Travel Title: Business trip to Bangalore, India in 2013.
When: July 2013
About The Trip:
Purpose: Business trip to Bangalore, India in 2013.
Days/Nights: 14 Days 13 Nights
Arrangements: Travel Agent /Self-guided Tour
Route: Kuala Lumpur MALAYSIA – Bangalore INDIA (13 nights) – Kuala Lumpur MALAYSIA
Traveling Method & Time:
Kuala Lumpur – Bangalore = by aeroplane ( ≈ 3 hours 45 minutes)
Bangalore = by auto-rickshaw (≈ throughout our stay in the city)
Bangalore – Kuala Lumpur = by aeroplane (≈ 3 hours 45 minutes)
Details:
This is my second time to Bangalore, India but my first for work purpose. Bangalore has changed so much since the last time I came here back in 2008. The city is cleaner, the road network is more organised and much nicer buildings have been built. The construction of the intra-city rapid transport system called Namma Metro or also known as Bangalore Metro which started in April 2007 are still being developed but certain stretches in Phase I (42.3km) and Phase II (114.39 km) have been opened for operation.
Our company had pre-arranged rooms at St. Mark’s Hotel for me and my colleague to stay at while in Bangalore. I have my two thumbs up for the hotel. The service was so good and the room was so comfy, I slept like a log every single night.
Oh well, let’s just skip the ‘me at work’ part and go straight to the interesting places in Bangalore I managed to check out. Let me start with the shopping areas and food outlets.
Just a stone’s throw away from our hotel was the new building, UB City Mall, housing commercial offices, banks, high-end retail stores (Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Bottega Veneta , Ermenegildo Zegna, Dunhill, Crabtree & Evelyn and many more) multi-level parking areas, a five star hotel, serviced apartments, food courts, pubs, health clubs, restaurants (Shiro restaurant for Asian cuisine, Khansama restaurant for Indian cuisine and Soul City restaurant for Indian, Continental & Thai cuisines combined) and sidewalk cafes (Subway, Café Noir, Café by Oakwood, Tasty Tangles).
The 7-minute journey via auto-rickshaw from the St. Mark’s Hotel to the UB City Mall will cost you about INR 30 (that is equivalent to RM1.50). Now that I’ve ‘bocor’-ed you the ‘rahsia’ (told you about it), so you better not get cheated by the auto-rickshaw drivers if you wanna take this journey.
There are other shopping complexes as well scattered everywhere in Bangalore, such as the Garuda Mall (Samsonite bags, Levi’s, clothes, shoes, mart) at Magrath Road and the Forum (mart, clothes, shoes) at Koramangala.
If you are the shop-til-you-drop and i-do-not-mind-cheap-stuff type of person then head to Mahatma Gandhi Road and Brigade Street. You can find stores selling medium-priced products like Levi’s, Giordano, Wrangler Jeans, Lacoste, Converse and many many more.
Feeling hungry already? Here’s the list of food outlets we went to.
1. Hyderabad House at Victoria for some good beriyani.
2. Hard Rock Café at 40 St. Marks Road.
3. Lan Thai Cuisine, a Thai Restaurant. Very authentic and yummy but so,so,so spicy (pedas… but it’s alright with me).
4. Empire Restaurant/Hotel at No. 35, Castle Street, off Bridge Road.
5. Harima, The Fine Japanese Restaurant at 131, Devatha Plaza, 4th Floor, Residency Road.
6. The cafes and Shiro Restaurant at the UB City Mall.
7. The Only Place at the 13, Musuem Road, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560001, Museum Rd, Shanthala Nagar, Ashok Nagar, Bangalore.
We spent our one-and-only weekend while in Bangalore by checking out the three historical places – The Bangalore Palace, the Tipu Sultan’s Palace and the Bangalore Fort. They are all located not far from each other. This time we took the company’s car instead of auto-rickshaws / taxis. We’re done inhaling too much of exhaust fumes. Bad, bad, bad for our lungs and… my hair (duhhhh!!!).
