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My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 2:52 pm
by tiranga
We are planning to R2I to Bangalore in Feb/Mar 2008. R2I decision was made pretty much after we came to US. Time-line was decided on getting USC. Both of us (husband & wife) will be contributing to this thread so here is some nomenclature.
S1 -> husband,
S2 -> wife,
BK (Big Kid) -> Our 4.5 yr old son,
Baby -> 7 month old baby boy
At this point in time, S1 is looking for a job in India, S2 will start looking after going back and getting the kids settled.
School for BK is an issue as of now. Getting admission to UKG seems to be a problem. We think we will put him in a pre-school for this year and try to get admission in a good school for 1 std.
Right now we are busy preparing ourselves for R2I. The checklist at
http://www.r2iclub.com/gen/r2i_checklist.htm came in very handy to start.
Regarding housing, we will be living with S1's parents, so that is not a worry.
Open questions:
(We will update this part of open question in the main post as and when new issues come up. We will remove it when the issue gets resolved, adding the relevant information to the thread.)
Should we get Will, Living Trust, and Living Will done before R2I? Given that we do not have any property in the US only some bank accounts, 401K and life insurance. What have other R2Iers in similar situation done?
Which car to buy as our first car in India? Used or new? Auto transmission or manual?
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 12:00 am
by ILuvHyd
tiranga;68393We are planning to R2I to Bangalore in Feb/Mar 2008. R2I decision was made pretty much after we came to US. Time-line was decided on getting USC. Both of us (husband & wife) will be contributing to this thread so here is some nomenclature.
S1 -> husband,
S2 -> wife,
BK (Big Kid) -> Our 4.5 yr old son,
Baby -> 7 month old baby boy
At this point in time, S1 is looking for a job in India, S2 will start looking after going back and getting the kids settled.
School for BK is an issue as of now. Getting admission to UKG seems to be a problem. We think we will put him in a pre-school for this year and try to get admission in a good school for 1 std.
Right now we are busy preparing ourselves for R2I. The checklist at http://www.r2iclub.com/gen/r2i_checklist.htm came in very handy to start.
Regarding housing, we will be living with S1's parents, so that is not a worry.
Open questions:
(We will update this part of open question in the main post as and when new issues come up. We will remove it when the issue gets resolved, adding the relevant information to the thread.)
Should we get Will, Living Trust, and Living Will done before R2I? Given that we do not have any property in the US only some bank accounts, 401K and life insurance. What have other R2Iers in similar situation done?
Which car to buy as our first car in India? Used or new? Auto transmission or manual?[/quote]
Congratulations!!! 
I am in the same boat as you. Our R2I was decided when we came to US in 1999. Originally wanted to go back in 2005 after H1 expiry but didn't expect the GC to come that soon (2002). Based on our current situation with regards to kids , we decided to go in early 2010 when my elder one will be 4.5 years just in time for actual schooling.
Regarding Cars, we recently went through the same issue on what to buy for our parents in Hyd. This forum comes really handy http://www.team-bhp.com
See our experience at
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...gls-1-3-a.html
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 7:05 pm
by cnu
Tiranga,
Congratulations, and thanks in advance for your posts. Can I ask - what promoted you guys to take this decision to go back home? What would be the rank of loneliness factor [among top 100 factors] for R2I'ing?
Thanks n Goodluck!
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 10:15 pm
by picket
Tiranga, COngratulations! Wish you a successful R2I.
I would say a buy a used car, you will need time to get used to driving in India.... and could be tough getting used to scrathes and dents on a new car...but you will ;-)
My brother who lives in India things Auto trans is expensive to maintain....could be a myth..there are some good reviews on mouthshut...I would buy a stick shift..sonner or later you have to get used to a stick shift anyway..
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 1:47 am
by vizagdesi
we R2Ied one year ago in to a tier-2 city with a 4.5 year old boy and a 2 yr old girl. No issues with schooling at all, may be because it is a tier-2 city or may be because we did not aspire for an international school for our kids.
We timed it to come in January so that we can put our son in a mom and pop school until March in UKG and then move him to a decent school in 1st std by the 2007-08 academic year. This worked out very well for us.
We decided on the school first and then rented an apt very close to it so that we don't have to depend on drivers/autos daily.
Regarding cars, I spent about 1500 rupees and learned the stick shift at a local driving school. That worked well and then we bought a small Maruti Zen Estilo. Looked at everything from Tavera, Innova types to Honda City and Corolla to Santro and Zen. Finally decided on a brand new Zen because it is small enough for very easy city driving. Got a big dent on it last month but I am fine with it because I know it is only a matter of time.
Let me know if I can help you with anything.
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 1:56 am
by picket
vizagdesi;69296 That worked well and then we bought a small Maruti Zen Estilo. Looked at everything from Tavera, Innova types to Honda City and Corolla to Santro and Zen. Finally decided on a brand new Zen because it is small enough for very easy city driving. Got a big dent on it last month but I am fine with it because I know it is only a matter of time.
Let me know if I can help you with anything.[/quote]
I thought Zen is discontuned model...are they still making zens?
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:07 am
by picket
Tiranga,
Here is a list of cars available in India. Prices may not be accurate. Though it might help you.
Link:
http://www.madrasi.info/india-cars.php
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:15 am
by vizagdesi
picket;69297I thought Zen is discontuned model...are they still making zens?
Zen Estilo is their new model. The older Zen is discontinued. We liked the Zen Estilo because it is higher than most other cars in India. In fact it felt almost like our minivan in US except for the lack of the third row.
This is not a big show-off car but a small and cozy car for a family of four plus an ocassional parent/in-law/guest.
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:46 pm
by tiranga
Thank you all for your responses.
Reason for R2Iing .... loneliness is one factor, but we had plans to R2I even before we set foot in this country. Though there are pros and cons of staying as well as going back, we never considered the pros.
Still I feel we will have issues re-adjusting to the life in India.
Regarding school, we too are not aspiring international school but I'd be interested in a school that encourages creativity and independent thinking, not just learning by question-answers( rote method).
We have started selling stuff that we can do without.
We have also started shopping around for the things we want to take with us.
My R2I (Bangalore) diary - Tiranga
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 1:48 am
by Bharat65
Congratulations Tiranga on your R2I decision. We are exactly in the same boat as you guys. Only we are planning to R2I later in 2008.
Good Luck and do keep us updated through your blog diary. These are always so informative and a pleasure to read!