Week 47: If only visas were sold at places like Bashundara City

47th-1st in Dhaka 7/23

Saw workers chip sealing parts of the roads today. The process was intense. Giant barrels over burning fires to heat the asphalt cement! The workers face some intense hot conditions! (pic: workers chip sealing a part of Sat Masjid Road by heating the asphalt cement over giant fires)
















Today I went to BUET to work, but found out the hard way that all the computer labs I use were restricted to only students registering for courses. In fact the computer labs are all reserved for registering students for the next 4 days! When I went by one time, it was empty, and still they wouldn’t let me in.
To kill the many hours until my evening meeting with Dr. Rahman, Shegufta and I went out and took the measurements of three buses that start nearby to BUET in Azimpur. She was bothered by the heat and the sun, but she was still a great sport and stuck with me the whole way.
I finally was told to go to a computer lab I’d never been in before, and had to ask the moderator there how to log in, as it’s a whole other system from the other labs I use (each lab seems to require its own log ins, no central network.) They just let me log in as an administrator after I complained saying I need to do some work today! (pics: myself in front of one of the buses I ride, my assistant Shegufta helping me collect data)





















Met with Dr. Rahman today about my paper. He had a few comments that I should make sure I clean up for the final submission. It was good to hear that he thought the paper was looking good, and that I should be proud to have it at the conference.

On the street today I found bite-size fuchka! This really excited me for some reason. (pic: bite size fuchka)















I sent an email to all the new Fulbrights letting them know I’m selling my furniture, and also to let them know about my flat in case they are interested in moving in.

Tonight my store owner and the guy who fed me jackfruit came by my place. The jackfruit guy wanted to check out my fridge. He also looked at my DVD player and my ceiling fan. He was very insulted that I wouldn’t just give them to him at whatever price he named. He complained that he’s a poor man and can’t afford so much, and I told him my prices stand as I like, and I’m not going to lose tons of money just because he wants to tell me he’s poor. He doesn’t have to own a DVD player. My store owner also guilt tripped me to try and give him my bed. Although I’m supposed to be getting 75% back for it from the store I bought it at, the store owner told me give it to him because he’s a friend and actually knows me. The cost of this friendship, 50% less for the bed! I wasn’t falling for these tricks.

47th-2nd in Dhaka 7/24

Recently I’ve also been plowing through the Southeast Asia guide book. That trip is one I’m very much less ready for, and don’t even know what I want to see and do. But the book is extremely helpful for helping me pick my highlights and my modes of transport.

Today was my first time collecting data on buses for a long time, and for my return I did a hard day of four local buses! By the end I didn’t want to be on them at all anymore! I rode the #13 route four times in a row, breaking for two tea breaks and a lunch break in between, none of which were very long. The buses all got very crowded, the last one the most because it was during the post-rush hour period. But it felt very good to accomplish so much. So many people talked to me today, and I realized if it wasn’t for these strangers, I might go all day without talking to someone.

No real highlights from the day’s work. One man stayed to talk to me after the route because he was so excited to meet a foreigner. I also had my photo snapped, and I walked up and asked him to see it, and his friends teased him.

47th-3rd in Dhaka 7/25

I visited Bashundara City with Santa for some lunch and shopping. The place was very empty. We had Taco Bell, which was the best Mexican food I’ve had in Bangladesh. Please take note that this is not a real Taco Bell, they just stole the name, menu, and pictures. They gave plenty of cheese and sour cream, and even gave it attractive displays for only being in a mall’s fast food court. Santa also liked it, it being her first time eating it. (pics: the best taco I've had in Bangladesh at the Taco Bell in Bashundara City, Santa eating her first ever Mexican food)
















We shopped at Bashundara for awhile looking at shoes. I ended up buying two new pairs, and even bargaining one down immensely. The other was from a fixed price shop with low prices. She bought two pairs of sandals. (pics: shopping at Bashundara City, buying shoes)
















Remembering the clothing under my bed, seeing the cockroaches in my boots a few weeks ago, and always seeing cockroaches scurrying for the safety to the nether regions of my bed, I decided it was time to check out what was under there. I looked through my things and checked for new cockroach civilizations. Well I pulled out a few bags of clothes, and although there was some cockroach poop here and there, nothing look infested. Then I came to the boxes of shoes. Well it seems cockroaches have their preferences when it comes to inhabiting things. One of the pairs of shoes I’d bought months ago had many cockroaches living inside. They were pretty good at finding the shoe, it was pretty buried in the stack and piles of things. After dumping them out, killing some, and sweeping the poop and eggs into the garbage, I put all the clean good stuff in my suitcase to stay safe from cockroaches (and the mold which seems to be getting everything.)

47th-4th in Dhaka 7/26

This morning I spent time trying to organize my trip to India. Choosing between airlines and trains, and when to actually take these between city trips. In my searching around at flights, I stumbled on that Air India Express has a flight form Dhaka to Bangkok, and its cheaper than what I bought on Best Air last week, although I’d have to quickly switch planes in Kolkata. $60 cheaper is a lot of money though.

Went to Bashundara City to meet with a girl who had contacted me through email and had wanted to know more about my work. She had found my blog from NC State Engineering’s main page, and contacted me to learn more about what I was doing here. She graduated from BUET earlier this year, and has since been working for an engineering design firm, but is thinking of switching careers to transportation from structures. We had a good conversation ranging from my work, transportation issues in Dhaka, traffic management ideas around the world, and the application process of American graduate schools.

After I went to New Market to get the last of clothing ordered. I bought the fabric for a camel sport coat, and three more shirts, two with French cuffs for the cuff links I just had ordered to be made. Will have all this finished in a few weeks. While leaving, I found a snack called pakora, which was fried balls of spinach. Was delicious and had gathered a huge crowd who were getting it while it was hot!

