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#1
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
Hello all,
Just a note to say that if you need a car and driver in Bangalore, I have a recommendation. His name is Manjunath Rao, contact # 91-98-45318418(or within India, 098-45318418). He has an air-conditioned Toyota Innova(Sienna), which he keeps very clean. It also has an MP3 player, which I found very useful! He charges INR 1600(about US$34 at current rates) for 8 hours with unlimited mileage around town. Others may charge a bit less, but I found it more than worthwhile to pay this because Manjunath is very knowledgeable of the city and its complicated roads and traffic patterns, has a very good knowledge of places to go to for a variety of things and above all is very honest and trustworthy. That's the kind of security I would place a premium on. I would usually tip him over, or buy some pastries for his kids(ask him to show you pictures, they are just adorable!), or just something to say I appreciated his services. He speaks passable English, plus Hindi and the local languages. A good family man, with a wife and 2 beautiful kids. I have used his services before, as have other family members, and will continue to do so when I visit Bangalore again. He is also a preferred driver for the US military pilots who visit during the biennial Aero India show. If you do call him, just tell him that a friend from New York referred you. Thanks so very much. |
#2
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"NY Traveler" wrote in message ... Hello all, Just a note to say that if you need a car and driver in Bangalore, I have a recommendation. His name is Manjunath Rao, contact # 91-98-45318418(or within India, 098-45318418). He has an air-conditioned Toyota Innova(Sienna), which he keeps very clean. It also has an MP3 player, which I found very useful! He charges INR 1600(about US$34 at current rates) for 8 hours with unlimited mileage around town. Others may charge a bit less, but I found it more than worthwhile to pay this because Manjunath is very knowledgeable of the city and its complicated roads and traffic patterns, has a very good knowledge of places to go to for a variety of things and above all is very honest and trustworthy. That's the kind of security I would place a premium on. I would usually tip him over, or buy some pastries for his kids(ask him to show you pictures, they are just adorable!), or just something to say I appreciated his services. He speaks passable English, plus Hindi and the local languages. A good family man, with a wife and 2 beautiful kids. I have used his services before, as have other family members, and will continue to do so when I visit Bangalore again. He is also a preferred driver for the US military pilots who visit during the biennial Aero India show. If you do call him, just tell him that a friend from New York referred you. Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. I think you can just walk into any travel agency & find a car/driver as good or better. And all of them know the city & it's complicated roads & traffic patterns. And most of them aren't very honest - nor are they trustworthy - just like this guy isn't. But who cares, you aren't marrying him, right. |
#3
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"Grob" wrote in message ... Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. Welcome to India... Pick your own places or watch your driver collect his commission... -- William Black I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Barbeques on fire by the chalets past the castle headland I watched the gift shops glitter in the darkness off the Newborough gate All these moments will be lost in time, like icecream on the beach Time for tea. |
#4
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"William Black" wrote in message ... "Grob" wrote in message ... Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. Welcome to India... Pick your own places or watch your driver collect his commission... Well ... my guess is the OP is the driver or his agent, and the 2nd posting is his rival. Certainly, both posters are Indian. I'm more than happy to provide Bangalore visitors with some driver and car and options from my own experience here. Cheers, George W Russell Bangalore |
#5
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
Grob wrote:
