This is our last post on Bangladesh, and I hope they have slightly helped redress the balance on this country once described as 'a basket case' (by a basket case as it turned out).
TOP 5 ( in no particular order)
Joe Public
The Sunderbans
The Rocket
Srimangal Tea estates
Abdul & Old Dhaka
We apologise for the lack of pix, these will be added later, when we are happy that the cafes we are using to update these blogs, are not riddled with viruses!
Monday, 29 December 2008
DHAKA RICKSHAW ART
from left to right: la petite generale,uncle fester, and the wonderful Ahmed HusseinThe good ole Lonely Planet tipped us off about a renowned Bengali artist who specialized in painting the tin panels on the back of Dhaka's most poplar form of transport - the cycle rickshaw. So courtesy of Abdul we met up with him and commissioned our own piece. The brief was for Ell & I to be painted sat in the back of the rickshaw with Abdul Rahim in front - the background could be the artists choice, though we would like it to have an agricultural & river reference. I dont know if it will translate back home, but right now it feels like the best 65 quid we have spent - its utterly superb & arguably the best souvenior we have ever taken back from a country - JOY BANGLA! Thank you Ahmed Hossein, you are a true grand master.
THE WORLDS LARGEST MANGROVE SWAMPS
Sitting on the tiger prints
tiger prints - fresh!
The 12 berth Bon Bi Bi
Cyclone damage
Godfrey & Walker
The Sunderbans - 360 sq- two thirds in Bangla, the rest in India - is the geograhical barrier that safeguards hundreds of thousands of Bengalis when the cyclone hits from the south. It is home to the Royal Bengal tiger, as well as crocs, otters, willd boar, deer and many many birds ( lesser adjutant, kingfishers, herons, woodpeckers, serpent eagles, brahminy kites). Last year it took a beating and we witnessed much devastation. We commited ourselves to spending big money for this trip as there is a history of river banditry here. So the very reputable 'Guide Tours' took our money and looked after us for 4 days aboard the Bon Bi-Bi - a 12 berth river boat. For this we got 12 staff including 2 x armed guards - all excellent. Days were spent lazing on the boat with binoculars, rowing boat excursions and 2 x guided walks which included the armed guards who were that concerned about the tigers that they proceeded to talk loudly, wear bright clothes and tread on any stick or branch available.....we didnt see a tiger. But we did see a few huge crocs, a family of otters fishing, most of the birds mentioned, wild boar, macaque monkeys and beautiful inquisitive deer. The early morning row boat excursion where we were all completely silent and well behaved was one of the highlights in this country.
The 2 x walking trips were ok, an opportunity to stretch our legs and in truth we did see fresh tiger prints x 2 and faeces - tiger not human. Our guards walking through the forest like the closing credits to Dads Army convinced us at least that there was a tiger in the vacinity - albeit sleeping and well disguised.
Due to the high price of this particualr trip, we had about 6 westerners which for us was a really welcome experience. 2 x financial heavyweights (hello if you are reading this!), 2 x london Bengali's visiting family here and the 2 of us. Wonderful company, wondeful food, wonderful trip. Money very well spent.
The 2 x walking trips were ok, an opportunity to stretch our legs and in truth we did see fresh tiger prints x 2 and faeces - tiger not human. Our guards walking through the forest like the closing credits to Dads Army convinced us at least that there was a tiger in the vacinity - albeit sleeping and well disguised.
Due to the high price of this particualr trip, we had about 6 westerners which for us was a really welcome experience. 2 x financial heavyweights (hello if you are reading this!), 2 x london Bengali's visiting family here and the 2 of us. Wonderful company, wondeful food, wonderful trip. Money very well spent.
HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM KO CHANG 30/12/08
lounging around on the 'Rocket' in Bangladesh
36 hours on the 'Rocket'
ferries across the ganges delta
approaching Khulna, early morning, 35 hours into the 24 hour journey
500 people aboard
memsahib enjoying the first class deck 
the other 'Rocket' heading south to north - identical to ours 
fan assisted first class room
tuck shop
the dining hall
the dining hall
memsahib enjoying the first class deck
the other 'Rocket' heading south to north - identical to ours
fan assisted first class roomYuletide greetings from Ko Chang, where 'men are often women, and women are proud of it.' Its time for a catch up on our final 2 weeks in Bangladesh so as to get up to speed. We have had no time to write as we had such a wonderfully hectic December and though we were ready to leave Bangladesh on the 23rd, we take with us truly humbling generosity on a scale that Western has not experiended apart from arguably Pakistan & North Wales.
We managed to get our 1st class Rocket reservation, though not without incident - as requested by Bangladesh Inland Waterways Transport Company, we showed our faces promptly on the 11th December, but were told by the same officer who had instructed our return that all cabins were taken and that he could possibly get us a space in 2nd class - not a disaster, but a major disappointment. Then Ell noticed in his diary that our names were indeed written down for the 15th - when I said "Thats us", he replied " Aah, you're very lucky". As far as we were concerned, 'tenacious' yes, 'persistant' yes, but 'lucky' no. 3 x trips to the same office - sat there smiling inanely whilst locals were seen to first was for us a victory of quiet diplomacy. Letting the officer keep 3 quid change also helped....nobody ever has change in Bangladesh!
The fabulously inapproprietely named vessel 'The Rocket' was a real treat. Built in Calcutta in 1938 as a paddle steamer, it was converted to diesel in 1983 but the rest of the 2 tiered boat remained the same. We had our 1st class cabin which meant we dined along with 7 other cabins away from deck class which housed 560 people as it says on the tin - covering two decks worth of space. I am not exaggerating when I say that you could not see the surface under prostrate bodies, boxes and bags. For those of you out there saying 'softies' - Western & Kiss opting out by going first class, let me just clarify that though we were alright to walk through gingerly to the snack bar at the back, our presence would not have been appreciated in that class. Needless to say yet again no other westerners on the boat. Try & imagine the look on people's faces if Prince Charles walked naked down the high street clutching a copy of Socialist Worker, and you would have an idea of the sort of reaction we often get in this country.
The trip was scheduled to take 24 hours- it took 36. We ended up with a 2nd night on board as the thick winter fog prevented safe navigation. The views during the day were again exceptional - passing through relatively narrow stretches where you could nose at farming & fishing communities, before the river would broaden again and you would get glimpses of Gangetic dolphins and a whole host of different fishing boats.
1st class had a dedicated kitchen staff, so we regularly sat on deck at the front, in the shade, drinking tea. We almost felt like royalty apart from the regular conversations with the Bengali 1st class travelling companions, which meant we didnt get to relax quite as much as we had hoped. That sounds really ungracious - but fielding the same questions time & time again can be wearing. Our Bengali knowledge only enables us to say where we are from & our names, and many of the Bangladshi's we were speaking to have English of a similar quality. The 3 students from Dhaka University - Rashid, Faribi and believe it or not Saddam Hussein on the other hand were terriffic speakers. They were keen to tell us of nepotism, corruption and poverty in their country - the people here deserve better.
Food was interesting, we were given the European meal. We never saw menu and could never find out what anything was going to cost - so we waited on our final bill with some trepidation. As it turned out, we paid 3 quid for a supper which consisted of soup in a mug, then fish cutlets with fried potatoes, then chicken in a mock wine sauce. The chicken was THAT lean I swear it had been marathon training. Lunch was the Bengali version with huge amounts of rice, dhal, veg and chicken, which was equally athletic - the Seb Coe to suppers Steve Ovett.
We probably docked at about 10 places, each time there was a frantic exchanging of places in deck class as people hopped on & off the boat. It was a great experience & we felt we had been taken about 70 years. I dont know if Charlie Boorman included this river trip in his recent travel programme but I suggest that if he didn't then the series may well lack all credibility! This was 'different gravy'.
