Two months in Dhaka has come to an end, crazy I know, feeling quite the veteran here. However, this means my last week must include everything I haven't done but kept meaning to for the past 8 weeks... So here's a whistlestop tour of how to leave Dhaka in style:
Number 1: Sitting on top of a train.
In my opinion one of the things you have to do in a country like Bangladesh is sit on top of a train, admit it Slumdog Millionaire inspired the dream. Can you imagine people at London Euston jumping on top of a train for their daily commute to save a few quid?! Luckily the Muslim EID festival at the end of August was the perfect opportunity here as everyone attempts to go home creating hoards of Bengalis on the move. My first step was convincing a willing Bengali speaker to come along, Tanvir manned up to the role. This role then took a life of its own as we attempted to make this a 'how-many-weird-modes-of-transport-can-be-used-in-one-journey' mission. In order to get to the train station we figured on top of a bus could be the most interesting option but me being a foreigner made this almost impossible as no driver would allow me, fearing my death could be bad press for Dhaka. Our trump card was used as we managed to hitch hike to the train station on the back of a truck, a pretty impressive thing to say you've done in Bangladesh eh! At the train station more issues arose as me falling off a train would definitely be bad publicity so police at the station swarmed around us like flies. Their work was cut out though as the masses of Bengalis sitting on the train tracks and jumping on trains created enough work for most of the police; people were literally jumping on to the top of the train from the railway bridge over the tracks... While not quite that daring, walking around the back of one train we managed to sneak onto the driver's cabin and with the aid of some Bengalis clamber onto the top. SUCCESS. As the train noisily snakes through Dhaka this was something I will never forget, the view from the top is incredible. As for fear, the train goes relatively slowly so balance is no issue while the train is wide enough to sit comfortably. Our train was relatively quiet, which the few Bengalis with us were loving as they blared music out their phones and even danced a bit. Clearly inspired by the party atmosphere I managed to stand up just long enough for a few photo opportunities ;-). The best thing was without a doubt the view though, slums in Dhaka begin incomprehensibly close to the railway line, as you pass you can see inside all the shacks as children play on the lines, women wash their hair, and men gossip. It really feels like a different world and is a stark contrast to sitting inside a train even beside the window. The only slight difficulty are the dangling cables and branches, but if you've got your wits about you you'll be alright!
Number 2: EID
After the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, the Eid celebrations are sort of like Muslim Christmas with a party vibe in the air and 3 days of celebrations. They are mainly family events as the whole of Bangladesh virtually closes down as everyone goes back to their home towns. Luckily though I was able to join Mariam's family for Eid providing another new Dhaka experience for me! As this is the first day Muslims can eat before sunset in a month they really go all out with their calorie intake now, the day starts with a huge breakfast then lunch at your own house before going out visiting to eat insane amounts of food at more houses. In Bengali culture its rude not to eat what you are given so something has to be eaten at every house. Therefore the most houses you visit the more you eat and unfortunately Mariam has a pretty massive family. Old ladies are apparently very eagle eyed when it comes to watching if you have eaten sufficient amounts and have no qualms about shoving more and more food on your plate; every time you sit down these little trolleys are ushered into the room carrying plates and plates of food that you simply can't refuse! Shutong and I both being non-Bengali found this absolutely hilarious, especially watching Shutong almost throwing up what she'd just been forced to eat. In one house we were given this drink that was like grapefruit water with milk and was absolutely disgusting but we all tried to be polite and insist it was 'khub ballo', one of the Mariam's young cousins was there though and after drinking some announced really loudly 'this is disguting' to our huge enjoyment. On the whole though the food was spectacular and definitely a Bengali experience I won't get to have every day!