Tonight my mom called me to tell me that they had to put my cat Archie down this morning. Over the past week his health had deteriorated, and today it reached a point that was causing him immense pain. They made the choice to put him down. I cried when mom told me. Archie was only two years old, and very sweet, very friendly.
My boua came after mom called. She was telling me she was going back to her village for the week. Her sister is sick. She saw I was crying. Her advice to me, “Don’t cry. Pray to Allah and ask for good healthy and safety. He will provide. Don’t cry.” It was very sweet of her.

47th-5th in Dhaka 7/27

Today might have been my most successful day of bus riding. Although a new record for number of buses was not set, I rode a bus four times straight, with only a short break for a lunch and a quick hop off for a tea and an ice cream later. I rode the same bus all day long, so I was with the same group of employees for all four routes. Essentially, I got to see how life is like for them, as I was only taking the breaks they took. Well, they stayed on the bus except for the lunch break.
On one of the routes, I struck up a conversation with one of the workers. He told me about their work schedule, apparently it is a 24 hour work day, and they work alternating days. They have a breakfast, lunch, and dinner break, and then a four hour nap break from midnight to 4am when the buses don’t run. Otherwise, it is continuous work, at least 17 hours of actual work! Every other day.
The day was tiring, but I only dozed off shortly on the second bus ride. Was fine for the third and fourth. The guys were helpful, not annoying, and didn’t bother me when I was working. The routes were long. This is the most bus riding I’ve done in a period of time. In 9.5 hours I rode a bus for 8.5 hours. Rear end was sore at the end.

Apparently there was an earthquake last night. I can’t lie, I didn’t even know about it until I read about it in the news tonight at home on the internet. Apparently it was bad enough it shook people out of bed. I was to find out later that even some of my friends had felt it. I slept right through it I guess. I am also the boy who when I was younger slept through the smoke alarms in my house. However, I would still call myself a light sleeper, as I wake up several times every night.

47th-6th in Dhaka 7/28

I went to Gulshan today to pick up my visa from the Vietnam Embassy, but to also do work at the bus stops on Airport Road near Banani.
The working went fine. I found a good spot for observing where I could sit. I had to develop a new system for counting, as there were many buses passing by. In fact it was 350 per hour I’d found out! I resorted to only recording arrival and departure times for the buses on my research list, and simply counting the other buses as non-crowded or crowded, without recording their names. It worked out well, and I enjoyed it a lot. Glad to have a system for these busier stops established now. I collected at Kakoli in the AM peak period, and at Kakoli and Banani during the midday period. I meant to collect at night, but after the issue with my visa, see below, I decided to postpone for a day I wasn’t so frustrated.

In the morning I went with Farabi to Ferdous tailors, where he got a tuxedo made a while back. He was there to help me out, let me know what he chose, and to maybe ask about why the price was so much higher for me than him. It appears that prices had just gone up. They are one of the most renowned tailors in town, and they know people will pay for their work. But it wasn’t too high compared to other places I’d looked into, so I went ahead. We chose the fabric for the shirt and the tuxedo. I chose which details I wanted, declined a bowtie because they would only make it pre-tied, and I want to have one where I can tie it myself. But did get a cumberbund. I get to see the sample within the week. It’ll be nice to have my own tailored tuxedo. I’ll never have to pay expensive rental fees again, and never have to use a tuxedo that hundreds of other guys have worn before me. I even think the price to get this made is equal if not less than just one tuxedo rental in the US!

In the afternoon, Farabi was with me, and he came with me to the Vietnam Embassy to pick up my visa. I remember telling him beforehand, “I hope nothing is wrong, and I can just get it and go.” I think I say this little thought to myself every time I pick up something, from clothes to visas.
Well I got the visa after submitting my receipt, the guard brought it down from the Vietnamese Embassy (apartment) and I checked it out. It looked great, wait, no, the dates are wrong. They gave me all of September until October 1, but I’m traveling in October! Uh oh! I point out the mistake to the guard, and he looks at me and says this is what I receive. The only thing he would do for me is give me the phone number I can call to complain.
I called the number, and a nice woman picked it up, and I started describing my problem. She listened, and asked me to tell her again. After repeating, she asked who I was looking for. I said who is this? She told me it wasn’t an embassy, it was a home number.
I told the unhelping guard he’d given me the wrong number. He looked at the paper, and realized he’d written an “8” instead of a “4” somewhere in the number (despite my anger for wasting my time, I can’t blame him because a Bengali “4” looks like an English “8” and I’m sure that was the mistake he made in his head.)
Called the number, the ambassador himself picked up. I described the problem, and told him I was still downstairs. He told me I had asked for those dates, and that’s what he gave me. Said they even sent the application to Hanoi to verify everything. He then sent down my application to show to me that there had been confusion over what I wanted. I could tell why, because over the “10” I had written for October, a giant “9” was scribbled over it. I didn’t remember doing that, and can’t imagine why I would. I told the guard, who told me to call the number again, and explained it to the ambassador. I told him I didn’t do that, but he insisted I did…and I realized that no matter what I said, whether they did it or not, I was stuck. The “no I didn’t” “yes you did” would go on until I angered him. So instead I asked him what I had to do to get the dates I’d wanted, how we could change it. He said the only way was to buy a whole new visa, and re-apply with a new application. Luckily I didn’t have to submit all my bank statements and photos again.
During this whole time, Farabi was fighting with the guard about the application, fighting for me, saying this isn’t fair, you can’t just give an incorrect visa time and again just so you get more money.
I put in a new application. After waiting and waiting for the ambassador to get out of a meeting, the guard finally brought the application up. And came back down to collect my new visa fee, an additional Tk3700.

