What do *I* like about Bangalore?
It seems to be fashionable to knock this city of ours for its various ills…indeed, on another public forum, I have been castigated for this very reason….but there are the things I love about Bangalore. Recently, we decided that each of us would write about three things we liked very much about our city….and one of the things I would like to mention first are…the trees of Bangalore.
Everyone knows how, the middle of war and turmoil, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan charged their foreign ambassadors to bring back saplings from other countries, and planted them in the Sira Gardens. Lalbagh, even today, has so many trees from all over the world.
But more than this is the amazing aesthetic sense that the rulers of the Wodeyar dynasty seem to have had. Roads in Bangalore and Mysore are actually avenues….tree-lined, and beautiful. And Sir Mizra Ismail saw to it that the trees planted kept flowering throughout the year. Better descriptions than I can give describe how Spring is ushered in with the Spathodia blooms, followed by the Jacaranda and the Tabebuia trees; how the Mayflower then takes over for the summer, and through it all, the decorative cherries, the Tabebuia Rosea trees, the Copper Shield Bearers, the Sampige ( a variety of Magnolia) and the Indian cork tree (Akasha Mallige), run their own fugue of scents and colours. These trees play host to a variety of animal and bird life too.
But of late, there is a disconcerting move to sacrifice trees for wider roads that the traffic can zip on. I do hope more statesmanship and less politics, prevails and we continue to have our beautiful trees…most of our arterial roads in and around Bangalore may have lost a lot of trees but we should try and preserve what we have, and try to plant some more…
It’s so nice, you had to post it thrice! (Sorry, Deepa. I’m not picking on you. Every once in awhile the internet goes bonkers.;))
Bangalore has tapped into some of what made Tokyo so cool in the ’80’s. It’s hip, quirky in a good way and more interesting than a dozen other places I can think of.
The people who moan at pro-Bangalore postings are most probably suffering from the usual case of “Bangalore Envy”. Humour them.
You could also set off a new wave of jealousy by e-mailing your detractors an MP3 of Aaacharavillada Nallige. They will be “Bangalored” in seconds. :)
Unfortunately, cannot have both. Cannot have huge old trees obstructing traffic and expect the smooth flow of traffic which has gone up by leaps and bounds. We can restart by planning out the wide roads and either relocating or planting similar trees and wait for a generation, by which time who knows what awaits them?
Well said R.A.Levin.