On Sunday, a fellow Bryn Mawr student and I took a hotel car to do some sightseeing in old Dhaka. We went to a Buddhist temple, but it was closed so we couldn’t see it. We also went to an old fort (Lalbagh fort) but, unfortunately, it was also closed. We weren’t disappointed, however, because just driving the around the city was an experience in and of itself. As mentioned, driving here is CRAZY! We weaved in and out of crowded market streets full of small venders selling fruit and beautiful textiles. The streets are loud and pretty dirty, with all sorts of animals roaming freely – cows, goats, monkeys, dogs, cats.
The power lines here are unbelievable. That is to say, they are an electrical engineer’s worst nightmare. They are tangled, wound, and strung in all different directions. Sellers in the street then hang with wares from the wires over the sidewalk! It is so wild to see!
After roaming through narrow crowded streets, we finally popped out into a wide open space to find Ahsan Manzil, the former palace of the old rulers. It is an absolutely stunning sight! The building is tremendous in size and appearance when compared to the surrounding area. It sits right on the river, and houses an interesting collection of historical artifacts and national treasures. Here is a picture of me and another Bryn Mawr student.
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