Here is how I broke down the situation, and why I did what I did. I had 3 choices.
Refuse to get a new visa and pay an additional visa fee. This means I would never travel to Vietnam as I would not be able to make it to Vietnam before the visa ended on October 1. I’d be out my first Tk3700. It’d be paying that much money to NOT travel there, seems pretty silly. Plus, Amy, my travel partner, already successful got her visa, and I couldn’t put her out like that.
Get very angry on the phone and fight with the ambassador about who really wrote the 9 over my 10. This would put me in bad favor, and he’d likely just say “don’t call again” and I’d never get a new visa, and I’d still be out my first Tk3700. And still put Amy in a bad situation.
I could just accept it and put in a new application and pay the additional Tk3700. At least I’d still get to go to Vietnam (pending approval of course)
Another way to reason it out was: pay Tk3700 to not go to Vietnam, or pay tk7400 to still get to go. This stuff happens, whether at my own fault or someone else’s. I’m not the only person ever to have these kinds of problems, so I’m just dealing with it. If you want to read about worse problems, my friends Jen and Ben have spent tons of money and lots of time trying to extend their visas to stay in Bangladesh.

47th-7th in Dhaka 7/29

I skyped with Sandee in the morning. Been a bit since I talked to her, and we had plenty to talk about.

Our area is without water today. They said with the heat we are having, the water lines are dry since everyone has used all the water up.

I met with Dr. Rahman, and we went over some graphs that I had produced recently. He provided comments, and we discussed what the results are saying. Before and after this I did curbside data collections at Kalabagan.

I also dropped by Aziz Super Market midday, and looked at the selection of Bengali t-shirts. Some have long poems on them, but others have short sayings, and I wanted to pick some up before I leave. This proved to be easier said than done. There was so many choices, and I couldn’t choose. I’ll have to come back, I only bought one today.

Week 43: Emily and Travis arrive, but so does the monsoon, so we bolt for Nepal

43rd-1st in Dhaka 6/25

Today was my last day to work at BUET before friends start coming tomorrow. I gave Shegufta some data sheets that I simply wanted entered into excel, no analysis, just needed them digitized. She had a bit of a hard time reading my hand writing, but after she grew accustomed to it, she seemed to work a bit faster.
I spent the time loading data into the database, but realizing I didn’t have my flash drive, I’d have to rely on them being saved on BUET computers to keep it all. Also gave copies to Shegufta to save for me on her home computer. I always seem to forget critical pieces at critical times.

I met up with Farabi at his house. We headed straight out to Banani’s Road 11, a pretty hip place with lots of neat restaurants. We headed over to the Moo Barn, a new Tex-Mex restaurant. I had high hopes for it, really wanting it to be a delicious cheesy Mexican feast. Far from. Nachos were a bit better than I’ve had before here but still not enough cheese.
We then got some gelato at Club Gelato. We also roamed the road for a bit, checking out a few stores and restaurants. I showed him Sub City and was looking to prove to him that they never have anything they say they have, including turkey. But today I was gladly proven wrong. The owner said they have all the ingredients now, including the turkey breast, as he said “just like you’d see in Subway in America.”

From there we went back home. Going to Banani and back I took Farabi on the #6 bus, his first time bus riding. Showing him the ropes.

Back at home we played cards until dinner, where we stuffed ourselves so full, and then ate mango. His aunt is a great cook and always seems to have a delicious snack ready for us. I spent the night there so I could be in Gulshan for an early morning data collection at Gulshan-1.

43rd-2nd in Dhaka 6/26

Woke up at Farabi’s and headed out to collect data. On a whim I asked him last night if he wanted to help collect data. He surprisingly said he would. So I taught him the basics of how to do the curb side data collection, orientated him on which bus was which since he couldn’t read the Bengali names, and then watched as he practiced a bit. He was feeling good, so I wished him luck as I headed down the road to a different bus stop to collect similar data.

I did my hour of data collection, making friends with the bus ticket sellers. This also included a photo session when they saw me using a camera to snap shots of the buses. When I came back to Farabi, he was confident with what he collected, and said he had a good time. Said it really helped to recognize buses and understand more about the bus system, just standing and watching it for awhile. (pics: ticket sellers who befriended me during my data collection; one of the buses I am collecting data on, the #6 Banani-Motijheel bus)

We headed back to his house and ate a breakfast of parota and fried eggs, and then played cards for awhile. We went back to Banani for lunch, back to Sub City. They had the turkey they promised. Although the sub came without oil and vinegar, which I really wanted, the sandwich was pretty delicious, and was worth the high price I paid. (pics: Farabi playing the card game Shed with his cousin, Farabi inside SubCity with signs for Quizno's and Subway above him even though those items aren't actually served there )

I did my second data collection at 2:30 pm. It was really hot, and I kept standing in the shade because the sun was beating hard. But I got the data collected, and survived the heat. I came home and bought some vegetables and fish on the way for Moweena to cook up for a dinner for Emily and I.

At 7:30pm I headed across town to pick up Emily at the bus office. When I got there, I inquired about the arrival time, and they told me not until after 9:30pm. So with an hour and a half to kill, I went and got a snack at a local restaurant. Ended being more of a meal, as I ordered a half chicken.

Emily arrived just after 9:30. We hugged, smiled, and then quickly got a bus back to Jigatola before the buses stopped for the night. Fed Emily a dinner of rice and fish curry, and she enjoyed it, getting food she didn’t usually get in India.

43rd-3rd in Dhaka 6/27

Today I took Emily around the Dhaka University campus area to show her the sights there. We saw many of the statues to the freedom fighters, the academic halls, and the canteen in which many of the language movement decisions were made by students. We stopped at the Teachers Students Center for a break, and then headed on to Shahid Minar where we spent a good amount of time watching other people there and looking up close at the monument. Then we meandered over to Curzon Hall and explored that historical part of the campus, sitting by the lake there for some time chatting. We looked at some crafts that are outside Curzon Hall and then walked through the Supreme Court’s complex, before taking a rickshaw to Baily Road for a late small lunch. (pics: Emily at Dhaka University, Emily in front of Shahid Minar, Curzon Hall on the campus of Dhaka University, Bangladesh's Supreme Court).

