December 20th to 31st, 2014
HANGING IN KOLKATA 
Stay: The Golden Apple Boutique Hotel (AC double w/o breakfast - ₹1,800 / $29.14)

Sunday, December 21st

Too Nosy
 
Stayed in the neighborhood today. We got the last of the Christmas cards written and brought them to the Post Office. We always go to counter and have them frank our mail to make sure it will be sent. The woman at the counter checked the postage, glanced at what I had written and flipped it over to stare at the picture on the front. She seemed pleased. With her curiosity satisfied, she went ahead and pounded on the post marks.
 
 
Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti 

A blue and gold parade of high schoolers, motorcycle clubs,and floats marched up J. Nehru Road. It is Guru Gobind Singh's birthday. He is the tenth Guru of the Sikhs. This is part of the festivities taking place in all the Sikh communities. One of the banners read "Heartist Congratulations..." Hey, they spell like Dave......

India's fourth-largest religion is 500 years old and is centered in Punjab (west). 19 million Sikhs comprise only 1.9% of India's population but their distinctive turbans make them more noticeable.
 
 
In Your Face
 
The New Market is conveniently nearby. We got another a dose of 'in your face' Kolkata. Love the chaotic haggling, the tireless porters, the tea wallahs. Because of the holiday period, it was especially crowded. We loaded up on papaya, sweet mandarin oranges and bananas. 

 
Monday, December 22nd - Kolkata Walk, 6 km
 
The Maiden
 
...We walked 2.7 kilometers toward the gardens of Victoria Memorial. To get there, we made a pleasant stroll through Maiden Park staying away from the noisy street traffic. It was disturbing to see the amount of trash just strewn all over the park. People here appear to be able to ignore it and have a picnic in its midst. It's free and relatively peaceful. 

 
Victoria Memorial Gardens

We cringed at the endless line of people waiting for tickets at the Victoria Memorial. I noticed an un-busy ticket window and inquired. The museum was closed today but we could pay for 40 rupees each for priority tickets at this window and enter the gardens immediately. Good idea.
 
The Victoria Memorial is a striking marble building completed in 1921. Its beautifully maintained grounds are a magnet for lovers. Couples stealing rare moments of serenity in this otherwise chaotic city. We too enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere away from the noise, dust and dirt. We admired Victoria Monument from all sides. It is said to echo the Taj Mahal '...with its dome, four subsidiaries, octagonal domed chattris, high portals, terrace, and domed corner towers.' It did not reminded us of the Taj, but it could be at home in our nations Capital (Washington DC).

...We did not feel too bad about not being able to go inside to the Memorial's museums. How many armories and portraits of the Queen have we seen before? Enough.  

We got invited to join family pictures in the hazy late afternoon sun. 

 
St Paul's

Gothic points poked above the trees across a wide boulevard to the east. We made our way over and discovered it was St Paul's Cathedral.

'The building was initiated by Bishop Daniel Wilson in 1839 and completed in 1847 in Gothic Revival style with stained glass windows and two frescoes in Florentine Renaissance style.' The inside is understated with a semicircular cross-section over the pews which echoes the inside of a large Quonset hut


December 23rd and 24th - Kolkata

Christmas carols filled the air. In the New Market, an enormous line of people waited patiently for Christmas cakes. We settled for some tasty cheese and crackers. That, and a huge bowl of sliced fresh fruit, made for a delicious Christmas eve dinner for us. 
 
 
Christmas Day in Kolkata

Ferry Ghats in Kolkata 

We decided to check out the promenade and the Hooghly riverfront. Of course, on the map it looks more straight forward. But in India, Kolkata especially, one has to skirt all sorts of obstacles along the way. Makeshift box tents, hacking and spitting, barbers, vendors, porters and beggars. And never mind the potholed sidewalks. 
 
