our boat driver, for a cruise on the Padma River at Rajshahi
Rajshahi is just an overnight place, there is little of interest, except for the archaeological Varendra museum, the oldest museum in the country, which is closed. A tourist map with ‘Old Architecture’ leads to an area where there are old, derelict houses, but little in terms of architecture.
the Varendra museum, closed
tables and chairs ready for the Rajshahis enjoying the T-Badh
several different chutneys to accompany the food at T-Badh
and freshly made pappadams, delicious
In the evening we walk around T-Badh, a promontory at the edge of the Padma River. This where the Rajshahis gather for social interaction, obviously. It is a great place, with food stands, tables and parasols, and a range of boats for hire, for a sundowner cruise. Without G&T, admittedly – we haven’t been able to get any alcoholic drinks, yet. As it is already pretty late, we decide to do the cruise the next morning, and limit ourselves to having selfies taken with members of the crowd; clearly, there are few foreigners traveling in Bangladesh, and each time we get somewhere, lots of people insist on taking our photographs, with or without asking; the highlight is a selfie with one of us.
these aare some of the boats for hire, a whole fleet of them
each loosely anchored onshore, between sandbags protecting the promontory
or just two friends checking out the river
T-badh is the place to be, obviously, and an opportunity for youths to meet – without chaperone
we have our pick of boats, in the morning
and we have decided on the most colourful one
The cruise
The cruise is a delight. We get into an open wooden boat, big enough for three times our small group of six, and first go along the river bank, observing daily life of the people living here. Anywhere else prime real estate, you would think, with unobstructed river view, but here mostly poor people, who so once in a while, when the water level rises, even may have to evacuate. We then cross to an island, not much more than a sand bank in the middle of the river, from where the main ferry departs, to destinations further downstream. Smaller boats feed the ferry by crossing the five or ten minutes from Rajshahi. Pretty cumbersome, but what I understand is that the syndicate of small ferry skippers ensures that the bigger ferry doesn’t depart from Rajshahi directly. Right! This system ensures jobs not only for the skippers, but also for a army of motor taxis, who transport travellers from the landing of one ferry to the departure of the other. But efficient? No, not really.
next: to Sylhet
the fishing boats near the island in the river
I cannot get enough of them
which are, indeed, very photogenic
another picture, rudders at the aft
but promise, this is the last one
the motor taxis waiting at the boat landing place, to transport travelers to the nearby ferry
the ferry is already filling up with people
getting on isn’t that easy, by the way
the only colour in the otherwise black boat scene
really, ‘colourful’ mostly refers to the women’s section of the boat