From there we took a bus to Bashundara City where we looked at each floor at the things we could buy, and also exchanged some money for her: Rupees to Taka. We also got a chance to go out on the balcony at Bashundara City, something I’ve never done before. And the Azan was giving the call to prayer at that exact time, so we looked over the bustling city while that happened. (pics: myself/Emily on the balcony of Bashundara City, Emily looking out over Dhaka from Bashundara City)

We came home and had dinner at home again, the food that Moweena cooked in the morning.

43rd-4th in Dhaka 6/28

Moweena came for the second day in a row at a very very early hour. All last week I wanted her to show up early so I could get to work on time, but now when I’m on a break with a guest here, she’s showing up earlier than the entire last month. Thus today for the first time I turned her away and told her to come back later, which she agreed to do.

Today Emily and I met up with Farabi and Anisa at Gulistan to head down to explore Old Dhaka. Before they showed up to meet us, Emily and I circled the hockey stadium and found some cricket jerseys that looked really cool. I wanted to buy one, but we decided to come back later.
When Farabi and Anisa came, Anisa really wanted to go see where rickshaw art was sold, and so did Emily, so we headed down to Nazira Bazar where I brought my parents and Ben earlier. The girls were able to buy what they wanted, and then we started walking west across Old Dhaka. We zigged and zagged, looked into shops selling a variety of items, choosing our ways by what looked the most crowded and exciting. After a bit we stumbled upon the Star Mosque, a famous mosque in Old Dhaka that I’d recently read about, but had not see up to this point. I was glad to stumble upon it. At first I thought it was any ole’ pretty mosque, but then I noticed the fence had starts in it, and the fountain was a giant star as well, I knew immediately then what we’d stumbled upon. A little boy from the school next door offered to show us around inside, so we let him lead us around to see the mihrab and where everyone prays. (pics: Farabi/Emily/Anisa in a shop selling rickshaw art, Emily surrounded by a crowd somewhere amongst the streets of Old Dhaka, myself in front of the Star Mosque, Anisa/Emily/our guides/Farabi at the Star Mosque)

From there we wound our way and found ourselves in Maulavi and Chak Bazars. I hadn’t been here in many months, and it looked much different from the last time I came, which was during Ramadan when it was packed with Iftar food items. We started looking for a place to eat, and asked around for a good restaurant. We got pointed and pointed and until we came to Royal Restaurant, where we had some chicken roasts and naan.
We meandered over towards Lalbagh and ended up emerging right in front of the fort. Not wanting to take too much time, or pay the entry fee, we simply took pictures at the gate. Then we continued on, but saw that you could also sneak a peak inside the fort from the fort’s mosque’s entrance, so we did. It was a cheap man’s tour of Lalbagh Fort. We headed down to the river, passing by the wall of the fort from below, something I hadn’t done, and only seen from above. (pics: Emily/Anisa/Farabi snapping photos of Lalbagh Fort from between the gates, wandering in Maulavi Bazar, Farabi/Emily "inside" Lalbagh Fort, Lalbagh Fort's front side as seen from the street below)

The river was a great trip as usual. This time I took them one way downstream from the west side of Dhaka all the way to Ahsan Manzil, about a 40 minute trip. A bit of drizzle came, but we had umbrellas. They enjoyed it, for all of the them it was their first time. (pics: Anisa/Farabi during the short period of rain on the Buriganga River, Emily/Anisa/Farabi on the Buriganga River)

Emily and I then headed up to Gulistan with them, and got them on a bus. We went and bought cricket jerseys. After swinging by to see Baitul Mukarram, the national mosque, at prayer time, we headed home, and later got burgers at American Burger, as Emily was craving a bit of beef after being in mostly Hindu India. (pics: Bangladesh cricket jersey which I was interested in purchasing, Baitul Mukarram at prayer time)

43rd-5th in Dhaka 6/29

Today was a pretty easy one for Emily and I. We took a tour at ICDDR,B, the cholera hospital in Bangladesh. Emily had requested only one thing to do here, and this was it. Being a medical student, and just spending the last month in India doing medical field work, this was very exciting for her. My friend Luke, who works there but was out of town, had suggested we go there and just ask for a tour at external relations. We showed up and asked for a tour, and after them deciding on who would do it for about 20 minutes, we were taken a tour from a woman who specializes in public relations. She showed us the wards, gave us information about the hospital’s history, and answered our questions. Emily was really moved by seeing the HIV unit of the hospital and seeing all the patients there. She had a lot of questions as this is her field, I just enjoyed getting to hear all about the hospital that many of my friends here have played a role at.

Big event of the day was on our way to the hospital, Emily fell in the mud. We were getting off a tempo, and I had gotten off first, but just as she was getting off, the tempo started going forward. There was no helping her, she lost balance as she got off because of the vehicle’s movement and she fell backside into the mud. I helped her up, then proceeded to yell at the careless driver. He pleaded with me to forgive him. Meanwhile a large crowded as we tried to clean her off as best as we could. Some people came with water to help clean the mud off, but it really wasn’t possible. They were so helpful, and everyone was really kind. Emily was really happy at how we were treated in this very embarrassing situation. We found our way to the closest mall and bought her an entire new outfit from a storeowner who was very kind to us and didn’t give us any hassle about giving us a low price. She changed in the bathroom and everything was better.

On the bus home, and I made sure we took one that went past the lumber yards on the east side of the city. Emily wanted to snap photos of these to show her father who works in a saw mill.

