Known as India’s ‘Garden City’, Bengaluru (former Bangalore) is a pleasant metropolis which has fine mix of old and new. The colonial centre has retained its wide avenues, lined with flowering cassia, gulmohar and jacaranda; here a mix of stately buildings, lively bazaars and Victorian parks contribute to its old world charm. Nowadays however Bangalore is known as a major industrial and commercial centre, renowned for its scientific and research institutions. Above all else Bengaluru is synonymous with India’s wildly successful software industry, leading to a reputation as the ‘Silicon Valley of India’.