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Published: June 30th 2010
Back in my first love of travel- Kolkata.
On the taxi ride from the airport to Sudder street, I had a wide grin on my bearded face, in contrast to the look of exhaustion and horror I possessed two years ago.
I'm sleeping back in the same guesthouse, sharing a room on the top with my coworker and travel companion Bennyboy. It's been fun showing him around. He has commented on how much more friendly the locals are with me than the folks in China.
Lots of
kamoochen acchen and a few
kaamon accho going around. Good to see friendly familiar faces!
It's remarkable how much development there has been. Mostly things are the same, but there are small and important differences. The huge open-air garbage pit by New Market has been walled off. So has the American consulate, which used to have two sandbagged machine-gun emplacements on the front (maybe they are still there behind the wall). There seem to be more street bathing facilities, and the baths on the east side of Alimuddin now have been given a roof and three walls. The owner of my favorite tea stand has gotten fat, and even the child working at the stand seven meters to the north has a little belly!
Lots of renovations on the posh buildings of Park Street. There is even a (beefless) McDonald's! I will never eat there.
Not to say that the poverty has disappeared.
When Asha, (my street beggar friend with acid burns on her face who makes her money from gullible tourists) saw me, she commented on how fat I have become! One teenager working a chowmein shop told me my beard should be bigger (it's only about three weeks old now).
Most prices are the same, with the exception of a few tea restaurants and tea shops. I'm going to try to do things on the cheap. I'll be spending my American money (hopefully), not my more-precious-by-the-day yuan.
Practicing my
bangla alot. I'm surprised how quickly the few words and phrases I know have come back to me. Somehow it just feels more natural than Chinese.
Bennyboy and I are going to volunteer with the Sisters of the Missionaries of charity. We'll register on Friday. There are a few more faces I need to see in Prem Dam. I'm not sure how long I will stay, I may be off to Nepal and Bangladesh. As they say
escharrer janne /
"The Physical Reality of India" is still rather overwhelming, even for a seasoned veteran like myself. Still, through the heat and noise and humidity and bustle, I feel love.
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Bilwa
non-member comment
Thats great
Hi Brendan Bill here. Its very nice to know that u liked this place in this way...its really commendable..i am an Indian resident in Kolkata...i usually follow this blogs to know simply how the westerners point of view toward our places....once again thanx a lott...we are also trying to improve ourselves.. i also wanna share my knowledge and want to knw many things from u ppl....my contact number is 9231502413...hope to meet wid u soon(not for any kinda business purpose...just for international socializing.:-)) ...and al the best for ur mission...