We had a dinner at a Bangladeshi restaurant which serves nicer cuisine, and we took seats in front of their giant television which had a cricket match. I then explained to Emily in detail the rules of cricket, she was real excited to understand in full

43rd-6th in Dhaka 6/30

Got up very early to pick up Travis. Was at the airport an hour before he arrived, and when he did, I just walked inside the gated area and we embraced, shared a laugh. Then I brought him back by taxi to Jigatola, but not before he could be surrounded by four kids begging for money.

After he got back to my home, both Emily and him took naps (not sure if Emily just kept on sleeping, maybe she got up for one hour.) Meanwhile I waited for Moweena to show up. She didn’t, so I made my two friends French toast, the first time I’ve really cooked in my kitchen for anyone. (pics: Travis just after arriving in Dhaka, Travis napping after his long flight to Bangladesh)

After they woke up they enjoyed their breakfast. We then set out and took a bus to the Parliament building area, and checked out Chandrima Uddan, the Parliament building, and shopped at Aarong. We also got some snacks at Café Mango and took a walk around Dhanmondi Lake. It was raining a bit all day. I told Travis that he brought the monsoon with him when he arrived. (pics: Emily/Travis on the bridge at Chandrima Uddan, Travis/Emily with Chandrima Uddan and Parliament in line behind them)
















For lunch and dinner we at the same restaurant Emily and I ate at last night. It’s hygienic food, so I hoped their stomachs could handle it just fine.


43rd-7th in Dhaka 7/1

Today the rain was real bad. We woke up and the road in front of my house was already flooded. But we had already made a plan to go see Sonargaon today. We treaded through the gross gray water in front of my house and several other bits of it around Jigatola. Got breakfast quickly at a hotel, and boarded a series of buses to get to Sonargaon. (pics: Emily/Travis making it through the flood in front of my apartment building, rickshaws plowing through the flood waters in Sonargaon)

















The rain never really let up, and it did partially dampen the mood for the day. We did explore the museums at Sonargaon but it was too wet to really walk around the gardens there. We took rickshaws through the old Hindu mansion-lined street area, saw the old rajbari, and Goaldi Mosque. By the end we were soaked despite whatever rain gear we had with us. We got snacks and took buses home to dry up and relax for our long journey ahead. (pics: Emily in front of Sadarbari in Sonargaon, my rickshawwallah plowing through the rain behind Emily and Travis' rickshaw between the old Hindu mansions, Travis/Emily at Sonargaon's rajbari, Travis in front of Goaldi Mosque)

Bad part of the day was finding a family of cockroaches (about 20) living in the boots I had planned to bring to Nepal. I spent 15 minutes trying to get them, and all their poop, out. Also inside the boots was a gecko, who probably was enjoying the cockroach buffet my boot was providing him, he was the last to come out.
Also Travis pointed out to me that I had mosquito larvae growing in my emergency water supply I keep in my front room. It was really gross to see all of them swimming around. I never noticed many mosquitoes in my place, but Trav and Emily said there were a lot, and this is probably why. So I emptied out my emergency water supply and cleaned it out. Trav suggested in the future I add oil to the top of the water because it makes the larvae unable to breath. Still very upsetting that I had a mosquito farm in my house. (pics: cockroach poop I dumped out of my boots, gecko left in the boot after all the cockroaches had left)
















In the evening we left for Nepal. We boarded a bus in Kalyanpur bound for the border with India in the north. It was a nice AC bus that we hoped we could sleep well in. I sat next to a boy who has been going to boarding school in India for 14 years, and does this trip over ten times a year. We talked about how we had wanted to go to Darjeeling, but the security situation there now wasn’t too stable. He insisted it was safe, and I figured I’d still consider by hearing what was the news in Siliguri, India the next day. (pic: Travis/Emily on our bus ride to Siliguri in India)

Week 40: Lake, hills, ocean, and sand: Cox's Bazar and Rangamati

40^th-1st in Dhaka 6/4

After a good night’s rest back at home, Ben and I headed over to Ayon’s for lunch. Farhan had come over as well, so Ben and him got to meet for the first time. Lunch was delicious as usual, and Ben got to experience Bangladeshi hospitality at its best, getting fed more food even after he felt he could eat no more. I think he thought he was going to burst. Afterwards we laid around for, essentially just letting the massive amount of food we ate digest. (pic: Farhan/Ben in an unplanned before/after picture of our very filling lunch at Ayon's house)

From there we quickly went and bought bus tickets for ourselves and Jen and Ben to go to Rangamati this weekend. We got stuck with the back seats on the bus, and are hoping that won’t be too bad.

Ayon, Farhan, Ben, and I took rickshaws down to the Buriganga River to see Old Dhaka and Ahsan Manzil. The river was just as busy as always, and we just missed the closing time of Ahsan Manzil, so we could only view it from outside its gates. We then got in a boat to tour the Buriganga for a bit. Although this is my fourth time doing this, it is my favorite thing to do in Dhaka, and each time provides new things to see. Today was my first time doing it at sunset. Farhan was very nervous, he didn’t like the busy atmosphere and being on the water in the middle of it. (pics: Farhan/Ben/Ayon on a boat in the Buriganga River, ship on the Buriganga River passing in front of Ahsan Manzil, sunset over the Buriganga, Ayon/myself in the boat, Ben on the Buriganga, two boatmen in front of a sunset on the Buriganga)

Farhan and Ayon left after that, while Ben and I headed over to the Hindu area of Old Dhaka to look at some of the jewelry shops, and to look into buying some pink pearls. We bought some individual ones in the idea of turning them into cuff links. (pic: weighing pink pearls in Old Dhaka)

40^th-2nd in Dhaka 6/5

Today is 9 months.

We both posted our blogs today, and thus ended up spending a lot of time at home. We took turns, and it took the majority of the day. We broke for lunch.