We managed to get our 1st class Rocket reservation, though not without incident - as requested by Bangladesh Inland Waterways Transport Company, we showed our faces promptly on the 11th December, but were told by the same officer who had instructed our return that all cabins were taken and that he could possibly get us a space in 2nd class - not a disaster, but a major disappointment. Then Ell noticed in his diary that our names were indeed written down for the 15th - when I said "Thats us", he replied " Aah, you're very lucky". As far as we were concerned, 'tenacious' yes, 'persistant' yes, but 'lucky' no. 3 x trips to the same office - sat there smiling inanely whilst locals were seen to first was for us a victory of quiet diplomacy. Letting the officer keep 3 quid change also helped....nobody ever has change in Bangladesh!
The fabulously inapproprietely named vessel 'The Rocket' was a real treat. Built in Calcutta in 1938 as a paddle steamer, it was converted to diesel in 1983 but the rest of the 2 tiered boat remained the same. We had our 1st class cabin which meant we dined along with 7 other cabins away from deck class which housed 560 people as it says on the tin - covering two decks worth of space. I am not exaggerating when I say that you could not see the surface under prostrate bodies, boxes and bags. For those of you out there saying 'softies' - Western & Kiss opting out by going first class, let me just clarify that though we were alright to walk through gingerly to the snack bar at the back, our presence would not have been appreciated in that class. Needless to say yet again no other westerners on the boat. Try & imagine the look on people's faces if Prince Charles walked naked down the high street clutching a copy of Socialist Worker, and you would have an idea of the sort of reaction we often get in this country.
The trip was scheduled to take 24 hours- it took 36. We ended up with a 2nd night on board as the thick winter fog prevented safe navigation. The views during the day were again exceptional - passing through relatively narrow stretches where you could nose at farming & fishing communities, before the river would broaden again and you would get glimpses of Gangetic dolphins and a whole host of different fishing boats.
1st class had a dedicated kitchen staff, so we regularly sat on deck at the front, in the shade, drinking tea. We almost felt like royalty apart from the regular conversations with the Bengali 1st class travelling companions, which meant we didnt get to relax quite as much as we had hoped. That sounds really ungracious - but fielding the same questions time & time again can be wearing. Our Bengali knowledge only enables us to say where we are from & our names, and many of the Bangladshi's we were speaking to have English of a similar quality. The 3 students from Dhaka University - Rashid, Faribi and believe it or not Saddam Hussein on the other hand were terriffic speakers. They were keen to tell us of nepotism, corruption and poverty in their country - the people here deserve better.
Food was interesting, we were given the European meal. We never saw menu and could never find out what anything was going to cost - so we waited on our final bill with some trepidation. As it turned out, we paid 3 quid for a supper which consisted of soup in a mug, then fish cutlets with fried potatoes, then chicken in a mock wine sauce. The chicken was THAT lean I swear it had been marathon training. Lunch was the Bengali version with huge amounts of rice, dhal, veg and chicken, which was equally athletic - the Seb Coe to suppers Steve Ovett.
We probably docked at about 10 places, each time there was a frantic exchanging of places in deck class as people hopped on & off the boat. It was a great experience & we felt we had been taken about 70 years. I dont know if Charlie Boorman included this river trip in his recent travel programme but I suggest that if he didn't then the series may well lack all credibility! This was 'different gravy'.
Friday, 26 December 2008
BACK TO DHAKA 10/12/08
Sat on the train to Dhaka from Chittagong - just had one of those Rolf Harris breakfasts (Can you tell what it is yet?) Should be a 6 hour journey.....plenty of snacking time. Tomorrow we hope to pick up our tickets for the 'rocket', and possibly plan our trip to the worlds largest mangrove swamps, the 'sunderbans', which spans the india/bangla border in the Gangese delta.