Bangalore Palace is a palace located right the hearth of Bangalore city. It was built by Rev. Garrett who was the first Principal of the Central High School in Bangalore. The school is now known as Central College. The construction of the palace took place in 1862 until 1944. In 1988, it was bought by the Maharaja of Mysore.
It was built in Tudor style architecture, complete with fortified towers, battlements and turrets. The interiors – paintings, wood carvings, floral motifs and furniture – were neo-classical, Victorian and Edwardian in style. The palace is no longer being occupied by the royal family but is well maintained by some private company and is now opened to public for visitation.
Over the past few years, Palace Grounds have been hosts to major artists like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Aerosmith, Backstreet Boys, Lamb of God, Elton John, Enrique Iglesias, Scorpions and many many many more.
ENTRY FEE:
• INR 225 – 300 per person for Indians
• INR 450 – 550 per person for foreign tourists
• INR 675 per still camera (non-refundable deposit)
• INR 1,405 per camcorder (non-refundable deposit)
TIMING:
• All days of the week: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Tipu Sultan Palace – Don’t get confused with Tipu Sultan’s Summer Palace because that one is situated in Mysore while this one is situated in the heart of the vibrant Krishnarajendra City Market at Albert Victor Road, Bangalore (Bangalore, Mysore, Bangalore, Mysore… geddit?).
Yes, the palace is indeed unique and painted red all over but first, you must know the owner and his background. His name is Tipu Sultan. He was born on 20 November 1750 and died on 4 May 1799). Also known as the Tiger of Mysore, he was a ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore (Mysore Empire) and a scholar, soldier and poet. Tipu was the eldest son of Sultan Hyder Ali of Mysore and his wife Fatima Fakhr-un-Nisa and was a devout Muslim although the majority of his subjects were Hindus, and few were also Christian. Tipu was well known to be an implacable enemy of the British East India Company. However in the 4th Anglo-Mysore War, the combined forces of the British East India Company and Nizam of Hyderabad defeated Tipu and Tipu was killed on 4 May 1799), while defending his fort of Srirangapatna in Mysore.
The palace is notable for its teak pillars and ornamental frescoes. Though it is not as beautiful and well-maintained as the Summer Palace in Mysore, but it is worth a visit. The palace was constructed by his father Hyder Ali and completed by Tipu during his reign in the year 1971. It was in this palace that Hyder Ali imprisoned David Baird and a number of other British Army officers. The palace is a testament of the struggle of the Mysore Empire against the British. The symmetrical two storied palace was built of wood, stone, mortar and plaster and decorated in typical Indo-Islamic style. The palace contains gigantic fluted pillars in wood, cusped arches and brackets that spring off the pillars, floral motifs painted on the walls and ceilings. Located at the front was once a durbar (court) where the ruler and ministers would gather to administer the happenings in the territory.
On the right and left handsides of the palace are the 4 staircases that lead to the upper chambers and balconies. There is also an enclosed private space at the ground floor of the palace where a number of artifacts that belonged to Tipu are kept.
ENTRY FEE:
• Indian/foreigner INR 100, video INR 25 (non-refundable deposit)
TIMING:
• Daily: 8.30am-5.30pm
Bangalore Fort – It was originally built as a mud fort in 1537 by Kempe Gowda, a feudatory of the Vijaynagar Empire and the founder of Bangalore. Later in 1760, it was converted into a granite stone fort by Haider Ali, the father of Tipu Sultan. It was finally completed by Tipu Sultan in the year 1791. It was a stronghold of Tipu Sultan until it was captured by the army of the British East India Company on 21 March 1971 during the 3rd Mysore War (1790 – 1972). Nowadays, what’s left of the Fort are the Delhi Gate and remnants of 2 bastions. Dismantling of the Fort started with the British Conquest of Bangalore back in 1791 and it went on until 1930s. The Fort is being controlled by the Archaeological Survey of Karnataka and is opened to public.
ENTRY FEE:
• Free
TIMING:
• Daily: 10.00am -6.00pm
After checking out all those historical buildings, our driver took us around the city and I managed to capture a few pictures of the Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the state legislature of Karnataka.
Image Gallery:
JIMY's TRAVELOGUE 