But just so you don’t think we spent all day lounging at home, we went out to Bashundara City in the evening. I bought some DVDs that I’d wanted to see and some Ben recommended to me. We walked each floor, but not intending to buy much. Also got a pre-bus ride snack, a dosa. (pic: Ben poses in front of the eight-floored Bashundara City's central atrium)

We came home and got our stuff prepared for our trip. Lastly we headed out to the bus station to catch our night bus to Rangamati. Jen and Ben met us there. It left about a half hour late, and the back seats ended up being pretty bumpy. Would not choose those again if I didn’t have to. But I did my best to sleep. At least it was AC, overall I didn’t mind.

40^th-3rd in Rangamati 6/6

We arrived in the morning at Rangamati. We had to go through several security checkposts, and each one had my nerves running full speed. I was worried we’d be denied for an odd reason. Well things went fine, we checked in to a handshake and a smile at the first checkpost and wrote our names and information, didn’t need to get off the bus for a handshake and some question asking at the second, and the third without a smile or a handshake required us to write our names and info again. Then we were in!

The road up was really windy curvy, and a bit scary. I started feeling nausea and so did Jen.

At one point the bus driver, who was clearly driving faster than I would’ve chose even in a car, caused the bus to swerve. It fishtailed several times as we went around a turn, and it was scary, very scary. The second it finished the bus riders exploded in yells and told the driver to take it easy!

Rangamati is a town based on a series of islands. The lake which surrounds the city, and winds through the islands is Kaptai Lake. It is man-made by the damming of the Karnaphuli River which runs through Chittagong, which occurred 1960s. The dam provides power for Chittagong. When the dam was first built, it flooded the entire area, and caused the tribal people living there to move to higher ground. The palace of the king of these tribes is now underwater! Thus the city is the tops of several hills, now islands. Small bridges and causeways connect them all, forming a city that has a very unique character for the country. There are no rickshaws as the hills are too big, and instead CNGs work as a jitney system. One main road goes through all the islands and it is here that most of the activity occurs.

Our hotel, Hotel Sufia, was on the water's edge. My room with Ben had a toilet that didn't refill after you flushed and the bathroom light was out, but it was nice hotel otherwise. The back of it had a dock that led down to the lake. (pics: view out of the back of our hotel onto Kaptai Lake, Jen/Ben/Ben on the stairs to our hotel's dock with a goat with green horns climbing up)

After resting up, and a small lunch, we went on a walk that was suggested to us by a friend. It started out on one of the furthest out and most developed islands. From there we crossed several bridges to go between three more islands before coming back to the main road. The hike was very interesting. Although following a road the whole way, it had plenty of climbs and drops, and brought us past several villages. (pics: Ben posing on a bridge on our hike through Rangamati's islands, Ben with Rangamati's hills and dried up lake in the background, Jen/Ben/Ben cross a bride which seems to be missing a few pieces)

At one point we stopped in at a bamboo structure which housed eleven looms. Since it was Friday, it wasn’t fully operating, but two loomers were there, and we asked these two men, and the crowd around us about the work, how the looms operate, and where the products go. Found out a lot about their village and its history, as well as why these businesses exist here in the hill tracts and not in the major cities. (pic: Ben inside the loom workshop, movie: loom worker performing his trade)

Later we came upon a small Buddhist temple and monastery. We talked to some of the children and monks who were there. Then some of the kids led us across the street to a Hindu temple, where people were just leaving from a midday gathering of prayer. They asked us to sit, and offered us some of the sweets they had made of coconut and rice. As well, they served us kichuri. Despite already eating lunch, we put the food in our stomachs. (pic: Hindu temple and its visitors where we were served food along the road we hiked in Rangamati)

The entire hike we were questioned by locals about our home nation and why we’d come to Bangladesh. It was a good 3 hours or so, and we were tired by the end. We came out near New Market, and there we bought our bus tickets for going our separate ways in two days (Ben and Jen to Dhaka, Ben and I to Cox’s Bazar.) (pics: view over the hills of Rangamati, crossing a dried up part of the lake by a bamboo bridge where you would usually have to ferry across)

In the evening we went out to dinner at the Roof Top Restaurant a restaurant that specialized in serving food indigenous to the tribal cultures of the region. We tried bamboo and chicken dishes cooked in traditional ways. It was a nice break from the typical Bangladeshi cuisine. The place also had a nice open air atmosphere.

40^th-4th in Rangamati 6/7

Under suggestion from our friend, Ben and I headed next door for breakfast, as opposed to taking the free breakfast at our hotel. It’s the same food, but we were told the hotel’s food was very oily. We sat down next door and then got approached by a man…the hotel owner! He asked us why we weren’t going to take our free breakfast at the hotel. He seemed hurt. I asked him why he was eating here and not at the hotel. Seems a bit ironic that he chooses not to eat at his own restaurant.

Today we had planned to go out on Kaptai Lake. As foreigners, to do this, we have to have police escorts. This is a requirement which is annoying, but can have repercussion if you don’t follow the rule. The region has had bursts of violence, many times targeting tourists in recent years, so despite their not being any present current threat, the police are still required. So in the morning I had to take a CNG with a hotel staff member across town to a police station, where we had to bring back 3 police escorts! When we arrived they were still in their pajamas, so I had to wait 30 minutes while they changed into their uniforms. I had to pay the large taxi fare both ways. The police officers all had guns to protect us.

