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 Palatial Residence for Raj Era by lynnehamman
In Sudder Street, which is THE back-packer paradise of Kolkata- there stands a wonderful marble bust of Rabindranath Tagore- Kolkata's favourite son. It is covered with dust and bird droppings, and has not seen a clean in ages. I spotted it quite by chance. One would hope that these sort of monuments would be looked after.
Unfortunately- we came upon many examples of such neglect and decay in Kolkata. The only possible conclusion that I could come to is that maybe Kolkatans have other priorities. Its a very tough city, with an overloaded infrastructure and population.
We bought a wonderful book in Park Street, at the Oxford Bookstore, which is a guide to walking in Kolkata. I suggest that the purchase of this book will make your visit to Kolkata that much more memorable. We certainly found it to be invaluable.
A Jaywalker's Guide to Calcutta- by Soumitra Das will take you on an unimaginable adventure, and you will see the other side of the city, when it was really The City of Palaces.
I miss the energy and vibrancy of this city- there is something new to discover around every crowded corner and in every mysterious narrow lane. Leave a Comment
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Many cities in the world lack the breathing space. Calcutta is more polluted than its' European/ American or even southeast Asian counter parts. However, Kolkata was built by the British on the bank of river Ganges on the pattern of London as exact replica but over the years, the city has grown leaps and bounds creating more problem and pollution. While govt. regulates and regularly fines the cars with EUROIII emission even at the slightest fault. It has never really done anything the monoxide emitting buses (both govt. & private) and the diesel taxis. So by evening Calcutta air become highly polluted. People from the city flock in the maidan and near the Ganges for fresh air and for nostalgia. It is almost a regular feature of Kolkata, try this to visit near the Victoria in the evening, you will realize why.
The Maidan area , Victoria memorial, the fort William, the Baboo Ghat, Outram Jetty the Eden gardens, the princep jetty and the lawn itself are enough to bring nostalgia to Bengalis and non - Bengalis. The serenity, the people, the culture is unique in nature and found nowhere in the country. Ask any young or old who has lived in Kolkata, will share the same experience. The famous Nandan, the art gallery, the Ravindra Sadan, Indian Museum all located in the same area. Leave a Comment
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 Mainland China & Barista,
Gurusaday Road, Kolkata. by Kumarjit
The remnants of Calcutta and a fresh new Kolkata that emerged out of this craze. While Calcutta was all about tradition and history, Kolkata is all about chic shopping malls, pubs, parties and young hangouts. And this change began just five years back and is still in progress. Luxury cars are the preferred over two-wheelers, one-stop shops are the choice of the people now. Wide roads, flyovers and highrises have done nothing but accelerated this process. A visit to some of the places in the city evidently proves this. Check out places like Camac Street, Shakespeare Sarani, Loudon Street, A.J.C. Bose Road, Gariahat Road, Bullygaunge Circular Road, Russell Street, Park Street and The Chowringhee Road.
Instead of old coffee shops people now prefer to go to hip cafes like Barista, Subway, One Step Up!, or Cafe Coffee Day. There was a time when the entire city used to shut down by 10pm. at night. But now, the day seems to begin at 9pm. - such are the incredible changes that have swept the city completely. Old and boring places have now been transformed so much that they have become some of the hottest areas of the city. For example the building that you can see in the picture belonged to the Uniworth House, which was nothing but an office. But as you can see now, it is not Uniworth House any more - it now houses one of the best Chinese Restaurants in Kolkata, The MAINLAND CHINA and a very cosy, chic cafe, Barista(click on the picture to get a better view).
So, I would like to welcome you to this new Kolkata and oops! I hope you don't mind to be 'Gone With The Wind' !
The best thing about Kolkata is that it can accept changes that are so sudden. When I aksed a few elderly people in the city about what they thought of this change, the answers were mostly positive. They had, or rather, they have no qualms about the recent changes that have swept the city. "Changes are inevitable. If you want to survive in this world, you do need to change yourself with the changing times and be accommodative" - was the answer that I got from one of them. Kolkata! Here we come!
