The list of things I wish I knew before moving to Bangalore.

 

The list of things I wish I knew before moving to Bangalore.

It's a well-earned bad reputation that Bangalore has. If you ask any of those who have lived here for over six months, you'll get the same list of complaints, in the same order - the traffic, the weather that lies to you, the rent, and, for some, definitely also that they don't want to leave. It's a contradiction you have to get your head around before you start packing your boxes before traveling to this city.

The rest of what I wish someone had told me.

The weather is a trap.Weather is a trap.

The term "pleasant climate" is thrown around as a fact in Bangalore. It is not, it's not anymore. You'll enjoy beautiful mornings to make you feel like you're in October in the hills and at 2 PM you'll be reminded you are in peninsular India. Bring a light jacket along for evenings, but don't put away the sunscreen! Then they are overwhelmed by water in the monsoon season, whole roads are submerged in a matter of 20 minutes. This is for Google Maps to confidently tell you which way to go through a lake. You will learn to distrust it from June to September.

Choose a neighborhood that's convenient for you, not because it makes a pretty Instagram post.

Indiranagar and Koramangala have made some serious faces in reels — there's a café there, there's a tiny little boutique store, there's a city that's figured out brunch. If your office is in Whitefield or Electronic City, however, living there will entail a two-hour commute each day, and that will quietly destroy your evenings, as well as your mood. When it comes to traffic in Bangalore, it is not only bad, it is structurally bad as the city has grown too fast for its roads. Take a test drive in the rush hour before renting a car. Not a Sunday afternoon drive. On a weekday during rush hour in the rain, if you're able.

The skill to negotiate a rental is a real one here.

In older buildings and in buildings that have brokers, landlords in Bangalore are likely to quote a number which you think to negotiate. The amount of advance deposit also varies significantly — from two months rent to jaw-dropping ten months in some parts of the city, a throwback to the old days of Bangalore real estate. Before you get in love with a flat, make sure to spell this out first and foremost, as the deposit system can really throw off your number crunching.

The city is not addressed by numbers but by landmarks.

The address system is also a bewildering and even chaotic one in Bangalore with "Cross", "Main", "Block" and sector numbers seeming to have no logic beyond the neighborhood. Landmarks are important to both residents and food delivery services. The street name is only half the distance to “Near the Total petrol bunk”. Don't rebel against this system, just deal with it.

You're not going to meet the people you want to meet by chance, it's going to happen via apps and communities.

Bangalore is a big city and thin. If you go to the local market, you will not see your neighbours as you would do in small cities. The typical method for creating a social network is through the association of people in the office, hobby groups on WhatsApp or apps created to meet people in a new city. If you're moving here by yourself, don't hope for organic friendships to form; join a run club or book club or start-up meetup or something that meets regularly. The city offers incentives to those that visit the same rooms regularly.

The food scene is indeed one of the best-kept secrets of the country.

Beyond the traffic woes, Bangalore is an unassuming city with one of the most varied food cultures in India, a vibrant microbrewery and craft beer scene without peer in the country, and food from each state and cuisine that you can think of because of the number of transplants there. Don't limit your food choices to the office canteen or delivery options. In some of the most humble darshinis that have not even a single review on the web, the best meals are served.

The power outages and water shortages are a regular occurrence.

Water tankers are commonplace as is the fact that there are times when there isn't power, especially in the outer areas of the city and newer apartment blocks, and at times without warning, in summer. When checking out rentals, don't ask too much, ask too many questions — at least ask about water supply and backup power.

It's really a case of it growing on you.

However, there is a reason why techies, students, retirees as well as anyone in between continues to choose and choose this city over and over again. Bangalore has a better climate than just about every other Indian city, a still-growing economy — and, crucially, a remarkably tolerant culture, especially toward foreigners: in fact, hardly anybody is really “from” Bangalore. Wait 8 months to make a decision. The first three are invariably the most difficult.

There's a difference between avoiding the chaos and moving here. It's about understanding which chaos is worthwhile.

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