The capital of Karnataka state is thriving modern business center, dubbed the 'Silicon Valley' of India, whose gracious garrison town features are being remodelled in the image of India's mall-loving middle class. It likes to think it's more in tune with Mumbai and Manhattan rather than the rest of Karnataka, and has been scathingly described as a city ' in search of a soul '. The pace of life, like the intellectual and political climate, is brisk. hardly a day goes by without some new controversy boiling over across the front pages of it's also regarded as one of India's most progressive and liberal cities, as far as social attitudes go. Tourist brochures call Bangalore the 'Garden City', but nothing could be further from the truth. It's attractions are limited, but it does have a congenial climate and good transport connections, and it's a useful place to arrange trips to Karnataka's national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.