We crossed several busy intersections, markets, passed the radio station, stadium, courthouse and eventually ended up at the Babu Ghat, a busy Bathing Ghat. Groups of men appeared to have a jolly ol time lathering up and having a good dip in the Ganges, or Hooghly, as it is called here. The woman, separated from the men, sat in their own pool of sorts. Ear cleaners and barbers with their small tool-kits make the rounds among the freshly cleansed. We enjoyed the atmosphere and felt only slightly intrusive. In the distance we can see the Howrah Junction train station. 

We walked over to the pier to find out the schedule and best way to several riverside temples wanted to visit. A helpful Indian gentleman explained that it is impossible to take a ferry to the Dakshineswar Kali or Balur Math Temple. We'd be better of taking a taxi or public bus, he said. 

 
B.B.D. Bagh (formerly called Dalhousie Square)

On the way back to our hotel, we passed the beautiful old Kolkata Post Office and Writers Building in the BBD Bagh area.

This is the British Raj era colonial area from where India was governened before the Capital was moved to New Delhi. We stopped by the Tourism Information Office for general information and ended up booking a day tour for the 27th. The tour includes the temples we wanted to visit and more. 

 
Christmas Turkey at Raj's Spanish Cafe 
 
30 people had signed up for a Christmas dinner at Raj's. 

We sat on a long table of mother Teresa volunteers. We sat at the end and didn't make "a connection" with the volunteers. A nice french girl, who is doing an internship at an NGO, sat with us too. That was nice. Christmas hats were passed out. Most people put them on. We too.....Ho! Ho! Ho! It was kind of stupid but we were sports;) No alcohol was available. The place doesn't have liquor license. On the way out, a lady came by and gave the women a "Merry Christmas" mandi in Hindi on our arm. 

Our food was okay. The turkey turned out to be just a teeny tiny tablespoon size piece. Next to that was a quarter of a small roasted chicken. The rest of the meal was pretty dietetic too. It started with a bland cabbage salad. I think they par boiled it first, no dressing. Roasted potato, good. The cheesy risotto was not too dietetic. Very small portions. And I don't like moose dessert, so didn't eat the chocolate moose. 

The dinner a good idea that did not pan out. It wasn't just us. No one seemed in the Christmas spirit. It was all just polite conversation before everyone filed out.....

We made a little mojito later in our room. We prefer that to sitting in a bar where you have to shout to carry on a conversation. 


 
26 December - Tickets Out
 
We needed to go to the railway reservation office for train tickets to Puri. At the reservation office, customers pull a reservation slip with number and wait to be called. The wait is often long but today was not crowded. An earlier fellow had picked up an extra form and gave it to us, meaning our turn would be even sooner. We had picked our train and put that information on the form. We were issued our requested tickets without fuss. Easy. We asked about getting from Puri to Chennai by train. It is a long journey and we wanted 2nd AC or better. The gent looked it up and recommended going from Bhubaneswar to Chennai on the January 8th. We asked to buy the tickets. He pointed in the direction of the reservations slips and at the same time we pulled out our original form. Good enough for him and he quickly filled in the train details and issued those tickets too. It had been a fruitful and painless experience.

 
December 27 - Kolkata City Tour

A row of buses for several tour destinations stood ready at the curb in front of the City Tour office. Most people where heading out to the Sunderbans in big 40 passenger buses. We had to crowd in a chaotic line inside to get the proper bus # for our city tour van, then match the number on licence plate with our ticket. It was a nice vehicle.

Still we left punctually at 9 am. We were the only westerners the rest Indians except for one Japanese man. The tour guide spoke English and Japanese. The guide was happy to have someone to practice his Japanese with. 

We drove straight over to the west back of the Hooghly river to to Belūr Maṭh. The temple is notable for its architecture that fuses Hindu, Christian and Islamic motifs as a symbol of unity of all religions. It is the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission founded by Swami Vivekananda. Finished in 1938, it is not that old but it is impressive and the grounds serene.

Second stop was the anything but serene, Dakshineswar Kali.
 
The place was littered with pilgrims and visitors for the holiday. Located on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, it is dedicated Bhavatarini, an aspect of Kali, meaning, 'She who liberates Her devotees from the ocean of existence." It was built in 1855. The line to get inside was hours long and we did not have time. The view from the outside, and the sight of the mobs, was enough.
 
