Farewell Bangalore

“When you are in an unknown land and everything is new, you need to cope with a lot of things out of your league to survive. You need to survive not only to cope but to thrive and rise above again.”

Dear Bangalore,

As I am counting my last days in your beautiful city, I have no idea how to even start saying goodbye to you. Every time I think of writing this article I just end up in a big confusion. Not knowing what to say and what not to say to you. Past from one week, I have started bidding goodbyes to my friends slowly. Since the time of saying goodbye to you is nearing, I was wondering how exactly to do that. I did not find any better way other than a bit of a flashback and this tribute.

The first thing that I loved about you, my dear Bangalore, is the weather. This city has the most unique weather in the whole country. You can hardly find another with such a climate such as this place. There is absolutely no summer, so, (thankfully for me), no sweat and heat. The everlasting chill of this city attracts summer hating people like me who belong from boiling pressure cooker type climates. And the greenery of this city is even more attractive. I mean have you ever seen a metropolitan city where you have trees on either side of the main traffic jammed road? I think not! Nor will you be greeted anywhere else by the cool shade of these roadside trees, when you are waiting for the light to turn green in the scorching sunny days. The rains have a much defined schedule for most part of the year here. Yes, rain here thinks of the progress of the city and health of the people.  I am sure, many of you might have noticed that most of the days it will rain only in the evenings and more often in the weekends. So, that even weather can never play a spoil sport in the business or school/college schedule of the city and it keeps people indoors during most weekend evenings so that they can get their rest and have some special moments with their near and dear ones. I do hate your traffic in silk board though, but which city does not have traffic! 

The best part about this city, however, is its people. They are so welcoming and sweet that they make you feel at home right away. Without the generous and enthusiastic crowd of Bangalore, this city would never have reached the height of success and progress that it has attained today. If I am not very wrong, a little more than 50% of the people settled in Bangalore, are not originally from Bangalore. They all have migrated from other parts of the state and mostly from other parts of the country to make this beautiful Silicon Valley their permanent home. This would never have been possible without the support and cooperation of the people here. Bangalore as a city is progressing faster than any other city and is one of the coolest cities of the country, only due to its people. I have made some amazing friends here, who have influenced and inspired me in so many ways. People here prefer riding on the footpath more than on the road to avoid the maddening traffic! Ingenious, isn't it? They have taught me the real meaning of friendship and love. The people here are so sweet and fun loving and different. They never form an opinion about you without actually knowing you and that lets you open up to them. These warm people welcome everyone with open arms into their home and treat them like a family member. They encourage you in expressing your true self and accept you just the way you are. You do not need to change even a tiny bit to be friends with the people here. If your way is not their way, it just becomes a new way of seeing things. I should thank you Bangalore for giving me such friends, whom I want to treasure for the whole of my life.

Other than being the first city in India to have the power of electricity, you were my first in many aspects of my life. You are my first place of independence and absolute freedom. I have stayed alone, without my family, among total strangers, for the first time in Bangalore. You were my first Diwali, Birthday, Durga Puja, New year and all other festivals without my family. You were my first long night drive, with friends, my first staying up all night chatting and laughing with friends, my first night show in a theater, my first hair coloring experience, my first flying experience. You are my first experience of cooking, not helping mom in the kitchen, but actually cooking to feed myself. I still remember the first time I made rice and it was not properly boiled!! But I had to eat that, unfortunately. You gave me a chance to drive a bike for the first time! You are my first shot at a job interview and cracking it. You also are my first job, first promotion, my first shot at being a leader or someone that a bunch of people look up to. You gave me my first adventurous trek and level 3 white water river rafting experience. You introduced this free spirited adventure loving girl to me who was somewhere hidden behind my uptight self. You are my first instance of being myself, away from the shade of my parents. That helped to know who really I am. Oh, how can I forget! You also showed the pain of shifting and relocating, undoubtedly, for the first time in my life!

Among many other firsts, you were also my first rat killing and surgical experience! For my college project, I had to do surgery on over 200 rats, out of which many did not survive the surgery and used to die. For any blunders, I used to be so scared that their spirits are going to haunt me in the nights. And actually for a couple of months my room was under attack by some huge rambo size wild rats who used to gnaw out my door. Scared the devil out of me! Speaking of animals, I had my first pet dog here. I met her in the street outside my hostel. A cute little puppy who was freezing out in the cold of a later November night. Her blue eyes appealed to me in a very non-Honey Singh way, and I could not let her die out there. She instantly got her name "Freezy", since she was freezing even in the warmth of my room. In a few days, she became my sweet heart. But it was a very short lived memory and eventually, I had to give her away to someone who could take care of her better. And yeah, the list, however, goes on.

What else can I possibly say to you to express how much do you mean to me? Oh, you mean a lot to me, more than I will ever know or express. I have been here for around half a decade and my life has totally changed. Hell, I am a totally different person. Since the first time I stepped into your limits you have accepted me and tolerated me without any complains. I was this stranger in an unknown land, which happens to be the Silicon Valley of India and one of the most modern and fastest developing cities of India. Every time I have fallen, you held my hand to get up. Bangalore has this high energy, enthusiasm and charisma in its very air which surfaces the best in everyone in this city. It may sound funny, but you are more than just a city to me. This city has been more of a friend, a teacher and a place I could feel at home even though I am far from home. And that’s because you have accepted me just the way I am. I could be my crazy self without the fear of any prejudice and that helped me discover myself. I met my true self in this city. I never knew I could write blogs or articles which would be published in magazines. I never knew I could influence people through my words. I never knew there was an artistic, warm side to my personality as well. I always assumed myself to be a bit of a nerdy geek, never the creative mind that people see now. You have helped me widen my horizons, see the bigger picture and spread my wings. While wandering around this city, I found my various passions (for photography, clay and music) and realized that I do not fit in any one typical label of a person and that I was ok with it. To my surprise, I was actually happy with it.

It was not a smooth ride. Nope! It was rather a bumpy one. But you were always there guiding me through all the darkness into the dawn of light. And that is what makes this journey of five odd years so interesting and close to my heart. I have suffered and have seen highs and lows here. I have so many special moments here that any Archies' album will fall short. All the while I looked up to you and you never failed to inspire me. I can never say goodbye to you Bangalore.  But you signaled me that my time here is thinning out and I need to explore the world with all the knowledge I have gained from you. When I step out of your city limits, I shall always carry a special place for you within my heart. I might have had discovered my hidden craziness in some other city also, but I doubt it would have been so special if it was not with you, Bangalore. I can’t thank you enough for everything.

There is a secret I would like to share today. All of my friends wonder why I am so fascinated with butterflies. I never knew the reason until now. It was because of you, Bangalore. You were my cocoon, you nurtured me and transformed me into a funky colorful butterfly, who spread her wings and is about to fly high away!

Thank you Bangalore! Keep changing people’s lives and keep nurturing beautiful butterflies!!

Signing off for the last time with Loads of Love,

Trish!!