"NY Traveler" wrote in message ... Hello all, Just a note to say that if you need a car and driver in Bangalore, I have a recommendation. His name is Manjunath Rao, contact # 91-98-45318418(or within India, 098-45318418). He has an air-conditioned Toyota Innova(Sienna), which he keeps very clean. It also has an MP3 player, which I found very useful! He charges INR 1600(about US$34 at current rates) for 8 hours with unlimited mileage around town. Others may charge a bit less, but I found it more than worthwhile to pay this because Manjunath is very knowledgeable of the city and its complicated roads and traffic patterns, has a very good knowledge of places to go to for a variety of things and above all is very honest and trustworthy. That's the kind of security I would place a premium on. I would usually tip him over, or buy some pastries for his kids(ask him to show you pictures, they are just adorable!), or just something to say I appreciated his services. He speaks passable English, plus Hindi and the local languages. A good family man, with a wife and 2 beautiful kids. I have used his services before, as have other family members, and will continue to do so when I visit Bangalore again. He is also a preferred driver for the US military pilots who visit during the biennial Aero India show. If you do call him, just tell him that a friend from New York referred you. Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. I think you can just walk into any travel agency & find a car/driver as good or better. And all of them know the city & it's complicated roads & traffic patterns. And most of them aren't very honest - nor are they trustworthy - just like this guy isn't. But who cares, you aren't marrying him, right. I didn't have the same experience as you claim to have had. You say he is a thief. What did he steal? I have left my briefcase, laptop and cameras with him whenever I didn't need them, and nothing went missing, and nothing was damaged. As far as commissions go, I would simply say to him what I needed to buy, and he would take me there. Didn't even come in with me. Ditto restaurants, I would say, I feel like eating a good dosa, and he would steer me to a good veggie place. What's the commish on a 25¢ dosa, 1 cent? Do you think they charged everyone else 20¢ and charged me 25¢ to cover my driver's commission? Same with any other restaurant, he would suggest a couple based on his customers' opinions, and then wait for me. Read up on the experiences people are having with "all of them". Trust me, if you are an actual visitor there, you will appreciate the value of a driver you can trust. You don't have to hire him, but you don't have to needlessly bash him either. |
#6
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
grusl wrote:
"William Black" wrote in message ... "Grob" wrote in message ... Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. Welcome to India... Pick your own places or watch your driver collect his commission... Well ... my guess is the OP is the driver or his agent, and the 2nd posting is his rival. Certainly, both posters are Indian. I'm more than happy to provide Bangalore visitors with some driver and car and options from my own experience here. Cheers, George W Russell Bangalore Well, George, I am neither the driver nor his agent. I have no idea who the 2nd poster is, and I'm guessing he's never used Manjunath(too co-incidental that here's a guy who responds like that right away), or even been in Bangalore, just being a b*ll-buster. I posted this because business is slack for every driver now, and I thought it would be nice to put out a reference for him. I haven't ever done this before. I've used City Taxi and other options in Bangalore, and was not as satisfied overall as with my preferred driver. I still use City for short jaunts(2-3 hours) like a trip to the Forum mall, and a/ricks for 1-way travel since he doesn't do the short hours other than airport drops or pickups, but if I need an 8 hour or more driver, I call Manjunath. I haven't posted in these newsgroups before, so I haven't read your other posts, but you should share your experiences with other readers. As someone who typically spends 1 to 3 months at a time in Bangalore, usually in Indiranagar, I would like to know about experiences others have had in obtaining services such as cooks or housekeepers for the longer term visitor, or what the best menu/value for Sunday brunch is at a better restaurant, but I guess that would have to be on another newsgroup, I'm not sure. So far, I've depended on the services of an agency in Marathahalli, but their background checks seem to be rather skimpy. Regards, George (yes, I'm a George too!) |
#7
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"Alan S" wrote in message ... On Sun, 1 Feb 2009 01:19:19 +0700, "grusl" wrote: Well ... my guess is the OP is the driver or his agent, and the 2nd posting is his rival. Certainly, both posters are Indian. I'm more than happy to provide Bangalore visitors with some driver and car and options from my own experience here. George, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to India last march, as you probably know from my blog. My interests are made clear in the blog. That time I did the Golden Triangle; Delhi/Agra/Jaipur. I intend to visit again next year. I realise you may be a little biased to Bangalore, but I'd appreciate suggestions for a start/finish point choice for a one or two-week visit, starting and finishing at either Bangalore, Mumbai or Chennai. I shall put something together in the next few days. I'm currently in Bangkok en route to Vietnam. Actually I'm not really that pro-Bangalore. The traffic and pollution are getting out of hand and the infrastucture is crumbling as we speak. Depending on what you're interested in, off the top of my head you could consider Mahaballipuram in Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Hampi in Karnataka, Kochi and Wayanad in Kerala and Hyderabad, or via Karwar on the northwest coast of Karnataka and on to Goa. Further afield you could consider the east coast from Vishakapatnam in Andhra Pradesh (take a detour to the Araku Valley) and up to Puri and Konark in Orissa via the splendidly named Gopalpur-on-Sea. Cheers, George W Russell Bangalore |
