Pune City Profile

Pune City Profile
 
Pune is a bustling medium sized city in Maharashtria, roughly 99 miles Southeast of Mumbai.  There is a highway and railway connecting Mumbai and Pune, and both arteries go all the way down to various parts of South India. Pune is famous for its IT industry.  New IT parks have blossomed in the last decade or so, with new IT companies opening up daily offering various software servicies and other services as well.   Pune is not as well connected by air as their airport does not have regular flights to foreign countries — yet. It seems, as Pune is one of the fastest developing cities in India, that flights to Singapore, and possibly to UAE will eventually be available. 
 
West and South
Pune is a relatively small, yet very comfortable city.  You can walk from one end to the other.  On the Northwest, the road to Lonavala leads into the hills.  There is a large IT park in that vicinity, and some nice residential areas where you can purchase a 2BHK (two bedroom) dwelling and live in comfort.  The pleasures of urban life are not too convenient to the Northwest yet, but as time passes, perhaps things will evolve.  To the South, a highway that is several years old stretches around the city.  This highway is less than optimally efficient with pedestrians crossing, and slow vehicles clogging up both lanes. Perhaps they should consider having a fast lane and a slow lane, and have a speed minimum in the fast lane. It wouldn’t cost much to create a system like that.  Deccan Gymkhana is one of the relatively exciting parts of town.  There is a law University in that general area, as well as the Pyramid mall which is an exciting place to spend a few hours on a Sunday.  There is another huge University on Ferguson Road which is an area wiht a real College flavor, and lots of cafes and restaurants lining the road. 
 
East Pune
To the East, there is the train station, and famous Koregaon Park where the blast occured in the German Bakery. Koregaon Park is a wonderful place to take a stroll, and engage in a nice Chinese, Iranian, or other international meal.  There is a cafe on every block, and the locals are very cosmopolitan and friendly.  Hard Rock Cafe is one of the more recent players in Koregaon Park near the outskirts of town.  Enjoy a glass of imported wine, or a beer, and listen to your favorite 80’s hits from America!  The SOB burger is the best burger in the world for beef eaters out there. For vegetarians, there are many choices too (although the choices are not anywhere as good as the burger).   Camp is another hip area of town.  There are cafes, night clubs, restaurants, Islamic tea houses and more!  
 
Museums
The Raja Dinkar Kelkar museum has wonderful artifacts and a breathtaking courtyard.  The Pataleswar Cave Museum has some caves, and a temple.  Its worth a quick trip, but don’t expect too much here. There is a good kabob restaurant around the corner from them, so go with an appetite. Shaniwar Wada is another worthwhile to go for about half an hour. Walk around the humongous inner gardens and tour the palace.  Honesly, Agra, Hyderabad, Darjeeling, and Rajastan  are much better tourist destinations than Pune, but Pune is a great place to live and work.