The lake is currently very low, just before the monsoon season. Islands are showing that would normally be under water during typical water levels. As well, the trees start about 40 feet up every bank. Our hotel would actually be right on the water, but currently it sits 40 feet above water level, hanging out over the land on its stilts. However, I don’t think the low water level detracted from the prettiness of the region. It was neat in fact to see hints of what the land looked like before it was flooded. Made me also realize how careful boat drivers have to be during all seasons not to drive over the tops of hills just under the water’s surface! (pics: the city of Rangamati as seen from Kaptai Lake at low water level)

Our boat was about 30 feet long, and had chairs for us and our police escorts. The boat driver sat in back and operated the two stroke engine and the rudder. We could stand or sit out on the bow if we pleased. The lake was very pretty, and when the engine was off, very quiet. It had villages all around its sides, and boats crossing it with people on board. Boats all about the same size as ours. We headed through, and Ben and I realized at one point we were heading on the river’s original course as the sides of the banks were rock, and were shaped as though they weren’t just land that had been flooded. (pics: boats docked at Shuvalong on Kaptai Lake, Jen/Ben on the boat with police officers in the background for protection, bow of our boat as we travel across Kaptai Lake)

In this area we stopped at Shuvalong Waterfall, which had a very low flow, only able to be seen from up close. So, we got up as close as we could. All of us guys climbed the waterfall’s bottom most rocks. This was not easy in the sandals Ben and I had on. (pics: Ben at the base of the waterfall (in orange) while Ben and I are a level below (in gray and blue), Shuvalong waterfall at a low flow)

We had lunch at Cheng Peng Restaurant, and had some chicken cooked inside a bamboo shoot, along with rice. The views from the restaurant, which is the middle of the lake on top of an island, are of the city and the surrounding water. We walked to the top of the island for a better view. We also had to pay for the police escort’s lunch, which on top of the tips we gave them at the end of the day, was all we had to do for their accompaniment. (pics: view of Kaptai Lake from Cheng Peng Restauarnt on an island in the middle of the lake, myself/Ben posing in front of Kaptai Lake)

Midway between these two places it started to rain. It stopped, but a second burst came later, and at this point the boat driver insisted on going back to port. We missed out on seeing the hanging bridge on the other side of Rangamati, the king’s current palace, and a Chakma Buddhist temple. The rain stayed on when we got back to the hotel, and meanwhile we played my favorite Bangladeshi card game “29” until past the rain’s end. Dinner was shrimp cooked inside a bamboo shoot. (pics: rain pours down as we hide in a rocky cove of Kaptai Lake, Ben/Ben watch as rain pours down around us as we travel)

40^th-5th in Cox’s Bazar 6/8

Ben and I got up early to leave the hotel, and picked up the bus outside on the curb. This first bus ride brought us to Chittagong. We had to sign out at the checkpost. We arrived in Chittagong after 2.5 hours, then had to get a rickshaw across the north side of the city to the bus station at which we could catch buses to Cox’s Bazar. The scenery on the way down was highlighted by the hills of Bandarban to our east the entire time. Otherwise, it was typical Bangladeshi scenery. Ben and I listened to a mix he had made of songs from our crew days the entire way down.

After arriving we changed into swimsuits, went and bought bus tickets home for the next night, and also got some snacks as we hadn’t really eaten yet.

Then we headed to beach! It was a gorgeous sunny day, but we have no pictures as we didn’t bring our cameras because we wanted to go swimming. The water was warm, and playing around was tons of fun. The water also had a strong current, and we kept finding ourselves far from where we’d entered.

Walked south from Sea Beach Road where we had first gotten to the beach. The sand was decently soft. There were very few beachgoers at first, but we found them all later, clustered around a 200m long stretch where there were umbrellas and chairs, a bit of a corralling effect. Didn’t seem like people left this spot. Just in front of reaching this, we found a large sea turtle shell. Inside the remnants of a turtle were still there, and wild dogs were picking at its bones and eating what was left of its flesh. There were large lifeguard stands that had the signs “Watch Bay” on it, perhaps a reference to the popular show Baywatch? Farther south as the land curved, we saw hills towering over the seas. The dunes next to the sea were all well covered with vegetation: small greenery closer to the sea and coniferous trees behind that. Much better protected for erosion than beaches in the US. (pics: the only place on the long beach that people were hanging out at in Cox's Bazar, tree and shrub covered dunes in Cox's Bazar)

We walked back up to where we started, enjoying the last of the sun before it set behind some clouds.

That night we went to a restaurant we had heard good things about from several of my friends. It is called Mermaid Café and is right on the beach side. You pull up by rickshaw to see a giant sign for the restaurant, but no restaurant. You inquire to a man sitting by the sign about it, and he will then lead you on a 5 minute walk along the beach by flashlight between the dunes. Our friend had warned us about this, otherwise we would’ve been a bit apprehensive. But instead it was a really cool way to approach the restaurant. We could see it from the distance all lit up in lights, and could hear music as we approached. It was in the style of a beach bungalow, lit by hanging lights. The man with the flashlight brought us right to the entrance and then went back to get more guests. (pics: Mermaid Cafe in Cox's Bazar at night, Ben happy to enjoy a crepe in Bangladesh)

The food was great. A great selection of seafood served in a variety of styles. They also had crepes for desert. They invited us to see their kitchen and a small art gallery they keep on premises.

40^th-6th in Cox’s Bazar 6/9

A trip to Maheskhali Island was suggested to us by Aaron, so in the morning we headed over to the port of Cox’s Bazar to take a speedboat over to the island, about a 15 minute ride away. The tide was out, so in order to reach the speedboat, we had to walk over strung together thin boats that worked as a temporary dock. We had to pay a small fee to both get onto the real dock, and another walk along the temporary dock. (pics: seafaring boats at dock in Cox's Bazar with people paying the dock fee to ride the boats to Maheskhali Island, the string of small boats used as a dock extension)

Upon getting to the island, we were surrounded by rickshaw wallahs before we could even leave the boat. They were all crowding the temporary dock of strung together boats. And they followed us up onto the jetty. A bit impractical as there wasn’t much space up there anyway. Well we decided to not take a rickshaw and get some breakfast in town instead. Two rickshaws, however, followed us along the entire jetty and into town asking us to ride with them, at least a quarter of a mile. I’d never seen such persistence. They then waited outside the place we ate at hoping to get our business. That kind of annoyed us, so we decided to take a different rickshaw after breakfast.