#8
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"NY Traveler" wrote in message ... grusl wrote: "William Black" wrote in message ... "Grob" wrote in message ... Actually I used this same guy recently in Bangalore. I did not have a good experience with him. He is a thief. When he takes you to a shop or a restaurant, the owner of the said place gives him a commision. Welcome to India... Pick your own places or watch your driver collect his commission... Well ... my guess is the OP is the driver or his agent, and the 2nd posting is his rival. Certainly, both posters are Indian. I'm more than happy to provide Bangalore visitors with some driver and car and options from my own experience here. Well, George, I am neither the driver nor his agent. I have no idea who the 2nd poster is, and I'm guessing he's never used Manjunath(too co-incidental that here's a guy who responds like that right away), or even been in Bangalore, just being a b*ll-buster. I posted this because business is slack for every driver now, and I thought it would be nice to put out a reference for him. I haven't ever done this before. I've used City Taxi and other options in Bangalore, and was not as satisfied overall as with my preferred driver. I still use City for short jaunts(2-3 hours) like a trip to the Forum mall, and a/ricks for 1-way travel since he doesn't do the short hours other than airport drops or pickups, but if I need an 8 hour or more driver, I call Manjunath. I haven't posted in these newsgroups before, so I haven't read your other posts, but you should share your experiences with other readers. As someone who typically spends 1 to 3 months at a time in Bangalore, usually in Indiranagar, I would like to know about experiences others have had in obtaining services such as cooks or housekeepers for the longer term visitor, or what the best menu/value for Sunday brunch is at a better restaurant, but I guess that would have to be on another newsgroup, I'm not sure. So far, I've depended on the services of an agency in Marathahalli, but their background checks seem to be rather skimpy. I found your OP to be extraordinarily detailed about a particular driver in an obscure part of the world. However, the second post was even odder - an extrarodinary attack - and I do suspect a mere troll. However, I usually use either Meru cabs or, for longer or out-of-town trips to Mysore or Belur, a particular driver with his own car. (He seems fairly busy so he probably wouldn't thank me for posting his contact details here). I don't have staff so I can't help you there. As for Sunday brunch, a branch of Oh! Calcutta (famously located on Nehru Place in Delhi) has opened up on St. Mark's Road so that is my current favourite along with the new South Indies on Infantry Road. You might also want to take a look at the new UB City complex on Grant Road if you can slosh through the mud to get there. Cheers, George W Russell Bangalore |
#9
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"Alan S" wrote in message ... George, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to India last march, as you probably know from my blog. My interests are made clear in the blog. That time I did the Golden Triangle; Delhi/Agra/Jaipur. I intend to visit again next year. I realise you may be a little biased to Bangalore, but I'd appreciate suggestions for a start/finish point choice for a one or two-week visit, starting and finishing at either Bangalore, Mumbai or Chennai. Also, you might have noticed Alfred Molon's note a few weeks ago about AirAsia now flying to Trichy (Tiruchirapalli). Might be worth keeping in mind as a budget flight option. Cheers, George W Russell Bangalore |
#10
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Car and driver in Bangalore, India
"grusl" wrote in message ... .. However, I usually use either Meru cabs or, for longer or out-of-town trips to Mysore or Belur, a particular driver with his own car. We used to rent a car on a daily basis when we needed one. But this year we've used almost exclusively Meru whoa are starting to dominate the high end business in Bombay. So far, except for one driver who got lost (On Juhu beach!) it has been very good. -- William Black I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Barbeques on fire by the chalets past the castle headland I watched the gift shops glitter in the darkness off the Newborough gate All these moments will be lost in time, like icecream on the beach Time for tea. |
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