Very much looking forward to employing Abdul Rahim the rickshaw driver. Room is booked at the Pacific Hotel, for the next two nights, so we will not be getting any toast. The weather is comfortable in December, sleeping under a fan at night, with a single sheet. The fan is usually strong enough to keep any mosquitos at bay, but we make sure by spraying the room before we go out for supper, the spray is marginally stronger than Agent Orange. During the day it can get hot, but its not humid, and our decision to come here now has been a good one. Trying to get around Dhaka in March/April would be a completely different kettle of fish. It can be a little ripe in parts of the city even now.
Very much looking forward to employing Abdul Rahim the rickshaw driver. Room is booked at the Pacific Hotel, for the next two nights, so we will not be getting any toast. The weather is comfortable in December, sleeping under a fan at night, with a single sheet. The fan is usually strong enough to keep any mosquitos at bay, but we make sure by spraying the room before we go out for supper, the spray is marginally stronger than Agent Orange. During the day it can get hot, but its not humid, and our decision to come here now has been a good one. Trying to get around Dhaka in March/April would be a completely different kettle of fish. It can be a little ripe in parts of the city even now.
CHITTAGONG & SOUTHERN BANGLADESH 09/12/08
tea drinking in Chittagong, cycle rickshaw driver to the right
Muslim orphanage in Chittagong - the wonderful Anwar Hossein to the left
Sun dried tuna - big fella's, a good 2 feet
Ell's sleight of hand on the ferry
Sunset on Cox's Bazaar - the worlds longest beachHalf way through our 1 month Bangladesh trip, and its been a fantastic travel experience. Incredible hospitality, but tiring as it's difficult to find space for yourself apart from your room. Its hard to imagine that we will find a country that will leave such a strong impression throughout this trip. Since the last post, we have headed to the most southerly tip of Bangladesh - St Martins Island, a coral island 38 kms off the coast, the idea was to try and scuba dive, but what with the language difficulties, it felt too dangerous a proposition, and the equipment did not inspire confidence, so we knocked that on the head and spent some of the money on a slap up feast - crab curry. The dive 'shop' I think were saying that they would send me under water and periodically freedive down to check I was ok, mmm not the safest of practices. The crab was marginally safer. Cox's Bazaar to the North of the islands, a Bengali beach resort was entertaining for a day or two - the area supposedly boasts the worlds longest (124 kms) and widest beach, anyone confirm this? Its longer than Littlehampton for sure. Hundreds/thousands of Bengalis holiday here, and its a hoot - all in the water, the women in full dress naturally - some of the men in pants & vests. Nobody lies on the beach, but they throng the waters edge.
Ell delighted the crowds on the ferry to St Martins with some sleight of hand. Initially it was the kids who were interested, but soon as is often the case here, a large crowd of adults built up. She made a coin 'disappear', before retrieving it out of a young boys shorts so the speak, 'thief' cried out one of the parents.
The scenery between these 2 places mentioned was glorious, impossible to capture on camera as we were going too fast, padi fields of all shades of green, brightly coloured farmers, and cattle dressed in their finery in advance of Eid festival being led along the roads, sharing the space with cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws and a miriad of different buses including some quality volvo coaches, though others had the thinnest metal casing you can imagine, and resembled papier mache.
We have been in Chittagong today - no travel - as its Eid sacrifice. A little like Nepal, quite a bit of cattle slaughter on the streets. Had a good day with our hired rickshaw driver, visited a couple of mosques, and a WWII memorial grave, which was unfortunately closed. The first mosque was unremarkable, but we had a good hour there as we met Anwar who calmly showed us around the mosque and its attached orphanage, that houses 500 kids of various ages. We also met Elvis, a Cameroon footballer plyying his trade in the Bangladesh league, its fair to say that Elvis attracted perhaps even more attention than us.
I muscled my way into a game of cricket down at the docks, bowled one over, went for about 15, and then faced one over, picked the bowler off through mid wicket for 8 runs, dug out a yorker, and was then hit on the leg, going way down legside, naturally I refused to walk.
Ell delighted the crowds on the ferry to St Martins with some sleight of hand. Initially it was the kids who were interested, but soon as is often the case here, a large crowd of adults built up. She made a coin 'disappear', before retrieving it out of a young boys shorts so the speak, 'thief' cried out one of the parents.
