Zen and the Art of Indian Living

Today I thought I’d spend a little time trying to convey some of the differences and unique challenges of day-to-day living in India. To start with, the scenery in my neighborhood is a little different than what you’d find around a typical upscale apartment building in Minneapolis or any other American city.
This is Artillery Road. My apartment building is about 100 yards up the road on the left.
Artillery Rd is very busy with both pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Typical of Bangalore roads, it is very narrow with no, or very poorly maintained sidewalks. As a result, people generally have to walk in the streets as this kid is doing (and as I was doing when I took the picture).
Interestingly, although the daily paper I get, The Times of India, carries articles virtually every day about what must be done to fix traffic congestion, I have not yet seen anyone suggest building decent sidewalks so pedestrians don’t consume 25% of the limited street space available.

You won’t find some of my Artillery Road neighbors in most Minneapolis neighborhoods (these were all taken on Artillery Rd in one day)






How many cows can you find in this picture (double-clicking should open a larger version of the photo)? I’ll give you hint, it’s 4. There is one in the shadows right behind the lady in the blue saree. The one in the foreground is just standing in the middle of a 3-way intersection. I watched her for a few minutes as cars turned around her. It didn’t bother her in the least.


Some of the road signs may be a little unfamiliar to the typical American as well. I’ve been told that 50-75% of the land area in Bangalore is owned by the military and there are 600,000 reserve troops here in the city. I don’t know if I believe this as it would mean 10% of the population is in the reserves. Regardless, there are a lot of military installations and you always know when you are by one. As a friend here said “The all have the same wall with the same bricks and the same trees growing perfectly straight that were all planted at the same time 30 yrs ago.” The military is also very concerned about, how should I put this, people defiling their property…




Yes, they run a tight operation here. And just in case you think this sign is just a fun anomaly, look at the entire wall… I’m not sure what happens if you are caught parking or urinating but I bet it isn’t good

This next sign has to be one of my favorite on Artillery Road.


Public urination is obviously a big concern here. The signs don’t actually do anything as it is very common place – for men anyway, I haven’t seen any women flaunting the public urination laws. To truly appreciate this sign however you need to step back and see the whole area


It is sad in that the amount of litter is very common but the irony is priceless – I expect MasterCard to use it in a commercial soon.

Once I get on the grounds of Zen Gardens it looks much more like a typical American apartment complex




Even here some signs are obviously foreign but you can usually understand them.


Obviously, this means Don’t Pick the Flowers. And the next is showing the location of a rainwater collection cistern.



There are some however that I don’t think I will ever understand….


Sometimes it feels like everything is upside down but I just can’t figure out what this is trying to tell me. My best guess is it has something to do with the electrical lines buried below. Maybe there is a Ground / Earth Wire buried here but that still doesn’t explain why the arrow points up.
Even the elevator has an interesting sign.

I’m sure this is intended to make me feel safe but just the fact that it is needed is a little disconcerting

My apartment itself is really nice. Marble floors throughout and the bathrooms have great tile work.T he furniture and art came with the apartment. When I get back after Christmas I think I will start to decorate a little.

I have provided one bit of Midwestern Culture as you can see on my living room chair.












There are a couple unique things to learn about living in an Indian apartment. For example, hot water is a luxury. To take a warm shower (note I did not say “hot”), you need to switch this guy on about 20 minutes in advance.

This is a hot water Geyser. Essentially a mini-hot water heater. Each bathroom comes with an individual geyser. This fabulous little guy allows me to take a 6 minute moderately warm shower. Before anyone thinks I am complaining consider how much better this is for the environment. You only heat the water you absolutely need, you don’t waste water, and you are only using energy to heat water when you need it. All-in-all the pros offset the cons pretty well




Doing laundry is also a little different. Dryers are a recent introduction to India hence the homes are not really designed for them yet. I need to do a little set-up when I dry clothes.

This could also explain why my laundry room only has one outlet. I can wash, dry or iron at any given time.


Lastly, the sheer number of switches is incredible. I have a panel like this in every room. In case you are wondering, starting in the upper left corner these are for:
A wall light, another wall light, the hallway light, a ceiling fan, speed dial for the fan, a ceiling light, a second ceiling fan and a second speed dial. The last two are not switches.


The last thing I will mention is the kitchen. Two unique things; first, tap water is not drinkable so every kitchen has a water purfication system. It really adds to the asthetic of the room. Also note the hot water geyser in the upper right corner.



Second, ovens are not used in Indian cooking hence the kitchen is only equipped with a cooktop. I brought a pizze oven (the black thing) with me in case I want to bake something. The microwave came with the apartment.


I’ll leave you with some of my views.


Construction everywhere – Bangalore is adding 700 people per day. Most are from rural areas hoping to get in on the technology boom.



Palm trees and color everywhere.






In the background are some of the modern hotels. In the foreground you can see the traditional way of drying clothes


No matter how strange things may seem at times, at the end of the day you can always find a friendly, familiar face when you know where to look...