Bangalore, India

Just back a couple of days. Here are some wider takeaways from my Indian experience.

1) The rich poor divide is enormous
You know the income gap that Singaporeans always love to complain about? Well it's nothing compared to what you see in India where there are the poor, and then there are those who have absolutely nothing. There are the rich, and then there are the filthy (literally) rich.

2) Pollution is a serious issue
From the garbage on the streets to the dust everywhere to the exhaust and fumes in traffic, Indian cities provide the most negative pollution demonstrations I've seen. In fact someone commented that it is healthier to be a smoker in Bangalore because at least there's a filter at the end of the cigarette.

3) Basic infrastructure is still lacking
Forget the pictures of skyscrapers and beautiful urban landscapes. This place doesn't even have clean water, technology is either good, or more often terribly hopeless, transportation is archaic, and poverty is abundant.

4) Too much democracy is a bitch
When everyone has too much freedom of speech, nothing ever gets done. All it takes are a couple of pessimists and things get ground to a halt in a sea of debates, objections, accusations and counter claims. It is therefore, a survival requirement to speak better than to do better in India. Also why Indians make the best lawyers.

5) Bureaucracy is an even sluttier bitch
When all objections and talk fails, throw in the red tape. Pile up the paperwork. That'll ensure no one can be bothered to do anything.

All in, there's ample reasons why China is far sprinting ahead of India as an emerging market.

Still, I had a really fun and memorable trip. Might never do it ever again though.