The scenery between these 2 places mentioned was glorious, impossible to capture on camera as we were going too fast, padi fields of all shades of green, brightly coloured farmers, and cattle dressed in their finery in advance of Eid festival being led along the roads, sharing the space with cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws and a miriad of different buses including some quality volvo coaches, though others had the thinnest metal casing you can imagine, and resembled papier mache.
We have been in Chittagong today - no travel - as its Eid sacrifice. A little like Nepal, quite a bit of cattle slaughter on the streets. Had a good day with our hired rickshaw driver, visited a couple of mosques, and a WWII memorial grave, which was unfortunately closed. The first mosque was unremarkable, but we had a good hour there as we met Anwar who calmly showed us around the mosque and its attached orphanage, that houses 500 kids of various ages. We also met Elvis, a Cameroon footballer plyying his trade in the Bangladesh league, its fair to say that Elvis attracted perhaps even more attention than us.
I muscled my way into a game of cricket down at the docks, bowled one over, went for about 15, and then faced one over, picked the bowler off through mid wicket for 8 runs, dug out a yorker, and was then hit on the leg, going way down legside, naturally I refused to walk.
Wednesday, 24 December 2008
Merry Xmas
To all family & friends, and followers of the blog. A very merry xmas indeed from a beautiful sandy beach in Thailand. After 4 weeks without a drink in Bangladesh, we have arrived in hedonistic Thailand, and we are not up to speed! Time for a holiday from our holiday. Love to all xxx
Monday, 8 December 2008
OUR FIRST TRAIN DEC 4th
A 7 hour journey from Srimangal to Chittagong - the 'Paharaka' express, first class for Western & Kiss as there were no superior 2nd class or 'sulob' tickets available. For me its heaven - tea & snacks served throughout the journey, reclining seats (intentional) and AC. A member of the kichen staff is coming down the aisle with a selction of crisps....he's the first one I have let go through. Started off with a chicken roll, which still had the bone in - actually it was more like a bone roll or 'boner' as Ell is calling it. Its not really 'express' as have stopped now at every station, as well as a 'Call to Prayer' break. Needless to say no other westerners to be seen, so thats 3 in 4 days now, all working for NGO's, out of Dhaka. I have just nailed the samosa seller 2 for 10p - less of a snack, more like liquid engineering. Crisp boy coming thru again, but am holding out for some fruit so have let him pass - I dont think he understands why I am picking on him. Have arrived in Chittagong, 9 hours in total.
2 FOR TEA - Dec 1-4 Srimangal
Pretty good bus journey out of Dhaka, escorted to our bus by an exceedingly friendly ticketman which was a help as there were 100s of buses there, with only Bengali script. We'd paid a little more for our seats, I think that this was because it was warm A/C. Co driver handed out water and small bags for anyone if they felt unwell - a nice touch we thought, and obviously one born out of experience because almost as the driver had turned on the ignition, then the young bloke opposite was makking use of his bag, we hadnt even gotten out of the bus station. Seeing this, the co-driver took out some lemon air freshener aerosol, again, nice touch we thought, except he pretty much aimed it directly at the man from point blank range.
Srimangal is bloody marvelous, managed to get a wonderful room at the Bangladesh Tea Research Institute, 2 pound a night each, supper 1.50, and b/fast 1 pound m- still no toast though. The room boy has the hots for Ell so we get good service. This is a quite magical place, not particularly hilly, but enough to make rice growing too difficult, so tea has developed. Very much a British legacy, people/'coolies' brought here from all over India to work the plantations. So, there are many hindus here as well as muslims. The scenery is incredibly beautiful and for the first time since arriving in Bangladesh, we have a bit of space. Have rented bikes and we take ourselves off around the estates, stopping for pictures and snacks and of course tea, including the 'world famous' 5 coloured tea. 5 flavours in 1 glass, sounds horrible? actually its very very good - the top has milk & cinnamon, then you come across, ginger, lemon and black tea, not sure about the 5th. We have visited a couple of tribal villages that are receiving U.S eco tourism aid, which helps them preserve their excellent traditional weaving skills.
