Well Readers, Madam and I have been talking about touring Old Dhaka. There is always an excuse not to, whether its raining (the monsoon season has started), security situation, other engagements or general lack of planning and apathy. So when the community liaison officer 'Mulligan' (that's his golf handle. It did start off as Waltzing, but soon changed to his current one, when he suddenly started posting decent golf scores. The jury is still out. We are not sure how much he is paying his caddie, but we know he cannae count!)
So when Mulligan suggested a tour of old Dhaka, we jumped at it. So with sweaty cheese sandwiches, tonnes of water and some home baking (of course) we joined 23 intrepid people, who had nothing else better to do on a Friday and set off in a convoy of minibuses into the unknown on a Friday morning (the quiet day in Dhaka), we hadn't realised it but we were in for a treat. First stop Lalbagh Fort.
Anyhow, the fort has had many incarnations but was created in the Mughal period (1575) surviving numerous walls and of course was never completed due to lack of money. It represents the unfulfilled dream of the Mughal Prince. In the centre there is a mausoleum with audience hall to his daughter - Bibi Pari. Opposite there is the practising mosque and on the other side there was his residence surrounded by amazing gardens, empty fountains and dried up tanks.
In the mid 19th century it was the main focus of the Sepoy Revolt, where British marines stormed the fort and killed many of the Sepoy's, throwing their bodies into the bathing and watering pools. The place has housed the police headquarters which came to a bloody end in 1953 during the Pakistan regime. The police were surrounded and gunned down. Since the 1960's it has been allegedly under conservation. Next stop religion.
The Hindu temple was a very much more a relaxed affair but with young and old, male and female taking part. There was a lot of noise, and they all seemed to enjoying it. The laugh was the car park outside was actually bigger than the temple! The temple was a target of attack during the Liberation War in 1971 by the occupying Pakistani forces destroying a lot of it and murdering lots of people.
The gem of the of the religious stops was the Armenian Church, built by Armenians - funny that. The Armenians were a key trader in the area from the 16th century in relation to silk and textiles. This was abruptly stopped when the British arrived and they lost their dominance to the East India Company in 1757. This little church / oasis in the middle of hi rise building and chaos was quite special. The gardens were lush surrounded by the graveyard (supposedly 350 graves) and only opens two or three times a year for service. The church thankfully is placed under Bangladeshi Government as a historical sight.
At this point the tour took a slight detour - excellent. The choice was t walk to the riverside or take the jalopies. Walking was chosen and we traipsed down to the port through Little India.
Little India (Chowk Bazaar)
This was an eye opener and a real feel to Old Dhaka. It was crowded, narrow, rickshaws everywhere and sights to behold. It was quiet today due to it being a Friday, but I hate to think how it would be like when it was a normal working day.
Dhaka Port / Boat Terminal (Sadarghat)
This was an odd place as it was the main place for ferries down the river which generally happened at night. The ferries were three stories each taking around 2000 people on each floor. The guide reckoned you could double that on same occasions. Beside the ferries were the river taxis. Supposedly around 50000 people use the facilities and work there every day. The place was featured on a BBC programme looking at a Brit working on the boats from Woolwich. Iconic stuff me saw.
At this point the rain started which was fine for us hardy Scots. Other members of the party less attuned to head back leaving a small hard core to go for some tea before venturing to the Pink Palace and the Liberation War Museum.
This involved lots of counting, recounting, trying to extricate bags from minibuses and seemed to take longer than you would think. It must have been the rain that's was dulling. The guide new of a wee place for a cup of tea. Now tea here is different to anywhere else. It is served very sweet with carnation milk. I could feel my rotting before it had arrived. Due to prayer time all museums, cultural activities are closed from 12 to 3pm, hence the the pause in proceedings. For there it was the Pink Palace.
Pink Palace (Ahsan Manzil)
The palace serves as a government office and trading centre by the British before being sold to the Dhaka nawab family in the mid 19th century as their private residence. When they died off it was in disrepair until 1985 when it was restored. Allegedly Lord Curzon (British Viceroy of India) stayed there regularly.
The place is located just opposite the river with a once fantastic gardens. Inside there is this odd snap shot to those who lived and partied in the place. As usual the humidity and heat are having their toll and I am in no doubt that the artefacts will be lost in due course down to plain old bad curating - hey ho.
After this quick stop it was onto some more contemporary history of Bangladesh - the Liberation War Museum.
The Liberation War Museum
Now this place reminded me of the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. The CCM was located in an apartment (best way to describe it) beside the the actual checkpoint charlie. Lost of photos article, stories on bits of paper and stuck everywhere - all a bit haphazard but revealing of what the struggle and history of the location. The LWM is very similar with a courtyard for a cafe. you go into different rooms which details the build up, the war, the characters involved and immediate aftermath. The photos reveal how women were heavily involved in the fighting (something which I hadn't appreciated) and also the mass death that took place. Repercussions from that time are still being felt in the politics, war crimes tribunal and the make up of a Bangladeshi.
After this it was fighting our way back through the traffic, back to moon base or something like that. A great day out and an eye opening to what is Old Dhaka and what else needs to be seen. I can see this being revisited Readers.
