Expat Q&A: Having a Baby in Bangalore, What to Bring, Finding an Apartment

Having a Baby in Bangalore & Health
My wish list of what to bring to Bangalore
Looking for a good neighborhood in my price range

Q: My husband has been offered an opportunity at work to move to Bangalore for a year (or longer if we like it there). We are very interested, but also a little reluctant. We have a few questions. One thing is, I am expecting a baby. We're not sure what health care is like over there & if it would be wise to have a baby overseas. What is your experience with the health care? We have 3 other children, ages 6, 4 & 2. I am wondering what life is like there. Your article was very helpful. Thank you. I was assuming that I would have to home school my children because I know nothing of the schools. I am also concerned about getting into a good neighborhood, a safe neighborhood. I am wondering things about the city crime rate, how safe you feel, do you go out with the children often, etc. If you can offer any other information, it would be extremely appreciated.

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Answers: Health care should be the least of your concerns. India has excellent doctors and hospitals at very reasonable prices. In fact medical tourism is a growing area because of the number of people opting for treatment in India. Hospitals in Bangalore have modern birthing suites and the pediatricians are not only well qualified but accustomed to treating westerners. As for schools, again there are many excellent preschools and international schools in Bangalore. If you live in one of the gated communities where there are other expat families you will be insulated from much of the crime and other concerns. We pretty much do what we did at home with the kids, they play with the neighborhood kids, we bike around the block, go to the library etc. We do miss the neighborhood parks but then again we didn’t expect to recreate home here. You should definitely make a trip out here before you make up your mind, I think you will be pleasantly surprised by Bangalore.

Chilli tip: Buy our recently published Medical Tourism: A Bangalore Perspective

Question: What do you most miss about the US? What do you wish you brought along that you did not?

Answer: Oh goodness, what do I miss about the US? Don’t get me started ... But truly there is very little you don’t get here. Sometimes you will pay the full MSRP which is shocking for those of us used to weekly sales and holiday discounts. But so far the only things we have missed are really good bagels (my husband brought a dozen from Noah’s in his hand baggage last week, with some cream cheese, mmmmmm.) and sun dried tomatoes. As for what I wished I had brought along…I wish I had gotten myself some good walking sandals like Teva’s or Mephistos. I do have sneakers for longer treks, but sturdy walking sandals for a large footed woman like me is probably the one thing I regret not bringing. The list of things I brought and really needn’t have is much longer. I brought tons of insect repellant and anti-itch creams, both easily available. Since this is an oft repeated question here is my list of things I am glad I brought:

1. Unusual board games (the mass market ones are easily available, but unusual ones like Abalone or Labyrinth are rare)
2. Comforters and fitted sheets for my US mattresses
3. Less common herbs and spices (I have a bottle of pumpkin pie spice that I am so glad I brought)
4. Digital thermometers
5. Little boy’s underwear (if they want to wear y fronts or boxers)
   As you can see I really had to rack my head for things I could not get here.

Question: Maybe you can help me, I want to get along with other expats in Bangalore. I have a problems with finding apartment to move to, and many other small things. The problem is that I don't know what to choose, Can you give me advice where are other expats living in Bangalore, but I need more than just they live in Whitefield, this I know already. The problem is to find a place, I mean gated community or something like this where I will not feel alone. I know about Palm Meadows, but this is to expensive for me, my housing budget is up to 40 000 INR monthly. Can I find a nice 2 bedroom apartment for such an amount? My wife and kido should join me in the next year and I want them to come to good place and not to move from one flat to another. My son probably will join Indus International School, can you tell me is it good choice? Or maybe you can give me some advice about other school within same amount of money for to be paid for education? The cost of one year admission in IIS is 300 000 INR.
Sorry that I am bothering you with all this questions, but I have nobody to ask but you.

Answer: No bother at all. I hope I can help. You have some very specific questions, so let me try and answer them in order. Where do expats live? I am guessing you mean names of complexes? Really expats live everywhere. While there is no answer that will cover everything I will try and list some of the more popular complexes. St.John’s Wood and Acropolis in Koramangala are apartment complexes where a lot of expats live. In Whitefield, other than Palm Meadows, Paradise Nest, Fern’s Paradise, Armadale are all areas popular with expats. 40,000 is at the low end for these kind of gated communities, but if you want a flat in Koramangala or Airport Road you should have no problems finding one at that range. You may not find so many westerners living there, but the flats will be clean, safe and with plenty of company for the kids. Indus is where my kids study, and we are very pleased with it. There are kids from all countries and backgrounds and it has been a very easy transition for the kids. It would help to get the school bus route, as it will help you identify apartments where other kids live and also make the commute to school easier. I hope this helps and feel free to ask if you have any other questions.

- KC

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