And so it begins...

We arrive into Dum Dum airport (what a name?!) in scorching dry heat - no big surprise I suppose - this is India after all...After a brief but somewhat nervewracking wait in the baggage collection area (having heard many a horror story about Heathrow's somewhat original approach to baggage services) the bags turn up and we proceed through immigration. Leaving the airport we're surrounded by taxi touts and seemingly very helpful locals, one of whom insists on pushing our trolley the 10 metres to our carriage (a micro A team style van)...he kindly insists on further lightening our load by taking our heavy english coins thus saving us changing them at a later date. Driving into town we get our first taste of 'real Kolkata' through the windows of the cab (they don't close), which is mainly dust and diesel fumes. It's a cacophony of beeping horns, which seem to be used instead of any road rules, indicators or brakes. We've only been travelling 5 minutes and we see our first crash - reassuringly enough, the person is alive...As we drive through the outskirts of the town the first thing that comes to mind is the duality of this place - there are huge billboards lining the roads advertising the latest mobile phone and computer technology, behind which are ramshackle buildings, some in a state of near collapse, and shanty towns built from rubbish. Luckily for us our hotel is much nicer than the inaccurately named Peerless Inn (one of our original choices which we pass on the way - it looks like a bombsite). The lobby of the Park is a sea of polished marble and polished staff, having travelled for about 12 hours we could do with a polish ourselves, but they don't seem to mind...several hours later, and despite our assurances to our friends back home that this is purely a cultural visit, we find ourselves in the first of the hotel's bars. Not wanting to miss anything, by the end of the night (about 4am) we have seen them all - an excellent start.

The next day, through bleary eyes and with fuzzy heads, we attempt to buy train tickets for the next leg of our journey - we should have done this sober. Despite the seemingly complete lack of order in the city, every action requires at least one form, which must be completed in minute detail or 'it will not be entertained' - glurk...we try for Darjeeling...they say no, but give us tickets to another station instead...after some resaerch we find this is sort of on the way, so I guess we're doing alright...? This is almost a moot point though as we are nearly killed on the way back - it's raining, hard, but the taxi driver considers windscreen wipers an optional extra not included in the price we agreed. Neither it would seem is any extra care or attention towards other road users, particularly the much larger vehicle heading directly towards us at great speed...he swerves at the last minute (we presume - we'd both assumed the brace position) and we live to tell the tale...the driver still asks for a tip ('here's a tip - use your windscreen wipers'). Perhaps the confusion was caused by Kolkata's unusal approach towards road laws, which include the one way systems changing direction at 2pm each day - because it's not dangerous enough crossing the roads as it is...

Day 3 and we're ready to start our sight seeing tour of the city, which we planned in great detail the night before...unfortunately we wake up late afternoon - curses. Instead of our hard core tourist agenda we spend the day buying a plug converter - good work team! After this rip roaring success we set off to find the backpacker area to get some well earned refreshment...we can't find it. We do however find a Puja festival site - for the uninitiated, this is a religious festival held each year all over India, the largest venue being Kolkata - it looks surprisingly like a funfair, complete with waltzers and dodgems. We decide against them being somewhat doubtful of the Health & Safety regulations in place. Finally we receive the recognition we've always felt we deserved, in the form of a gaggle of youths crowding round us, asking our names and shaking our hands...the police follow shortly to disperse the adoring crowd with a vague intimation of violence towards them, checking whether they are bothering us - we tell them no, but don't tip them, we hope they let the little ones live...

We feel very conspicuous...passers by feel obliged to stare and occasionally comment - some smiling...some glaring - all with the same result of us feeling very alien - we're a long way from home.

written by

BecnWill on October 17, 2007 from Kolkata, India

from the travel blog: The World By Knight

tagged Puja

Send a Compliment

oooooooohhhhhh.i've come over all maternal! you're such a long way a way. you're so brave!

written by northerncreative on November 2, 2007

comment on this...