So when Mulligan suggested a tour of old Dhaka, we jumped at it. So with sweaty cheese sandwiches, tonnes of water and some home baking (of course) we joined 23 intrepid people, who had nothing else better to do on a Friday and set off in a convoy of minibuses into the unknown on a Friday morning (the quiet day in Dhaka), we hadn't realised it but we were in for a treat. First stop Lalbagh Fort.
Now Madam and I had encountered the Fort somewhat briefly in November 2012 when we saw it being used as a backdrop for Sanglap, produced by the BBC World Service Trust. Well now was the time to see it close up. The fort is the heart of Old Dhaka and is surrounded by madness. At the four corners of the fort are mosques, which creates an unusual cacophony when the call prayer to happens. They are not in time and say something different. Talk about a weird babble echo.
Anyhow, the fort has had many incarnations but was created in the Mughal period (1575) surviving numerous walls and of course was never completed due to lack of money. It represents the unfulfilled dream of the Mughal Prince. In the centre there is a mausoleum with audience hall to his daughter - Bibi Pari. Opposite there is the practising mosque and on the other side there was his residence surrounded by amazing gardens, empty fountains and dried up tanks.
In the mid 19th century it was the main focus of the Sepoy Revolt, where British marines stormed the fort and killed many of the Sepoy's, throwing their bodies into the bathing and watering pools. The place has housed the police headquarters which came to a bloody end in 1953 during the Pakistan regime. The police were surrounded and gunned down. Since the 1960's it has been allegedly under conservation. Next stop religion.
Religion
The tour took us to the oldest mosque The Star Mosque (Tara Masjid) - well it is covered in stars, the state owned Hindu temple (Dhakeshwari Temple) and a christian Church in Bangladesh. Now being prayer day, the mosque was busy, but we managed to see the small building with various rooms off it. Due to it being holy day some of the women of the party were refused entry due to dress code.
The Hindu temple was a very much more a relaxed affair but with young and old, male and female taking part. There was a lot of noise, and they all seemed to enjoying it. The laugh was the car park outside was actually bigger than the temple! The temple was a target of attack during the Liberation War in 1971 by the occupying Pakistani forces destroying a lot of it and murdering lots of people.
The gem of the of the religious stops was the Armenian Church, built by Armenians - funny that. The Armenians were a key trader in the area from the 16th century in relation to silk and textiles. This was abruptly stopped when the British arrived and they lost their dominance to the East India Company in 1757. This little church / oasis in the middle of hi rise building and chaos was quite special. The gardens were lush surrounded by the graveyard (supposedly 350 graves) and only opens two or three times a year for service. The church thankfully is placed under Bangladeshi Government as a historical sight.
At this point the tour took a slight detour - excellent. The choice was t walk to the riverside or take the jalopies. Walking was chosen and we traipsed down to the port through Little India.Little India (Chowk Bazaar)
This was an eye opener and a real feel to Old Dhaka. It was crowded, narrow, rickshaws everywhere and sights to behold. It was quiet today due to it being a Friday, but I hate to think how it would be like when it was a normal working day.Dhaka Port / Boat Terminal (Sadarghat)
This was an odd place as it was the main place for ferries down the river which generally happened at night. The ferries were three stories each taking around 2000 people on each floor. The guide reckoned you could double that on same occasions. Beside the ferries were the river taxis. Supposedly around 50000 people use the facilities and work there every day. The place was featured on a BBC programme looking at a Brit working on the boats from Woolwich. Iconic stuff me saw. 
At this point the rain started which was fine for us hardy Scots. Other members of the party less attuned to head back leaving a small hard core to go for some tea before venturing to the Pink Palace and the Liberation War Museum.This involved lots of counting, recounting, trying to extricate bags from minibuses and seemed to take longer than you would think. It must have been the rain that's was dulling. The guide new of a wee place for a cup of tea. Now tea here is different to anywhere else. It is served very sweet with carnation milk. I could feel my rotting before it had arrived. Due to prayer time all museums, cultural activities are closed from 12 to 3pm, hence the the pause in proceedings. For there it was the Pink Palace.
Pink Palace (Ahsan Manzil)
The place is located just opposite the river with a once fantastic gardens. Inside there is this odd snap shot to those who lived and partied in the place. As usual the humidity and heat are having their toll and I am in no doubt that the artefacts will be lost in due course down to plain old bad curating - hey ho.
After this quick stop it was onto some more contemporary history of Bangladesh - the Liberation War Museum.
The Liberation War Museum
Now this place reminded me of the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. The CCM was located in an apartment (best way to describe it) beside the the actual checkpoint charlie. Lost of photos article, stories on bits of paper and stuck everywhere - all a bit haphazard but revealing of what the struggle and history of the location. The LWM is very similar with a courtyard for a cafe. you go into different rooms which details the build up, the war, the characters involved and immediate aftermath. The photos reveal how women were heavily involved in the fighting (something which I hadn't appreciated) and also the mass death that took place. Repercussions from that time are still being felt in the politics, war crimes tribunal and the make up of a Bangladeshi.
After this it was fighting our way back through the traffic, back to moon base or something like that. A great day out and an eye opening to what is Old Dhaka and what else needs to be seen. I can see this being revisited Readers.