Number 3: Staying in an Children's Orphanage
Since my home from home with Mariam would be pretty lonely after she left, I decided to spend my last week at a children's orphanage which also runs a guest house... It was of course only when I got there that I remembered I am awful with children and even worse with babies, generally I just make them cry. Point proven when I actually dropped one of the babies (no joke). Just onto the bed but still I don't think they'll be letting me pick her up again any time soon. While on my last day the children almost drank my nail varnish remover thinking it was a mango drink! However, when I wasn't trying to harm the children it was an amazing experience, the orphanage is very small and only takes older children so they mostly run about and play games or watch TV while attending school in the day. They also double up as very handy staff for the few guest rooms there; they brought me breakfast every morning, washed my clothes, and even attempted to tidy my room. At dinner time, I provided great amusement as they watched me eat with my hands (the Bengali way) just like them. Eating rice for dinner then rice with milk for desert is slowly taking its tole though I must admit. I also got to go to school with the girls one morning which was incredibly surreal, I just walked in there with the girls and instantly I was treated like a celebrity being shown around all the classes and meeting the teachers. They of course all asked me my name and hilariously all pronounced my name with my scottish accent and slight lisp! Olivia is just one of those names you can't say in a Bengali accent as v is not really a sound; therefore the word available in a Bengali accent sounds far more like abalable, I do a great Bengali impersonation party piece now!
Number 4: Navigating public transport on my own.
Although I have been in Dhaka for two months, since I have been living with Mariam I have been able to share the luxury of her driver meaning my Dhaka transportation navigating is very limited. From the children's orphanage to the BRAC offices is a fair trek and instead of using the slightly dodgy iron caged CNG taxis I decided I would hurl myself in the deep end and attempt to use the very local looking (a small tin can) public bus. First step was finding the right bus, as they just yell out their destinations in Bangla:
Me: Gulsham
Randomer: Sorry?
Me: GULSHAM
Man and Friend: Sorry where do you want?
Me: GULSHAM!
At this point a crowd starts to gather who all listen to me frantically screaming Gulsham while looking very perplexed. Until eventually someone goes in exactly the same way I have been saying it: AH GULSHAM! So there we go, half of Mirpur knows my final destination so I am instantly ushered towards other people Gulsham bound. Of course the first people to talk to me were old Bengali men, I should have remembered that when it comes to buses no matter where you are in the world its the elderly you need to hit up. So two old men took me under their wing getting me on the bus and making sure I got to the right place at the end (being a foreigner and a women meant I got absolute prime bus seat right next to the driver (literally) but unfortunately right over the very hot engine also. This was no A/C luxury btw. I got talking to the old men and would you believe it one of them had been to Vienna, Italy, France, Spain: he says he loves to travel. Well I'll be damned!
Number 5: Getting mugged.
And finally, and definitely not planned, in my last week I had to of course get my purse stolen. For any one who knows me the fact I have been in Bangladesh and Thailand for the past two months with no major incidents of lost items is a bloody miracle. And after all the warning stories, in a way it is another thing that must be done in Dhaka. After it happened suddenly everyone dug deep for their horror stories from CNGs (the small taxi cage things from which the driver stole my purse). The worst one I heard was a CNG stopping beside a car, someone from the car then got out gassed the CNG, then stole everything in cahoots with the CNG driver. I was merely pick pocketed so I can't be too upset... Bengalis are so kind though, one of the guys who works at the orphanage despite earning nothing tried to give me some money which was very heart warming. I also went to his house which was another eye opening experience. It literally consists of one tiny tin room that just about fits a wardrobe and a double bed on which 6 people sleep every night, he asked me how many rooms my house had. I said just three and he was absolutely amazed at how rich I must be. Bangladesh is definitely a city of two extremes with the wealthy and poor living hugely contrasting lives.
So there we go my last week in Bangladesh, I can't wait to go but I will definitely miss my home for the past two months. Here being foreign is like being a local celebrity, I went with one of the interns on a day trip to Old Dhaka and we went to the old palace there. It was mainly Bengalis there and suddenly everyone wanted photos with me and I had people swarming around me; that will certainly never happen to me in Glasgow. On another note though people in Glasgow will at last understand what I am saying! Meeting Americans here has made me realise that I almost speak a different language; expressions such as 'check me', 'sorting me out', 'wee', 'kicking about' and god so many others are just not understood here at all...
DHAKA - Goodbye; GLASGOW - Hello!
