Old house in Old Dhaka

Some very ornate architecture in Old Dhaka. Had I actually listened on our walking tour, I could provide an informative account of the history of this impressive building. Instead the general impression I came away with is that it dates back to the colonial period, a lot of people live there now (the profusion of power/phone lines also speaks to this) and that the current tenants would generally prefer something nice and new to something … old. Because of this, and because of the very high population density, most historical buildings in Dhaka are in danger of being torn down to make way for new high-rises.

Anchors Aweigh!

M with a recovered treasure we found at the market last week. Dhaka has lots of antique stores brimming with scavenged ship parts, from anchors and steering wheels to bells and compasses. Everything is fantastic but pretty pricey. As to where it all comes from, the shipbreaking industry is huge here, as Bangladesh is short on natural resources but long on manpower and beach. When boats are retired, they are run aground and dismantled; all the parts are recycled in some form or another.

The city from above

A shot of the city from the 25th floor of a nearby hotel – a little perspective is always nice.  This also shows off some of the many ongoing construction projects in the area.  Sometimes it seems that the whole city is in the process of growing around us.

Shop much?

This gargantuan mall houses everything from shoes and clothes to eyeglasses and electronics.  Each item basically gets its own floor – the sari floor, the cell phone floor, the sports floor … it gets exhausting by the time you work your way to the food court at the top!  It’s also the only modern movie theater in Dhaka, usually showing one American film along with a couple from India.

Sugarcane press

This is a mobile, hand-cranked sugarcane press, which squeezes the syrup out of the sugarcane -  leaving you with essentially liquid sugar.  We use the syrup here to sweeten drinks like lemonade and ice tea.  It’s fantastic.

Rice out to dry

Another rural scene today – rice spread out to dry.

The waterfront

Boats on the Buriganga in Dhaka.  This is the main hub where most ferries leave for other cities around the country, as well as the transit point for boats bringing in agricultural goods from the surrounding countryside.

Waiting their turn

Goats waiting for slaughter.  Also in the market downtown.

Spicy

This explains why I sometimes have trouble with the food here.  Another picture from the market downtown.

Golf

Friday is our usual golf day here in Dhaka, as our weekend here is Friday/Saturday.  There are two terrific golf courses in Dhaka, one 9-hole and one 18-hole.  Today we went to the 9-hole Army Golf Course.  This is hole three, par five, with three lakes!  Surprisingly, we’ve been able to play even throughout the monsoon season.

Rural market in the rain

Veggies at a rural market. Prominently featured is eggplant, one of the main foods used for Iftar, the meal for breaking the Ramadan fast each day. Due to Ramadan, eggplant prices are up to 80 taka a kilo in the city (about $1.15), but it is fresher in the countryside and costs about half as much.

A rural view

The countryside from the air, flying out of the Jessore airport.

Still shocking ?

Another shot of the terrible wiring situation here. This one is actually downtown, but the problem is about the same.  I’ve also seen places where bunches of wires are propped up by tree branches, or where cut-off limbs of trees that are jammed underneath the wires to make a makeshift telephone pole.

Often, there are enough wires strung up and the bundle is thick enough that if a repairman has to go up to do some sort of work, he rests his ladder directly against the wires (not against the pole) to climb up and check things out. Sometimes, if his ladder doesn’t reach, he’ll prop the bottom of the ladder on a flatbed rickshaw to get a boost.  This means his ladder is on wheels.

None of this seems entirely safe.

Follow up note:  After the comments on this and the previous post, I did a little more research.  It turns out that Bangladesh has just over 1.2 million total landline phone subscribers, while it is adding around 1.5 million new cell phone subscribers every month.  There are a total of 40 million cell phone users now. I’d imagine that the wiring issue is part of the reason!