Lights ... Camera ... Action
08.01.2018 - 08.01.2018
Day 1 Kolkata
Alarm set for 5.45am / 05:45. With birds chirping, the grey morning fog greeted me as I left the hotel at 6am / 06:00 for the meeting point of my day’s first tour some 20 minutes away. Just out of the hotel and my camera was still in the bag when a cyclist passed with live white chickens tied to his handlebars and at the back. Must have been over 30 chickens. Will I see this scene again? Hope so.
How quiet the city was with the occasional cyclist either carrying milk churns or stacked with newspapers on route to the stands and stores around town. On the sidewalk the papers were being sorted before loaded onto the bikes.
Those sleeping rough were either lying across the payment or under their makeshift shelters.
Met Manjit from Calcutta Photo Tours.
http://calcuttaphototours.com/
Off we headed for the first of today’s two tours.
Tour: Culture Kaleidoscope Tour
Starting time: 6.30 am
Duration: 3 hours
Starting point: Air India building
Cost: INR 3500
http://www.calcuttaphototours.com/tour3.php
Just love the red brick buildings. Two police stations opposite to each other and outside were their Enfield bikes. Why were the 2 stations opposite each other? Because they serve neighbouring districts.
Baudha Dharmankur Sabha
The Baudha Dharmankur Sabha is a Bengal Buddhist Temple and unfortunately a place that not many locals know about. Shame.
http://www.bengalbuddhist.com/
I was too lazy to take my shoes off so it was shooting through the windows.
Love how the dog was there outside the gate when we entered and still there as we left
Bow Barracks
Bow Barracks is a locality in the central Calcutta region. The locality is a small hub of mainly Anglo-Indian population who have lived here for generations. The families living here do not pay any rent for their stay in Bow Barracks as the building is owned by the KIT and they have refused to accept a meagre amount of ₹30 paid as rent throughout the years without any increment in rent by the families for their stay. The government has declared this building ‘unsafe’, dangerous and plans are afoot to build a highrise and other structures in its place.
Bow Barracks is located in central Kolkata — just behind the Bowbazar police station, off the Central Avenue (now Chittaranjan Avenue).
The easiest way to get to Bow Barracks irrespective of the distance is to catch an underground train at the Kolkata Metro. Central Avenue and Chandni Chowk are two metro stations that will get you within a 2-minute walk of Bow Barracks.
It is a narrow lane between Hare Street and Bohu Bazaar police station. The place, named Bow Barrack is in central Kolkata, on Central Avenue. The narrow lane is bordered by six blocks of three-storeyed buildings, which look old but hardy. Their red brick color appear a bit shabby. The green windows frame gay curtains that catch the light breeze now and then.
The Bow Barracks was a garrison's mess built for the army during World War I. But there are no written records to prove these facts. When the soldiers left India, they handed over the apartments to the Anglo Indians who took them on rent. Today, 132 families live in the Barracks. Of them, 80 percent of the residents are Anglo Indians. It has acquired a reputation of sorts for its Christmas celebrations. Thanks Mr Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_Barracks
http://www.thebeaconkolkata.co.in/bow-barracks-chrimas-bow-fest/
Here are some more images from Dr “Google”:
A film crew was using the streets as their set and we didn’t know that they didn’t like photos being taken.
Parsi
According to the Encyclopædia Britannica,
Parsi, also spelled Parsee, member of a group of followers in India of the Persian prophet Zoroaster. The Parsis, whose name means "Persians", are descended from Persian Zoroastrians who emigrated to India to avoid religious persecution by the Muslims. They live chiefly in Mumbai and in a few towns and villages mostly to the south of Mumbai, but also a few minorities near by in Karachi (Pakistan) and Bangalore (Karnataka, India). There is a sizeable Parsee population in Pune as well in Hyderabad. A few Parsee families also reside in Kolkata and Chennai. Although they are not, strictly speaking, a caste, since they are not Hindus, they form a well-defined community. Thanks Mr Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsi
https://www.justdial.com/kolkata/Parsi-Dharamsala-Near-Cmba-Hall-Bowbazar/033P6856640_BZDET
https://www.facebook.com/Kolkata-PARSI-Dharamshala-1207940792559219/
http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/parsi-communities-ii-in-calcutta
https://parsikhabar.net/india/kolkatas-parsi-community-on-the-wane/14846/
Havana, Cuba here in Kolkata?
The old run down colourfully painted buildings reminded me of the buildings in Cuba, particularly around Havana. Others in Manjit previous groups said the same. They were certainly right.
Worked out what it is? (goat)
Posted by bruceontour 14:40 Archived in India Tagged temple enfield buddhist_temple bow_barracks enfield_motorbikes Comments (1)
