First impressions of India is this will be a great 6 months. The airport is new and very organized granted it took me over an hour to clear immigration. I had to go through one last metal detector before heading to grab my bags. Thankfully my suitcases were waiting for me when I came out. I had an awesome first day with a lovely family who showed me around. First stop was a craft bazaar in the city that occurs once a year where artisans from across the country come and sell their crafts. There are handmade shoes, brass Hindu statues, jewelry, kids toys, pottery, vibrant materials to name a few. Went to Lalbagh Botanical Gardens, saw the high court, various parks and golf courses.  

I enjoyed some Indian cuisine at the Bangalore Club. I tried some Indian Pancakes, tandoori chicken, I forgot the name of 3 other dishes but here is my best description. One is a fried semolina puff shell where you make a hole in the top and fill the shell with potatoes and a sauce. The other dish came with toasted butter bread, it was like a mixed vegetable curry or masala but not spicy. Also tried round curd balls which was yummy.

Today I checked into the Golden Palm Resort which is an oasis on the outskirts of Bangalore. I met my roommate for the week who is from Texas and is North Indian so she filled me in on traditional Indian weddings. I  met other IDEX fellows from Poland, Delhi, DC, NY via Bosnia and Chicago. We explored the resort and got a mini tour of the spa which is one of the largest in India. There is an Indian wedding going on so got to watch some of the reception. The resort is a bit far from the city at about a 45min drive from North Bangalore. Travel distance here is told in time in traffic instead of KM.  Pictures will come once I clear up space on my phone.