"Why go all the way to Bangladesh? ", someone asked me , back in 2017, when I announced my vacation plans for the year. "Why not!" I replied. I have always loved traveling and visiting new countries, and I hate crowded tourist spots like New York and Costa del whatever in Spain. I lived in the UK for 50 years and traveled extensively in Europe so I decided to use my 11 years stay in the Middle East to discover the GCC countries and Asia. I had enjoyed my India trip, and had been invited to Pakistan many times, so when my friend Abhi asked if I would visit his country, I thought- "Why not?" . It was a decision I have never regretted and I went back for more in 2019!
When I first met him Abhi was 25 years old and studying Civil Engineering in Dhaka which made him a great tour guide because his country has a rich history and many ancient monuments. The problem is many are not very well funded, preserved or advertised as we discovered when, by chance, we had a tour with Mr. Jahangir Alam Bhuiyan, Manager of Panam City. He gave us a booklet of all the ancient sites in Bangladesh and told us about the 53 houses that remain at Panam city.
My favourite was Panam City which we visited one day when we hired a driver from outside our hotel. It was great to get out of the busy city and into the countryside. We stopped off at a few places of interest along the way and then our driver parked under the shade of a tree and slept while we explored this ancient site. As we wandered around in the sun a gentleman asked if we would like a tour. He explained the history of each building and opened many of the buildings that are normally locked and shut off from the locals for fear of damage. It was an amazing experience and the guide was very knowledgeable. As I am now 60 and cannot remember what I had for breakfast yesterday, let alone what a guide said in 2017. I will let Wikipedia tell the story and intersperse it with some of Abhi's pictures.
"Panam City is situated at Sonargaon, Narayanganj in Bangladesh. It is an ancient historical city in Bangladesh. Among the three cities of boro nogor (Big City), khas Nogor, Panam City, it was the most attractive city.[1] There are many historical buildings which were built centuries ago and those are related with the history of Baro-Bhuyan. It covered 20 km area of Sonargaon. Panam City is one of the most visited tourist spots in Bangladesh.
As the capital of the fifteenth-century Bengal ruler Isa Khan, and once an important trading and political center, Sonargaon boasts architecture of the Sultanate, Mughal, and colonial periods. The Sonargaon historic city, located near the present-day capital of Dhaka, includes several Mughal monuments—among them the Sonakanda River Fort, the Panch Pir Mazar Shrine, and Ibrahim's and Abdul Hamid's Mosque. British colonial architecture preserved in Sonargaon includes the Ananda Mohan Piddar House, and other street-front houses. For travelers making their way along the 2,500-kilometer Grand Trunk Road from Peshawar in the Hindu Kush, Sonargaon marked the end of the line. Threats to the site include flooding, vandalism, unauthorized occupation, illegal development etc."
( Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panam_Nagar ( accessed 29.7.2020)
Another favourite was Lalbag Fort in Dhaka itself, with beautifully manicured gardens full of people walking, chatting, reading and strolling in the sun.
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| Lalbag Fort |
Once again we were lucky enough to get a tour of the inside which is normally closed to the public.
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| Lalbag Fort |
They even had a compost, very impressive!
Abhi introduced me to many wonderful experiences like eating on the streets with my hand , going on both a cycle and auto rickshaw, and tasting the freshly made juice
We also spent many hours walking in the parks and University grounds and by the Dept. of Fine Arts, Dhaka University, in spite of the heat and humidity.
I also learnt a lot from Abhi about how Bangladesh gained it's independence and the ability to preserve its own language and we saw the various monuments commemorating these historic events.
But most of all I just loved wandering the streets photographing the local life, with the street vendors, the traffic, buses etc.
Sadly the hotel pool was closed for refurbishment on this trip so we could not swim at the end of our exhausting days exploring. The restaurant was open with its sumptuous buffet, even though I had to watch the England Cricket team get beaten by Bangladesh on the restaurant TV much to the amusement of the cricket mad waiting staff and Chefs!
We were certainly very well looked after and kept secure by the staff at the Fars resort and Spa and I had a very enjoyable week exploring Dhaka and the surrounding area.
I liked it so much I decided to return again in 2019 to see Abhi and meet some of his friends, and you can read all about that in part two
Until then , kita kits, Ingat and Mahal Kita
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Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
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