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 Getting directions by RickinDutch
Calcutta isn't the easiest place to find your way around. Street names change from block to block and traffic jams occur unexpectedly. I always seemed to get lost. What I always remember is how folks would just gather if you stopped and were very curious about what an anglo was doing in their neighborhood and what could they do to help. Never run across that anywhere else. If you want to gather a huge crowd - have a fender bender! Leave a Comment
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Among the many exhibits of the Indian Museum, there is a large room filled with wonderful ancient Buddhist mandalas made from stone and intricate wood carvings... Also, there are many exquisite sculptural representations, including the loveliest sveltest Tara I have ever seen...! But the best highlight is a room displaying sculptures of many Gandharan boddhisattvas...! Ancient Gandhara was the part of what we now call Afghanistan that was conquered by Alexander the Great... An amazing syncretism of classical Hellenic ideals with ancient Buddhist concepts took place as the Greek warriors settled in their newly found shangri-la, far from their homeland and began to absorb the local culture... Leave a Comment
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The Indian Museum of Calcutta, while being essentially a slightly subpar exhibition space by world standards, contains several fascinating exhibits which are nearly impossible to find in other "more civilized" parts of the world... One thing not to be missed, is the interior courtyard with its many-arched porticos and lovely green landscaping of grass and plants, a very relaxing environment, especially if you're lucky enough, as I was, to be there during one of Calcutta's rainy downpours... Leave a Comment
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 City of Joy, Calcutta by sourbugger
This must make it harder to attract new industries to the city, who may more naturally gravitate towards more 'modern' cities such as Bangalore.
The book 'City of Joy' following the avaentures of an American Doctor, who leaves his job to 'find himself' gets drawn into helping the rickshaw pullers of Calcutta. It is certainly an inspiring book - and hence the ironic title.
It was also made into a film starring Patrick Swayze. Whilst not a 'monster' hit, it is still worth seeking out and watching before a visit - even if you can't stand the acting talents of Mr Swayze. Leave a Comment
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 At Pizza Hut, Camac Street,
Kolkata by Kumarjit
Please try out the cuisines in the following restaurants in Calcutta:
1. Mainland China (situated in Gurusaday Dutta Road)
2. Krystal Chopstick (situated in Hindustan Park, near Gariahat Road)
3. Marco Polo in China (situated in Park Street)
4. Jong's (Situated in Park Street)
5. Pizza Hut (situated in Camac Street)
6. Baan Thai (at the Oberoi Grand)
7. Sharma's (for sweets)
8. One Step Up(Park Street), for a wonderful cafe experience.
If I am away from Calcutta, what I miss the most is definitely the food. No other place in India offers such wide varieties of cuisines from accross the world. It is truly a wonderful experience for anyone who has visited the city recently, as so many new eateries have come up now!
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Mother Teresa's mission is known all over the world, but there are other incredible characters who have given their lives to work amongst the poor of Calcutta.
One of these is commonly known a s 'Doctor Jack'. Jack Preger himself is of an Orthodox Jewish background and completed his medical training in Dublin after doing PPE at Oxford. After first heading out in 1972 to Bangladesh following a radion appeal for doctors he ended up in Calcutta.
He began issuing free prescriptions to the very poorest on Calcutta's streets. The work has expanded slowly, and now the organisation is known as "Calcutta rescue". He has tended to keep a somewhat low-profile as the Indian goverment have not exactly supported his presence - mainly due to the protest he has organised concening Bangladeshi children who have mysteriously disappeared.
It is a cause that is well worth your support.
Also note the very clever bags that prescriptions are put into - giving instuctions on dosage to to illiterate. Leave a Comment
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One of Calcuttas landmarks- Victoria Memorial is an ornate hunderd year old marble structure from the days of the raj. The design is said to have been inspired by the Taj mahal.
On the death of queen Victoria, the then viceroy to India- lord Curzon, decided to construct a memorial to honour the queen... Much of the funds for the project were raised from voulantary contributions by the Indian princes and thegeneral public.
http://www.victoriamemorial-cal.org/
Photography (and the use of mobile phones) is prohibitted inside the memorial building. I couldnt resist getting at least one shot (sneakily- using my camera phone). Its one of the better displays as far as museums in India go- very informative and organised. Lots of history- the history of calcutta thru the ages- the east india company, the british raj and then the various socio-political/ cultural movements of the region... Leave a Comment
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