If you want to spend a quiet weekend out indulging in art and culture, then visiting the National Gallery of Modern Art would be a good idea.

I really liked exploring this art gallery which now resides in an old mansion with a history of its own. The mansion once belonged to Vilum Manickavelu Mudaliar, a Yuvaraja of Mysore. The art gallery itself has become the cultural hub of Bengaluru.

The gallery houses an extensive collection of cultural peices, paintings and collectibles (my favorite was the bamboo ink painting section). It displays paintings by Rabindranath Tagore, Amrita Sher-gil, Raja Ravi Verma, etc. The gallery features many different styles from traditional to contemporary.

It's a huge place sprawled over big gardens with stone sculptures, a library, and a souvenir shop (I got some post cards and use them as bookmarks now because they are too beautiful to give to anybody).

The place is cool and shady and attracts a lot of visitors, especially students of design and literature. The gallery also hosts conferences and seminars which has made it a major hub of cultural activities in Bengaluru.

It's perfect for a day outing and you only need to pay 20 bucks as entry fee (it's free for school students).