Mick Smith and his family have been in the City for two and a half years now. They frankly admit that they love the culture here and despite the fact that they've had to adjust quite a bit to the way of life in the City, there's nowhere else in India they'd rather stay.
Ask Mick what he loves the most about the City, and pat comes the reply, "The weather, of course! In terms of weather, there's nothing like Bangalore." He and his wife Nicki also admit that they've felt very accepted in Bangalore. They stay here with their two daughters, Lydia and Laney. Nicki explains, "If you get close to someone here, they are ready to do anything for you. That is very endearing."
Talking about his impression of the City, Mick states, "I feel Bangalore is very cosmopolitan. We come across people from all over the world here. I've seen students from Yemen, Afghanistan, all parts of Africa and South-East Asia — which also speaks of how accepting the City is."
Mick and Nicki feel that they have learnt a lot from the City, and the nation as a whole. "We've learnt to slow down and give importance to every conversation that we have. Back in the US, when we meet someone for coffee, the meeting ends at the scheduled time.
But here, more importance is given to building relationships," explains Mick. "When we went home last Christmas, we took out time for family and tried to slow down; these are some things which we have picked up from here," says Nicki, adding, "In the US, we tend to live in a bubble but here, our family has learnt a lot about the diversity of life."
Of course, the Smiths did face their share of difficulties adjusting to life here. Nicki explains, "Coming from a more developed country, the infrastructure was a big issue here. Getting things done on time can also be taxing."
However, they managed to settle down fairly quickly. "We have friends here. Apart from that, the City really made it easier for us to settle down," says Mick.
Nicki adds, "There's a lot of westernisation here, so we have been able to adjust sooner. There are loads of retail formats and services that are available. Also, the road signs are in English, which helps
a lot."
"Compared to other places that we've been to, I'd say Bangalore is the easiest place for an expat to live," believes Mick. And Nicki elaborates, "All of the other places we have visited — like Chennai and Mysore — are nice to visit, but I would never be able to stay there."
One aspect of the City that really took a while to adjust to, though, was the traffic. "The funny part though is that when I was driving back home in the US, I suddenly almost honked — and then I realised, 'Oh no, we don't do that here.' That just goes to show how we have settled in," chuckles Mick.
Mick was a firefighter, paramedic and fire safety inspector for 11 years in the USA and here, he has a safety training company. His firm has tie-ups with existing training centres and also holds safety and awareness programmes for the general public.
Nicki's life revolves around home-schooling their two daughters according to the curriculum in the USA, since the couple feels that the international schools in the City are very costly. Nicki is also actively involved with the activities of the Overseas Women's Club.
The family hangs out at various malls in the City and loves exploring the food here. While Mick loves spicy food like kababs and chicken curry, Nicki and the girls are yet to up their spice levels. But they still love exploring Indian food, whenever they decide to eat outside.
They've had their share of funny incidents during their stay here.
"We remember this one time when we didn't know where we could get newspapers from. A little guy would go past out house, calling out 'paper' in a loud voice. The first time I saw him, I waved to him with utmost excitement, trying to communicate that I wanted to buy one. It is after a bit that I realised that he collects newspapers, not sells them," shares Nicki, while Mick laughs.
Ask Mick what he loves the most about the City, and pat comes the reply, "The weather, of course! In terms of weather, there's nothing like Bangalore." He and his wife Nicki also admit that they've felt very accepted in Bangalore. They stay here with their two daughters, Lydia and Laney. Nicki explains, "If you get close to someone here, they are ready to do anything for you. That is very endearing."
Talking about his impression of the City, Mick states, "I feel Bangalore is very cosmopolitan. We come across people from all over the world here. I've seen students from Yemen, Afghanistan, all parts of Africa and South-East Asia — which also speaks of how accepting the City is."
Mick and Nicki feel that they have learnt a lot from the City, and the nation as a whole. "We've learnt to slow down and give importance to every conversation that we have. Back in the US, when we meet someone for coffee, the meeting ends at the scheduled time.
But here, more importance is given to building relationships," explains Mick. "When we went home last Christmas, we took out time for family and tried to slow down; these are some things which we have picked up from here," says Nicki, adding, "In the US, we tend to live in a bubble but here, our family has learnt a lot about the diversity of life."
Of course, the Smiths did face their share of difficulties adjusting to life here. Nicki explains, "Coming from a more developed country, the infrastructure was a big issue here. Getting things done on time can also be taxing."
However, they managed to settle down fairly quickly. "We have friends here. Apart from that, the City really made it easier for us to settle down," says Mick.
Nicki adds, "There's a lot of westernisation here, so we have been able to adjust sooner. There are loads of retail formats and services that are available. Also, the road signs are in English, which helps
a lot."
"Compared to other places that we've been to, I'd say Bangalore is the easiest place for an expat to live," believes Mick. And Nicki elaborates, "All of the other places we have visited — like Chennai and Mysore — are nice to visit, but I would never be able to stay there."
One aspect of the City that really took a while to adjust to, though, was the traffic. "The funny part though is that when I was driving back home in the US, I suddenly almost honked — and then I realised, 'Oh no, we don't do that here.' That just goes to show how we have settled in," chuckles Mick.
Mick was a firefighter, paramedic and fire safety inspector for 11 years in the USA and here, he has a safety training company. His firm has tie-ups with existing training centres and also holds safety and awareness programmes for the general public.
Nicki's life revolves around home-schooling their two daughters according to the curriculum in the USA, since the couple feels that the international schools in the City are very costly. Nicki is also actively involved with the activities of the Overseas Women's Club.
The family hangs out at various malls in the City and loves exploring the food here. While Mick loves spicy food like kababs and chicken curry, Nicki and the girls are yet to up their spice levels. But they still love exploring Indian food, whenever they decide to eat outside.
They've had their share of funny incidents during their stay here.
"We remember this one time when we didn't know where we could get newspapers from. A little guy would go past out house, calling out 'paper' in a loud voice. The first time I saw him, I waved to him with utmost excitement, trying to communicate that I wanted to buy one. It is after a bit that I realised that he collects newspapers, not sells them," shares Nicki, while Mick laughs.