I was in Bangalore with 2 Brits, who insisted on eating at T.G.I. Fridays 3 days after I landed. I was not yet jonesing for beef. Turns out they were. Alan had a steak. I had the Jack Daniels Burger, which was about as good as T.G.I. Friday's ever is. By the time I started really really wanting a cheeseburger, I'd discovered the Hard Rock Cafe Bengaluru, and went there for them.

Of course, by the time I got home, even with the Hard Rock, I was jonesing for a cheeseburger the size of a basketball.

Just a random street shot, and not a particularly representative one either. This was early on the first Saturday I was there, on the way to Mysore.

I wanted to somehow get a photo that showed just how intense Bangalore, or maybe Indian, trafic is. But there was just no way without actually being there. I didn't even try the whole 3 weeks I was there.

Generally any time there was a flyover, or viaduct, like this, there were signs saying where they were or where they went.

These would be the only road signs of any type I saw anywhere, ever. In 3 weeks of moving around, I never knew what road was what, unless a building printed their whole address on their sign, and included the name of the street.

Learning how to get around has to be brutal, or I'm missing something. But I was actively looking for street signs during the third week, and didn't see any.

Trucks often had paintings of demons or something on them. This is not a good example, some where incredible. I enjoyed them. I found them whimsical and amusing.

Also on the right tail light is a sign that said "Stop Signal". This is to indicate that these lights actually would indicate the truck was stopping. Other helpful notices painted on trucks, buses, and even some cars where: "AC bus, no hand signals", "power brakes", "sound horn". This last would sometimes be combined with "OK", or replaced by it entirely. It meant that if you sounded your horn, the driver would move over to make room for you to pass. So imagine that nobody is driving between the lane markings, and are all trying to get by each other, and you might understand when I say that horns were going on around you every 3 or 4 seconds.

In Bangalore, on the way to Mysore. There is a temple back behind this. (I never got there.) There was a lot of this renovation going on in and around the places I was while I was there. Including a whole shopping mall that was having its Dinsey-esque facade pulled down to be changed. And I never saw anyone ever working on stuctures like this. They all looked half done and abandoned to me. I was assured progress was being made.

On the road to Mysore. This was common too. Workers in the back of the truck, hanging out of it. OSHA would have a field day with this. But these fellows are actually pretty safe looking. Sometimes the guys in the truck were flopped haphazardly across whatever they were delivering, half in and out of the truck, looking like they were one good pothole away from being left behind.

There is no real reason why this is funny or strange. Other than a Western cultural bias that says cops are too arrogant to travel in a way that makes sense. How can you look like you're The Man when you're riding on the back of a motorcycle?

Another thing I wished I'd have gotten a photo of would be all the times I saw an entire family of 4 on a motorcycle or scooter. Dad would have a little one on the tank in front of him, and mom would be in back with a little one between her and dad.

Now we're somewhere. This is Tipu Sultan's Dariya-Daulat, "the wealth of the sea", his summer palace. It was build in 1784, about the time the British were trying to take over. Tipu was a muslem, scholar, general, and all around great dude, supposedly. He allied with the French, and fought against the British along with his father.

The castle is incredible. Every square centimeter is painted with pictures showing the things that went on during Tipu's life. Alas, no photos allowed inside. From the outside this building is pretty ugly. If you are there, go inside.

The back of the gate of Tipu's Palace. From inside, the view from outside is pretty similar.

This is the Gumbaz. A burial site and mosque Tipu built for his father, Hyder Ali. Tipu is also buried here, as are other assistants and such.

In style, this is similar to the Taj Mahal, though not quite on the same scale. This is typical of Islamic architecture.