangalore is so different than Delhi! The language is different, the terrain is more tropical (the coconut trees were my favorite).  The streets are not as crowded and everything is written in Kanada, the local language.  The weather was in the 80s (F)...I know, it's a rough life.  Here is some fun news: I wore a business suit for the first time! I felt so professional.

We were visiting one of my dad's former students, Parth Kembhavi, and his family.  Parth, his wife, his brother, sister-in-law, and parents are ALL architects...so naturally they have a family architectural firm.  We arrived in the morning and after "freshening up" at our hotel, we were off to our visits.  My dad has wanted to visit this family for a while - they want to start a construction management MBA in a new university system and are asking my dad to lead MSU to partner with them.  It's an exciting area and has a lot of potential.  We had a meeting with Mr. Jain, the head of the Jain group who is investing in this new university system.  He is a self-made entrepreneur and was excited to hear about the opportunities for Parth's family company/MSU and the Jain University to work together.

That night, we had a great time at the Kembhavi home, eating home-cooked food.  Both of the daughter-in-laws are from the coastal areas, so we had some traditional coastal food (the roasted pawns were the best). We also had Afghan-style chicken prepared by Mrs. Kembhavi.  YUM.  I don't eat meat very much at all here in India, so this was a real treat.  Overall, the were such a fun family to be with...we talked, laughed, told jokes, and had a great time.

One thing to note: I saw a bunch of renewable energy around the city, especially solar water heaters.  Did you know that 70% of households in Bangalore have solar water heaters?  It is mandated by the state government.  I also saw some solar street lighting, which was the bomb.com.

The next day brought more meetings, a visit to another part of the university, and then a long journey back to the airport.  Overall, it was a great visit!

Me, loving the hotel

Papa, I and the Kembhavis (Parth is the shorter guy in the middle)

The Karnataka Government building