I am pleased we didnt employ an over keen local 'guide' to show us around, his english was ok, but I think he had learnt it from TV so it was quite strange. He did though pull brilliant faces when he spoke a - little like Dick Emery's vicar character. We would probably have employed him if he hadnt knocked on our door at night to tell us that he was missing us, whilst trying to run his hand down my chest... I am not sure what TV he head been watching.
Srimangal is bloody marvelous, managed to get a wonderful room at the Bangladesh Tea Research Institute, 2 pound a night each, supper 1.50, and b/fast 1 pound m- still no toast though. The room boy has the hots for Ell so we get good service. This is a quite magical place, not particularly hilly, but enough to make rice growing too difficult, so tea has developed. Very much a British legacy, people/'coolies' brought here from all over India to work the plantations. So, there are many hindus here as well as muslims. The scenery is incredibly beautiful and for the first time since arriving in Bangladesh, we have a bit of space. Have rented bikes and we take ourselves off around the estates, stopping for pictures and snacks and of course tea, including the 'world famous' 5 coloured tea. 5 flavours in 1 glass, sounds horrible? actually its very very good - the top has milk & cinnamon, then you come across, ginger, lemon and black tea, not sure about the 5th. We have visited a couple of tribal villages that are receiving U.S eco tourism aid, which helps them preserve their excellent traditional weaving skills.
I am pleased we didnt employ an over keen local 'guide' to show us around, his english was ok, but I think he had learnt it from TV so it was quite strange. He did though pull brilliant faces when he spoke a - little like Dick Emery's vicar character. We would probably have employed him if he hadnt knocked on our door at night to tell us that he was missing us, whilst trying to run his hand down my chest... I am not sure what TV he head been watching.
BANGLA TIME 26-30/11/08
stuck in traffic Dhaka
Lalbargh fort, Old Dhaka
Stuck in traffic - Old Dhaka
On Dhaka's Buriganga River
Islamic school in the old walls of the city - spot my sunglasses
Buriganga river - Old Dhaka
Outrageous curiosity
The wonderful Abdul Rahim - more guide than rickshaw puller
30p for haircut & shave
on the buriganga river
its just like being a film starYou cant stand still here otherwise a crowd soon builds up around you! Often just staring, waiting of course for something interesting to be said, which invariably doesn't happen! Have been surprised by how little English is spoken, so our Bengali has come on leaps and bounds in 5 days, we know how to say our names, which country we are from, what we think of Bangladesh, and if they have any toast.
Dhaka has a population of about 14 million. Split into 3 x sections, Old Dhaka filled with mosques, a few hindu temples, a fort and narrow streets crammed with all sorts of shops & stalls, a mid town area where we are staying which has many banks, and finally the 'posh' embassy area to the north.
Our path has been effortlessly smoothed by Abdul Rahim, a rickshaw driver with impressive english and even more impressive teeth. On our 3rd day, we went out without him, and an hour later we were still trying to explain that we wanted to go to a travel agency - I was fast entering 'Meldrew' mood.
The highlights so far have been the day in the old town including a trip on Dhaka's Buriganga river - a pungent experience for sure - followed by a top notch biryani AND we saw a tourist, which was quite a novelty.
I had a wonderful shave & haircut for 50p, which included 3 new blades - Gillette is certainly not the best a man can get, and needless to say a fair crowd witnessed this. Men with no hair are considered lucky here, and I must say that right now I feel this!
There are 2 x excellent museums here, one dealing specifically with the 1971 war of liberation, all material captioned in english, very graphic pictures,newspaper cuttings, as well as some photocopied documents between Nixon & Kissinger, where the president instructs Kissinger not to lean to heavily on the West Pakistan president at this particular time, despite the fact that there is widespread killing & torture taking place in old East Pakistan. The museum also displayed a Pakistan torture box, where the captive is bound inside the electric contraption. As Ell pointed out, it would have been far more effective in a country not riddled with power cuts....' phew, that was lucky, I was just about to spill the beans....'
