Of all the cities in India that I've been to, the ones that I imagine myself settling in are Delhi and Bangalore. Read on to know why this is so.
I was just 2 months old when I first arrived in Delhi. Its the city where I grew up and which I grew to love. I've now been living in Pune for over three years. This is where my home is. But its when I go to Delhi that I actually feel as if I've come home. Its a strong bond of some 23 years!!
True I used to dislike its summer season. But I equally loved and still love everything that the dilli ki sardi brought... sitting in the garden under the lazy looking sun, the warm razaai which I would just not want to get out of every morning, the cold winds turning me into Rudolph the red nosed reindeer, the fogs so dense you could bearly see the neighbouring house, the waaf (cloud) coming out of my mouth as I'd take a puff from the invisible cigar imagined to be held between my fingers, the half an hour late school timings, the Mummy-made sweaters, the hateful scarf which I would take off the moment I'd get inside a bus, the rains which would inevitably fall on Christmas like showers of blessings and my shivering as a result of refusing to wear anything warm in our Christmas party.
Besides that Pune absolutely pales in front of Delhi. Afterall Dilli ki baat hi kuch aur hai! The moment you step a foot there you get an absolutely different feel.
No wonder wanting to keep my ties with Delhi intact, when I had just joined my lab in NCL I would introduce myself by saying that "I stay in Pune but I am basically from Delhi." Though I no longer use that line whenever someone wants to pull my leg he/she recites my dialogue loud and clear without fail.
With Bangalore it was a completely different story. It was love at first sight. My sister's wedding reception resulted in my first trip there. The morning of the reception Ulka and I explored MG Road and Brigade Road. A day after with a car at our disposal Daddy and I did quite a bit of moving around. I found everything grand be it the IISc Campus, Bangalore Palace, Vidhan Soudha, Forum Mall or Kemp Fort. Short though my visit was I returned to Pune to announce to everyone that I'd found the city I wanted to live happily ever after in.
I have been to the city 3 more times since then. Once on official purposes to attend a summer school for two weeks. They made us work so hard that I was actually happy to head back to Pune. On the other two occasions things were leisurely. Besides Ulka would pamper me at home. Everyday we had to do something different. She always took me to the most coolest places for shopping and I would always come out impressed with every mall and food court we hit. Take my word as I speak from experience Casa Picola serves the yummiest chicken and fish burgers.
One of the things that I have heard people complain about is the heavy traffic in Bangalore. May be if I were to get caught in it everyday I wouldn't like it either. But other than that I don't think there is any grudge that one could hold against it.
What surprises me most is that eventhough I don't know every nook and cranny of Bangalore, I somehow never feel like a stranger there.
Between Delhi and Bangalore I wouldn't be able to make a choice on my own. I am hoping for time to take care of it.
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