Bangalore: Bandhs & Bargaining

As things tend to go when traveling in India, our plans for our first full day in Bangalore dramatically changed. Due to a citywide strike (i.e. a Bandh) that kept all transit off the road, from ubers to autorickshaws and everything in between, we spent our first full day in India inside our hotel, building community guidelines and getting over jet lag . In the evening, we watched the epic Bollywood film, Bajirao Mastani while enjoying our first meal of Momos i.e. Tibetan Dumplings.

Today, eager to get outside as the city re-opened, we hit the road. The early birds in the group started their morning by walking to Lalbagh Gardens with two of our group leaders. Along the way, they stumbled across a street play on the environment. After breakfast, we took off as a large group, spending the morning at the Government Museum of Bangalore discussing Indian archaeological sites followed by a rousing game of Kabaddi, a traditional Indian game loosely described as a fusion between rugby and red rover, in Bangalore’s Cubbon Park. The best jet lag antidote out there.

After a lunch of dosa ( a rice crepe) at the classic Bangalore establishment, Airline’s Hotel, we headed to Commercial Street, the primary shopping area in Central Bangalore. Our Goal: Kurta’s (i.e. traditional Indian shirts) for all. We practiced our bargaining, navigating streets busy with Sunday shoppers, vendors selling fruit and nuts, and bangles. The occasional mirror selfie taken along the way.

Tonight, we depart for Madurai, Tamil Nadu, the next stop on our journey across India. In addition to following along here, you can find daily updates on the 2016 Leadership Collective journey on instagram at @3sixtyplus and facebook.

Readers, what’s your favorite dosa place in Bangalore?