Kolkata (Calcutta)

pictures... http://picasaweb.google.com/mproud3/Kolkata##

Teg- We arrived in Kolkata on a Saturday, the night of the McDonalds episode. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and a bit of Wednesday were, almost entirely, dedicated to the infected foot. During those days, Mike wasn’t able to do much walking, so I had to venture out alone to grab food, or painkillers for him. A definite positive during this time was that I began to find my way around the city, something I would otherwise be soon forced to do.

Wednesday comes and Mike finally gets himself admitted into a private hospital, Fortis Hospitals, quite the glamour compared to our first hospital experience here. The only real problem (I found) was that the visiting hours were minimal, 10:30-11:30am and 4:30-6:30pm, so I had to cram everything I wanted to see in the city in between those times.

So that same day, after he was admitted, I quickly made my way over to the BEAUTIFUL Victoria Memorial before making a pit-stop back at the hotel (to grab Mike a few things he’d be needing) before heading back again to the hospital to catch the evening visiting hours. Victoria Memorial was impressive. The place was swarming with Indian tourists, yet because its grounds were so huge, it didn’t feel cramped at all. Many people were having picnics, playing some badminton/cricket or what looked to be, on romantic dates. The building is surrounded by gigantic gardens on all sides, each having at least one tank. As much as I wish to have walked around it all, there was just too much to see and my time was limited.

The building itself was unbelievable so this is where I spent most of my time. I’m not really sure how else I could describe it. One of the best parts of this outing came at the end however, when I took a ‘royal chariot ride’ around the surrounding area haha!

The next morning I packed our bags, checked out, and found a hotel that was not only closer to the hospital, but closer to shopping, internet cafes, and a bunch of sites I still wanted to see, such as the Indian Museum and the Mother Teresa house. Plus, it was a third of the cost from the previous place.

That day, after the morning visit with Mike, my taxi driver took me to the Botanical Gardens which again, like V.M., covered a huge area, had many ponds and was flocking with couples..damn the foot!!hahaha

Shortly after this garden walk I made my way to the Indian Museum, and this was, easily the best thing I went and saw in Kolkata. It was a huge, and oh so clean inside. I was actually really just impressed with how well they organized every section, all of which encircled a large open garden in the middle. It was beautiful. Obviously there is a bias here, but I thought the Anthropology section was easily one of the best…

Maybe it was Mike’s absence who knows, but on that same afternoon alone I could no longer resist the urge to seek out a little travel guitar. I walked up and down the main shopping districts in Chowringhee and could not find anything remotely close to a music store. Luckily, as I ventured off into Elliot Park (right next to the Indira Gandhi statue) for a sight seeing break, I ran into this extremely nice couple who knew where an ‘instrument store’ was. They gave me directions, walked me to the Metro (subway station), BOUGHT my ticket (a first in India for me), and soon after I was entering a little guitar shop where a band was in the middle of rehearsal! The singer of the band and I ended up talking for quite a while about Canadian musicians! Oh does he have a thing for Shania! Hahaha! Somewhere within this convo, I was sold on the idea that his brother (and store owner) would make me a guitar and I would come back for it the next day…It turned out to be an incredible deal!

Friday comes and I’m entering the hospital to visit Mike Swollenfoot, and the first thing I do is go to the front desk to inquire about the medical bill thus far (just following orders). Funny thing, as soon as I get to the desk and ask about Mike’s bill, the man is quickly able to find his name on the long paper list of patients because Mike’s is one of the three highlighted names. Pretty funny. The bill ended up being more than what Mike was willing to pay, so right after discovering the due amount he was making arrangements to be out the door. Seven or so hours later, he was finally able to leave…

Though the hospital took forever to discharge Mike, it was awesome to see that there work had done him some good. His foot was beginning to return to its original size and colour.

The following day Mike is walking close to normal and without pain, so we decide to make a small trek over to college street, a locale extremely well know for books-galore up and down a few blocks of the street. Though our destination point was what we were looking forward to, the walk along to get there actually ended up being the best part. Every few blocks on our way felt like a fresh tidal wave of one specific commodity. First glasses, then shoes, then jeans. I couldn’t understand it. It was a really interesting walk. Why would you put your little store selling sandals on the same block where 40 other stores are offering the same thing?!? It was madness.

Mike – Kolkata gets a bad rep: Internationally, it’s seen as a city rife with gut-wrenching poverty, bad traffic, convoluted roads, twisted and crumbling infrastructure, and a posh British influence that almost seems stuffy. After spending a good two weeks there, and getting to experience more than we’d planned on, I feel that these claims are entirely baseless. Kolkata was by far the most interesting and liveable city we’ve been to thus far in India.

In my opinion, it is everything that Mumbai claims to be, and everything it’s not. While Mumbai chokes on it’s own effluence (and affluence), Kolkata’s streets are pothole-free and the gutters gleam with freshly swept sparkle. It seemed as if each neighbourhood of Kolkata brought different smells, without the rancid undertone of garbage and rotting effigy so prevalent in Mumbai. The city had genuine character.

It wasn’t all roses, but it’s imperfections are what make it so unique. There was a lot of poverty, for sure, but it came with a sense of hope and optimism. Quite often we’d pass through churches providing free meals for street people, and the city is loaded with charities, for which we met many volunteers.

The roads were at times chaotic, it’s true, but we never encountered any problems because the metro system, which we used whenever possible, was far-reaching and very convenient. The city is not so much a grid as it’s a capillary system of back-roads, alleys, and corridors; connected by a few arterial highways. That leaves a lot to explore.

The architecture has been well-maintained and protected, while still maintaining it’s intrigue and mystique. For example, the local news reported recently finding “doorless pits”, presumably used for torture, in one of the famous former Raj palaces. It’s these local legends that build the mystique of a city, and create a city that can really be discovered. One can live there for years, and still be able to be a tourist within their own city. At least, that’s how I feel it would be.

Teg also mentioned the odd lay-out of the city in terms of it’s “specialized shopping districts”. It really was quite odd. It was as if people just knew that College Street, for example, is the best place to shop for books to the extent that it would be difficult to sell books anywhere else, as people will first (and only) go to College Street to buy books. Thus, if you wanted to own a bookstore in Kolkata, you had to be on College Street. According to this system, all the stores on College Streets eventually became bookstores in order to fill the large demand of people going to College Street to buy books, and the stores which weren’t bookstores would be driven out by market entrants. This phenomenon occurred on a block-by-block basis in downtown Kolkata: From saris, to big band instruments, to radios, to clocks; each block brought a different cluster of specialty stores. It was really quite unique.

It’s regrettable, personally, to have been indisposed for most of the Kolkata leg of our trip, but that’s the way it goes. Feelin’ good, feelin’ great – bring on the Mangroves!