I am now going to jump back in time to the first weekend I spent in Kolkata. Those first few days here really gave me a feel for the dichotomy of life in this country. I'm sure it will be easy to pick up on that from my thoughts and some photos I will be posting.
Because Denish & Alexis were really only in Kolkata for one day, Noah & Dora wanted to spend some time with them, so we all spent the day seeing some of the interesting sights. Our first stop was Flury's for breakfast. It opened in 1927 and is a throwback to the old British days in India. It is the only place to get a "breakfast" by our definition and is a tradition in Kolkata. Victoria Memorial was our next stop. It is probably the city's most famous landmark and is a tribute to Queen Victoria who became the first Empress of India on May 1, 1876. It is an amazingly beautiful building that houses Indian artwork, statues and a museum of Kolkata's history. In addition, the gardens surrounding the Memorial are exquisite.
From there, we headed to Kalighat. This area of Kolkata is the home to two very noteworthy spots. The most noteworthy is the Missionaries of Charity - Mother Teresa's Home for the Sick & Dying Destitute. She opened this home to provide the poor who were dying in the streets a place to die with dignity. Noah spent two summers during college working there and it obviously had a lasting impression on him. When we got there, he recognized a women sitting on the front stoop that he said used to greet him every morning and joke with him. She was so small and frail that we all wondered how she could be surviving. Noah got her some coconut milk to drink since a man sitting next to her told him she hadn't been eating or drinking (see the photo on my second page).
The second spot in Kalighat is Kali Temple, a Hindu temple dedicated to the Goddess Kali. She is an interesting character, so you may want to read about her further! The temple itself is only about 200 years old. Denish was willing to take Alexis and me inside. I don't know that we could have entered the temple otherwise. It was a little scary as people were loudly pleading to Kali - for what, I have no idea - and they presented her with their gifts of flowers and other items.
We next headed to a very modern mall to look around, and I won't go into details, but you can see where I am going with the dichotomies...
After that we headed to Mother House, the place where Mother Teresa lived and is now buried. They have a wonderful history of her life there which cites many of her wonderful quotations. I really enjoyed the time there. On a lighter night, when we first walked in there was a display that was put together by the children of Mother Teresa's orphanage that we all got a chuckle from. The reason being is that they had several scenes displayed of Mother Teresa's life, but using Barbie dolls to represent her. Somehow it just seemed comical.
The rest of the weekend was somewhat low key during the day. I needed to catch up on some sleep and get prepared for what was ahead of me. However, both evenings provided me with the ability to see even more facets of Kolkata. Saturday evening Noah, Dora, Danya, and I went and had Chinese food in one of the two Chinatowns within the city. Kolkata is the only city left in India that has a Chinatown. It sounded so strange to me to have Chinese, but then I realize...its really not that far away from here! Danya, by the way, is half Bengali and half American, has her Masters in Public Health, and is helping Noah with a project while her husband is assigned for duty in Kolkata by the State Department.
On Sunday, we were invited to join a couple for dinner that Noah had stayed with during his first 5 years living in Kolkata. Mr. & Mrs. Chaudhuri treated us to dinner at the Bengal Club. The Chaudhuris are an adorable Indian couple who, as Noah put it, are more British than the British. The Bengal Club is a very historic club dating back to 1827 and it definitely has that Colonial look & feel to it. Indian natives were not allowed membership until the 1960's and the Chaudhuris joined during that time. We had a fabulous meal, but I enjoyed the company so much more.
I'll write more soon. In the meantime, hope everyone back in the U.S. is gearing up for Turkey Day!!!
Your photos are amazing! India has obviously interesting history and beauty in its landmarks and temples, yet there is so much destituton for its people and heartbreaking images everywhere. Must be difficult seeing the suffering of so many. What a mixture of feelings in your experiences there. Love you!!!
ReplyDelete