Its not just on the streets where people stand & stare - its also occassionally in a 'restaurant''. The waiter in the Pacific Hotel where we are staying, when I asked him for the bill in poorly pronounced Bengali, repeated it, started to giggle and then continued to stand there. This stand off took a few mintes before he realised that I really did want the bill. The hotel is excellent, 4 pound a night each with attached squat style bathroom, and satellite TV which was useful as we could see the Bombay attacks pan out over half a dozen different channels.
The aforementioned Pacific restaurant has a huge menu, with virtually none of it available. 'Toasted bread' or as they say ' a delicious accompaniment to any main meal' is never available so we have paratha with excellent poached eggs, though they are from what I can tell, fried eggs. The staff are really helpful, and we look forward to returning there later in the trip.
We hope we have secured ourselves a cabin on the famous Bangladeshi paddle steamer 'the rocket' - a 27 hour trip south which should afford us some breathtaking river scenery. We haven't coughed up the money yet, but have been assured that if we pay on the 11th December, then we will depart on the 15th....watch this space. In the meantime we have booked ourselves an AC coach to Srimangal for a few days amongst the tea plantations.
Dhaka has a population of about 14 million. Split into 3 x sections, Old Dhaka filled with mosques, a few hindu temples, a fort and narrow streets crammed with all sorts of shops & stalls, a mid town area where we are staying which has many banks, and finally the 'posh' embassy area to the north.
Our path has been effortlessly smoothed by Abdul Rahim, a rickshaw driver with impressive english and even more impressive teeth. On our 3rd day, we went out without him, and an hour later we were still trying to explain that we wanted to go to a travel agency - I was fast entering 'Meldrew' mood.
The highlights so far have been the day in the old town including a trip on Dhaka's Buriganga river - a pungent experience for sure - followed by a top notch biryani AND we saw a tourist, which was quite a novelty.
I had a wonderful shave & haircut for 50p, which included 3 new blades - Gillette is certainly not the best a man can get, and needless to say a fair crowd witnessed this. Men with no hair are considered lucky here, and I must say that right now I feel this!
There are 2 x excellent museums here, one dealing specifically with the 1971 war of liberation, all material captioned in english, very graphic pictures,newspaper cuttings, as well as some photocopied documents between Nixon & Kissinger, where the president instructs Kissinger not to lean to heavily on the West Pakistan president at this particular time, despite the fact that there is widespread killing & torture taking place in old East Pakistan. The museum also displayed a Pakistan torture box, where the captive is bound inside the electric contraption. As Ell pointed out, it would have been far more effective in a country not riddled with power cuts....' phew, that was lucky, I was just about to spill the beans....'
Its not just on the streets where people stand & stare - its also occassionally in a 'restaurant''. The waiter in the Pacific Hotel where we are staying, when I asked him for the bill in poorly pronounced Bengali, repeated it, started to giggle and then continued to stand there. This stand off took a few mintes before he realised that I really did want the bill. The hotel is excellent, 4 pound a night each with attached squat style bathroom, and satellite TV which was useful as we could see the Bombay attacks pan out over half a dozen different channels.
The aforementioned Pacific restaurant has a huge menu, with virtually none of it available. 'Toasted bread' or as they say ' a delicious accompaniment to any main meal' is never available so we have paratha with excellent poached eggs, though they are from what I can tell, fried eggs. The staff are really helpful, and we look forward to returning there later in the trip.
We hope we have secured ourselves a cabin on the famous Bangladeshi paddle steamer 'the rocket' - a 27 hour trip south which should afford us some breathtaking river scenery. We haven't coughed up the money yet, but have been assured that if we pay on the 11th December, then we will depart on the 15th....watch this space. In the meantime we have booked ourselves an AC coach to Srimangal for a few days amongst the tea plantations.
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