Out and About in Bangladesh

Almost immediately following my return from Kathmandu, I was back on the road in Bangladesh for a pre-election reporting trip. My travels took me to the northern Chittagong districts of Comilla, Noakhali and Feni.

The trip was productive and uneventful--the perfect combination. My colleague and I spoke with all sorts of people about their thoughts on the upcoming election. Almost everyone we talked to is excited to have elections (Elections haven't been held here since 2001, as in 2007 the Caretaker Government took over for a couple of years.) and they are ready to vote. Only time, will tell what the outcome will be.

While speaking to people through a translator can be tiring and frustrating, I do enjoy getting out to hear what people's opinions are. Plus, I also get a kick out of the crowds that come and say hi to me--it's like I'm a superstar. (Mom, don't be worried, they won't hurt me!)

Katy and the Bangladeshis (My driver is on the right in the white shirt.)

I loved this teenager. I wonder if someone has told him what the phrase on his shirt means?

I will admit I was nervous to stay in some of the more rural areas of Bangladesh. I always joke that I didn't join USAID for a reason, but I'm not really joking--I don't even like camping. But I was (fairly) pleasantly surprised by the accommodations at the guest houses. Mom and Julie, think French Chateau, but slightly worse in Comilla and much better in Noakhali. Perhaps that will give you two and idea about how fared during my short trip? :)

We traveled back to Dhaka on Friday, which is the big prayer day for Muslims. My driver stopped for a quick mid-day prayer about half way through our trip.



My driver was also kind enough to stop at the World War II cemetery in Comilla. He mentioned it was on the way home and thought that I would like to see it. I was so tired I almost passed him up on his offer, but I'm glad we made the quick detour. The Mynamati War Cemetery is a resting place for a few hundred people who died fighting in the China, Burma, India theatre during World War II. It was very moving and it was a good reminder of the various nationalities who fought in the war. It also made me think more about my grandfather who I know fought in the China, Burma, India theatre (They once had only peanut butter to eat for weeks. My grandfather never ate peanut butter again.), but at the same time, it made me wish I had asked him more questions about it when he was alive. Dad, maybe you can shed some light on his time there?


Back in Dhaka, the following week marked the celebration of Eid al-Adha, or Festival of Sacrifice. Remember that bull sitting outside my hotel? Yeah, I finally figured out why he was sitting there. This Eid is marked by the celebration of sacrifice. Faithful Muslims are supposed to purchase a cow or goat (usually at quite hefty prices), become attached to the cow/goat, sacrifice the animal in the name of God, and finally share a third of the meat with those less fortunate, keep a third of the meat, and give a third to friends and family. It is the story of Ibrahim/Abraham.

I'll admit though, the whole concept is very different for me, as it is for many Westerners. My friend Kate and I did venture out to witness the tale end of one sacrifice. It was enough to make our stomachs turn. Phew. For a more visual depiction, I'll send you to my colleague's account of she and her husband's Eid outing.

And finally, a couple of shots from Dhaka.

The mosque near my hotel (taken from the rooftop pool area of my hotel)

Kate and Katy on a rickshaw!

Kathmandu, Nepal

The Himalayas from the plane

It's been a couple of weeks since I took my trip to Nepal over Thanksgiving, which makes me look at the calendar and realize how close to Christmas we are. Wow. Time does fly by.

But Kathmandu was great. It was a very nice break from Dhaka, with more to do and better food to eat. I liked being able to walk places more easily and take taxis. It was also amazing to see so many tourists. For the first couple of days I couldn't get over seeing so many white faces. The Nepalis don't stare at you like the Bangladeshis do, but I think that's simply because Nepal is used to tourists. With Everest and all of the other trekking to be done in Nepal, it's a mecca for hikers and hippies, and with so many tourists comes a much more well-developed tourist industry.

My one complaint about Kathmandu is the pollution. It felt much more polluted than Dhaka. I've been told this is partly because Kathmandu sits in a valley, but also because of the nearby brick factories. The most unfortunate part of this pollution is that you can't really see the mountains. Oh well.

The Soaltee Crowne Plaza is a great hotel and one that I would recommend. It's a little bit removed from the center of town, which I liked, but it did cause some problems for us (I went with my friend/colleague, David), as during our second and third days there was a bandh, or strike. Bandhs (or hartels in Bangladesh) are fairly common and generally shut down cities. In this instance, two little boys had been kidnapped and killed, so their families and university students decided to stage the bandh. During a bandh, very few cars are allowed to pass and those that do must dodge the burning tires. We took advantage of the bandh by having a relaxing day and just walked around our hotel and ate tons of food.

The Bandh

The second day of the bandh became a bit more frustrating and that's when you realize it may be better to stay in a hotel that's more centrally located. But we were able to finally go to Thamel--the heart of the tourist district--and walk and shop and eat. We also checked out Durbar (which means "royal palace") Square, the other prime tourist spot in Kathmandu, with it's old buildings and palaces.

Temple to Hindu God Ganesh

Durbar Square, Kathmandu

Our fourth day involved trips to the classic tourist sites--Swayambhunath Temple, more commonly known as the Monkey Temple, and Patan City, a very nearby suburb of Kathmandu where we saw another version of Durbar Square. We also went to Bhaktapur City, which had another Durbar Square, but was much cooler because there was no traffic and not as many people around. And then we finally went to the Pashupatinath Temple, a very large Hindu temple that I couldn't go into becuase I am not a Hindu. (Not to mention that David cheated--he is originally from Sri Lanka, so they just assumed he is Hindu. Not so, he is Christian. Good for him.)

Swayambhunath Temple (The Monkey Temple)

Durbar Square, Bhaktapur City

Our fifth day we were all set to go back to Dhaka. Upon our arrival at the airport, however, we promptly discovered our flight had been canceled. It was purportedly canceled because of a mechanical problem, which had to be fixed with a part from Bangkok. I'm skeptical this was the case though, because when we did fly out the next day, the Bangkok airport was still closed and nothing was flying out of there. My theory is that the flight didn't have enough people on our original departure date, so they just postponed to the next day. We weren't too upset about our canceled flight, but both the bandh and then the canceled flight meant we never got a chance to really go outside of Kathmandu for a day trip. Oh well. It just means we'll have to go back.

Kathmandu profited from our sixth day in Nepal though because we both ended up spending a lot more money in a cute, little shopping area, Baber Mahal Revisited. It reminded me so much of Carmel, California.

My greatest love in Kathmandu was the food. The produce was just so much fresher and there was much more variety. I hadn't tasted strawberries or avocados in months...yum. Fire and Ice is an AMAZING pizza place in Thamel (I liked it so much I made us go there twice.). They have a lemon vinaigrette salad dressing that is extremely tasty and one that I will probably try to replicate when I am back stateside. Mike's Breakfast was also great and reminded me very much of the Monterey Bay area. It was started by Mike, a hippie, trekker from Minnesota who has lived in Nepal for over 20 years. And finally, Chez Caroline, a wonderful, little French bistro in Baber Mahal Revisited that also reminded me of Carmel...kind of like the Hog's Breathe or the Forge in the Forrest, but way cuter. Caroline is a French expat who has lived in Nepal for 28 years. Wow. Bangladesh certainly doesn't have expats like them.

Chez Caroline

** For some reason, I can't figure out how to straighten the pictures. Any ideas? **