 
Our third and last temple stop was a bling bling Parshwanath Jain Shwetamber temple at Badridas Temple Street. Wikipedia calls it the Calcutta Jain temple. This one receives few visitors and our guide had to find the key man to let us in. Once inside, a Jain pointed out the lamp which has been continuously burning ever since the initiation of the temple in 1867. He also pointed out that no pictures were allowed. Too bad. Jain temples are quite unique.
 
Indian history is regurgitated at the Raja Ram Mohan Roy Museum. It was his family house from the early 1800's. Dave had no interest in going in and waited outside. After following the group inside, I concluded it wouldn't be interesting to me and baled early. 

After stopping for lunch at an Indian restaurant in Bara Bazar, where I had a surprisingly tasty dosa (not spicy), I began to feel queasy. I don't know if it was because of the heat or the thought of being cooped up in the three museums which were on the itinerary for the afternoon. But we decided to let the group go on without us and we walked home.  

 
December 28 - 31, 2014 - Idem Dito (Eat 'em D2?)

Foreigner Food at Raj's Spanish Cafe
   
On our 2nd day in Kolkata, we took a wrong turn out of our Sutter Street hotel and, purely by chance, found ourselves standing at a dead end alley in front of Raj's Spanish Cafe. Several gringos were having breakfast. And the menu promised Italian, Mexican & Spanish cuisine and free Wi-Fi. We had walked out of India into a parallel universe of masala free food. Dave had to try the burrito which came with guacamole, a combo we thought could only be found in Goa or Kerala. They cook many of their dishes in a wood fired pizza oven. I fell in love with the crispy thin crust pizza. This became our home cafe and it was hard not to come more than once per day. We 'd go over to Blue Sky, another Sutter Street mainstay, popular with travelers and volunteers.

 
Quest Mall
 
Molly from Raj's, told us we could get our fix of imported cheeses and other items at Spenser's in the Quest Mall. We caught a rickshaw there straightaway. Quest is an upscale shopping mall which would be at home in any cosmopolitan city around the world. The Apple Store seemed to have all their latest gadgets. We drooled a bit then left. Spenser's had a smattering of import goods at exorbitant prices. Not bad but we were disappointed. Food court was treat. Smoked salmon and cream cheese on an authentic bagel! Slurp! We decided to come back and go to Chili's Grill & Bar next time for fajitas. We did and they were awesome. Then back a third time for the Bacon Cheese Burger special. We are not fans of Chili's at home but here in Kolkata, it has become our favorite.

 
Franklin and Astrid Redux

Freshly returned from their trip to Puri, we met up for drinks and dinner with Franklin and Astrid. They gave us the low down on what to see and where to stay in Puri. It was great to get fresh perspective from them. Franklin was kicking himself for not buying a silver Ganesh ring he looked at in Puri. He asked me to buy it for him and deliver it to him in Utrecht. They agreed to waive their one night per visit rule at their house if we did. We will be allowed to stay two or three :)


One Final City Walk - Mosque, Church, Synagogue and Bazaar

We rode the Kolkata metro north to explore a different part of Kolkata. We found ourselves in an area that does not see many foreigners. We were greeted with smiles but everyone looked a bit surprised as we passed. We made our way to the biggest Mosque in Kolkata, Nakhoda. It is not ornate and is far from the most beautiful mosque, but the people inside made us feel welcome. Then we squeeze through bazaar after bazaar and eventually got lost in Burrabazar (also spelt Bara Bazar). It was an endless maze of shops, produce, goods, rickshaws, porters, and customers. It was pure chaos. 
 
After a tea stop (masala chai), we found our way to the Armenian church. They love to have visitors. The Armenians say they were here before the Portuguese and it was they who first brought Christianity to India. We could see the top of a synagogue behind other buildings. But we circled the outcrop 360 degrees and could NOT find our way to it. Oy vey! 

Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Jews, Jains....Somehow we missed the Kolkata Buddhists.Something for next time.....