We first stopped at a Buddhist temple complex within the town. They had several images of the Buddha housed in a variety of temples. A man there explained only a little to us about the place. He did tell us the island had a population of 200,000 people. I was shocked. Had no clue it was so big, but looking at a map later, I realized how big of an island it actually was. The same rickshaw then took us to the next spot.n the east side of the island there are decently tall hills. (pics: Buddhist monastery on Maheskhali Island, stupa next to the monastery in Maheskhali)

On top of one of these hills there was a Hindu temple and a Buddhist stupa. We looked at both and also enjoyed the views of the island. (pics: view of the hills of Maheskhali island with a hut on top of one, view of the city of Maheskhali on the island)

At the bottom of the hill when we got down the same rickshaw wallah was still waiting for us, and he followed us as we walked the long distance down a pier. He wouldn’t give up on our business. Ben and I sat at the end of the pier for a bit, watching some fisherman, and then considered what to do next. We thought about hiking in the hills along the island, but rickshaw wallah (and another that’d shown up) warned us that the people there aren’t good people and its dangerous. Well whether they were trying to scare us and make us take their rickshaw somewhere else, or telling the truth, we decided against it. Ultimately we decided to take a small boat back to the main dock a bit of distance around the island. We left our disappointed persistent rickshaw wallah on the jetty. (pics: Ben posing on the long pier on Maheskhali Island, fisherman fishing at the end of the pier)

Upon getting back to Cox’s Bazar city, we went to the beach, took some pictures, even though it was not nearly as nice as yesterday. Very windy, and rain was threatening. But still warm. We played in the water a bit keeping an eye on my camera on land. (pics: Ben near the edge of Bay of Bengal, Cox's Bazar's beach, kids playing in the Bay of Bengal in Cox's Bazar, Ben posing near inner tubs at the popular area of the beach in Cox's Bazar)

Walked farther than yesterday, and finally decided to go climb one of the hills behind the city. They looked to be of similar height of what we could see down the shore, so figured this should be just as good for views. And it was. It was tough finding a way up, as villages were along the base of the hills tightly packed with no way to get close. But we found a road the cut through the hill, and there was a path to climb to the top of the hill from there. There were a few other guys up there who were doing the same thing as us, looked to be kids from the villages below. The views allowed us to see all of Cox’s Bazar, down and up the coast quite a ways, and far inland. Neat to see the villages just below us bustling and the new hotels along the ocean. (pics: Cox's Bazar's hotels and ocean as seen from the hills just behind the city, village along the edge of the hills in Cox's Bazar)

We headed back to the hotel, dropped off the camera and went back to ocean to play in the water. The sea was very rough. It would pull us along the shore a good distance in just a small amount of time. Kept having to get out and walk back up. Sat in the sand, enjoyed the warm waters of the Bay of Bengal.

We showered and got ready for our bus. Had a small dinner, and I showed Ben fried rupchanda fish (pomfret.) The bus ended up getting delayed one hour, and we played cards in the ticket office until it left. Bus ride ended up starting around 11:15pm.

On all the travels Ben and I have done here, our primary sustenance has been water, Choco Marie biscuits, and bananas. We’ve been trying to avoid having stomach problems on the bus. The biscuits have been incredible, filling me up after only a few.

40^th-7th in Dhaka 6/10

The bus got in later due to its late departure time, but also because it is having to take a longer route. The Meghna Bridge we found out later is under repair, so the buses are having to go north through Narsingdhi, taking an extra 2 hours on the trip. This is going to cause rolling delays. We still got into Dhaka around 9AM.

After resting from the trip, Ben and I ate some lunch at Nando’s. He had wanted to check it out as he’d seen it South Africa, but hadn’t eaten there. And we are lucky to have one here.

From there we went to the Green Line ticket counter in Kalabagan. Ben bought his ticket to Kolkata on Friday. Ticket was very cheap, and buying it was incredibly easy! Compared to the hassle I had for buying plane tickets, I think the time saved buying bus tickets makes up for the length of the ride!

I then took Ben to the Liberation War Museum. I had to go help at an orientation session in Baridhara, so I gave him specific directions on how to meet up with me later. Although I was a bit worried, I had total faith he’d be fine.

The orientation session was for my former language program AIBS. Jen, Karen, and a former student Luke were all invited by Tony Stewart, the program director, to give the new batch of fifteen students a short orientation on life in Dhaka, answering any questions they had about life here and the program itself. After a short introduction by Tony, he left, and left us to chat. The kids were still tired from arriving just yesterday, but we still had a session for about 50 minutes. They asked questions about getting around, clothing, food, health, and we were glad to talk about it all. We also raised several topics we thought they show know about. (pics: new listening classroom at AIBS, 2008's batch of summer Bengali students at AIBS at orientation)

The program has almost all new teachers from last year. Only Santa remains from even the teaching staff I had (Nadia and Shakil left take jobs in other countries, and Farrah quit.) Two of the new teachers were Fulbrights to NCSU last year and taught Bengali there (just like how Naira and Farhanaz taught me the year before.)

I met up with Ben at Gulshan-1. He had no problems getting there, and received help from several people on the bus and at the bus counter. Was very happy that it went all right. We walked to Time Out for dinner and with the goal of getting some paan we could trust. We tried out the mango drink that is only available in this season, very salty and a bit spicy. Dinner was fine, Ben tried out Bangladeshi Mexican food, and I got some Malaysian noodles. Then we got try the paan they serve there. I ordered one that they said was not too sweet. Ben and I stuffed it in our mouths and chewed away. It wasn’t as bad as the last few times I’ve tried it, now that I’m getting used to it. Ben handled it much better than I did my first time. (pics: our paan at Time Out before eating, Ben putting the paan in his mouth, the various ingredients that are put inside paan)