Random Topics
A big hug to @CoffeeAddiction @EatPrayLove @catlover310887 @RandmlySignedFFadict @BabyAmaRockstar for helping me stay awake and pushing me to move my lazy bum and type it. Btw you can add on to the lists if you like and point out if I missed something :)
# Why I’m the wrong person for writing this book?
I think I should have told this to you earlier but better late than never.
My Bengali is horrible. I don’t know how to read to read or write Bengali. I can read a bit and I can write my name in Bengali but that’s all I know about it. Yeah it’s my mother tongue and I can speak Bengali. But there are a few non-Bengali people settled here who speak better Bengali than me.
My Bengali is accented and even while speaking Bengali I tend to mix Hindi words. I actually even go to the extent of inventing words and sentences which are a mix of Hindi and Bangla.
I’m pretty sure Tagore and Vidyasagar would definitely have had a cardiac attack if they had the chance of listening to my Bengali. That’s how horrible it is.
But I’m enjoying writing this book very much so you are stuck with me.
Now that I’ve confessed it, I don’t feel guilty about writing this book. So let’s move on to the next topic.
#1 When boredom strikes
When boredom strikes, what most of us do is watch TV or read a book or end up wasting a hell lot of time on the Internet.
I have no idea about time pass Bengali Style. But we all are human at the end of the day so I guess the things I mentioned above are universal.
In case you are hanging out with your friends, the topics of discussion are very random.
But when I imagine time-pass Bengali Style I think it would be something like this :-
A bunch of people gathered together (location doesn’t matter) for Adda (gossip) and listening to music (source doesn’t matter) and discussing about the music. The topic of discussion might vary from sports to politics.
They might even end up discussing the difference between new and old cinema, from directors to actors over the era and what not.
But just in case you are a tourist in one of the following cities:- Kolkata, Siliguri, Digha or any Hill Station in North Bengal I would suggest you the following things.
Kolkata:
Go out for a walk, you will definitely find a Street Food Stall. Not all of them are good but most of them have heavenly delicious food.
If you are in a mood for non-veg food, then try out any restaurant in the Park Street or Park Circus area.
Well for the Shopaholics then definitely visit Esplanade New Market and Gariahat. You will get everything there.
But the bad thing about Esplanade area is that it’s always over-crowded. But the crowd in Gariahat is a bit lighter in comparison. Go to Esplanade only if you don’t mind crowded areas. But that’s just my opinion.
There are a few marketing complexes in Esplanade where you can buy things at really low rate. Some of the stores have fixed price but you can bargain in certain shops. You can buy sandals for Rs 100 only. They also have a tattoo and piercing parlor.
I have already told you about the Baraf Ka Gola you can try there in another chapter.
But there’s something about shopping in Gariahat. There’s another market called Dakshinapan not that far away from Gariahat.
You can always catch a movie at the nearest single-screen hall. It’s a unique experience.
You can always go Boating at the Lake or go for Horse riding near Victoria.
I don’t think I need to mention the tourist attraction spots but still here you go:-
Victoria Memorial, Birla Planetarium, ScienceCity, NiccoPark, St. Peter’s Church, Princep Ghat, Timezone (VideoGame Parlor in South City Mall).
I can’t remember more names at this moment.
But if you are interested in Haunted Places, here are a few places which are frequently mentioned in the internet:-
Hastings House, National Library, Rabindra Sarobar Metro Station and ParkStreetCemetery.
From what I’ve read in the internet about ParkStreetCemetery, it appears to be really spooky. But whenever I get a chance to explore that place myself, I’ll let you know if I encountered a ghost or not.
Now let’s move on to the next destination, which is
Siliguri
Go for a long drive in Sevoke or Rohini or Tindharia. A lot of Hill Stations are just a drive away from there.
Go and explore your spiritual mind or whatever that’s called in ISKONTemple. I do wonder if they still have that scary house show at the temple.
Try out the phuchka, momo, jhal muri, Baraf ka Gola, matri and lots of other food. Try out the Titora. It’s available in some stores of Hong Kong Market.
That reminds me of shopping! You can get everything in Hong Kong Market.
My advice: Don’t go brand hopping there. If you want to buy branded products, go to the Mall.
They used have this local ice cream brand called Mewad or something, they sold cone ice creams for Rs. 1,2 and 5 only. But that was 6 years ago and I don’t know if the brand is still there or not. I’m not even sure if there has been a price hike of the ice cream.
If you are a fan of North Indian Food then you can find loads of Dhabas and Restaurants at the outskirts as well as in Hill Cart Road.
If you are visiting that place during Durga Puja Vijaya Dashami or Chhat Puja then do visit the MahanandaBridge near Airview More.
The Hill Stations near Siliguri which you must visit during your stay are:-
Mirik –you can go horse riding and boating there.
Dudhiya- Just enjoy the nature.
They are popular picnic spots as well.
Now if you happen to prefer beaches over mountains, you can visit
Digha
Well I can’t tell you much about Digha, but I think it’s a beach and that’s all you need to know about that place.
You can try the sea food at various local restaurants. There are various shops located near the beach. I don’t know much about shopping in that area but you will find lots of hawkers in the beach selling shells and toys. If you go to the keychain shops, you can order them to engrave your name in your favorite key chain.
You can always go for a long walk down the beach. That’s all I know about that place.
That’s all I know about Tourism.
Now moving on to a semi-off-topic rant
#Why I hate traveling by the bus?
If I had to sum up my feelings about the bus in one sentence, it would be: It’s too damn crowded and the damn traffic signals! I’m actually flaring my nostrils right now.
And it’s not coming from a person who travels by the bus once in a blue moon.
I do it almost everyday and that’s where two precious hours of my life gets wasted everyday.
If you are lucky enough, you will get a bus with vacant seats and the bus won’t get stuck on traffic. But that’s something which happens rarely.
Once while I was traveling by the bus, it stood at one red signal for freaking 20 minutes! Things like that happen mostly, when you are already late and you need to reach your destination ASAP.
There’s always that one passenger who gets into a fight with the conductor or another passenger.
Some of the common phrases you will hear the conductor say are:
Bhara ta din (give the fare)
Khuchhroo taka din ( give us the exact change or something like that)
Agey namte din lok jon k (let the passengers get down first)
Dekhe namben (be careful while stepping down from the bus)
Most of the times the conductors are helpful but, what makes the ride a nightmare are the passengers.
My advice: Try to take the window seat. If you have traveled in a crowded bus, you’ll know why.
Sometimes I’ve to travel for 45 minutes in a crowded bus. It’s worse when you’ve to keep standing up for the entire journey.
It’s a touchy topic and even thinking about it makes me tired.
So I’ll take my leave now.
Until next time priyo lok jon ;)