Kolkata – Day 4

 

Day 4 was spent soaking up the spirit of Kolkata….the puchkas,the tram ride,the local train,the saree shopping(will do another post on that later),the Eden Garden,the Howrah bridge…..

After the tram ride

The Howrah bridge

On the local train

 

At the historical Eden Garden

Evening was spent in some saree shopping…

A heaven for saree lovers

We wrapped up the day with a traditional Bengali dinner of bhaat(rice),Doi Macchh(curd fish) and railway station mutton curry.The food was authentic and delicious,the ambiance lovely and the music outstanding Rabindra Sangeet playing in the background.

Kolkata- Day 3

Day 3 began on a lazy note with all of us a little weary after two long days.We got up late and had nothing particular in mind when we set out to hail a cab.The first thing on mind was breakfast. After yesterdays English breakfast, I was looking forward to some bengali Radhaballabi which we found at K.C. Das on Esplanade.Though we had to wait awhile but it was worth it.They serve awesome “roshogullas” too.

With our hunger satiated for the time being , we decided to take the kids to Nicco Park, the first amusement park in Kolkata.Needless to say,the gals had a whale of a time. After all the fun and frolic,naturally hunger struck us again.The foodies that we are,we headed to another well known Mughlai joint in Park Street—Arsalaan.And the food did live up to the expectations.There is a long queue  even during weekdays and lunch hours.The Mutton Biryani is yum as well as also the Chicken  Stew and Rezala.Must visit for taste as well as easy on the pocket.

Next up was some shopping in New Market-which is the place to shop when in Kolkata.From septipins(safety pins) to shona(gold),you name it and its there.The market itself is a colonial building and the clock tower reminds one of an era bygone.

  I could spend hours here but the poor kids were tired  so we had a dinner of the famous Kolkata Rolls and headed back .

I have been a bit lazy in posting my Kolkata diaries.Among the many odd reasons for not doing so is that Perk had a bout of chicken pox but more on that later.

Kolkata -Day 2

Day 2 in Kolkata saw us heading to Park Street for an English Breakfast at the legendary tearoom Flury’s.It was founded in 1927 by Mr and Mrs J Flury’s and introduced the city to Swiss and international delicacies.The place was very English and I saw it was completely packed at 9:30 in the morning.The place has an old world charm to it with a sense of timelessness and a relaxed atmosphere.The chandeliers,the waiters,the tea sets all add upto the charm of the place.We ordered creamed corn on toasts,a mutton puff and chicken patties.The mutton puff was out of the world,I can assure you.But all said and done…the price tags here are a bit overshot.

Our next stop was the Oxford Book Store,the second oldest book store in India, which is every reader’s delight.The girls and I had a great time going through our respective sections while Papa was busy finding his favourite music.The cherry on top- the store was having its annual discounts.There is an endless collection of books and a kids section which is also very well stocked.To add to all this there is a quaint cafe on the first floor where you can sip a cup of ‘cha’ or grab a bite as you sink into any random nooks with a book in your hand.The charm of the place lies in the randomly placed books and well created nooks and corners for reading.Our next stop was the Indian Museum right there in Park Street.As it was an extremely warm day,we wanted to spend the morning hours indoors.So the museum it was.And we were not disappointed at all.Although some sections were under renovation,Munch enjoyed her visit very much and kept asking questions and reading the informations everywhere.The museum itself is a very magnificent white building and is the oldest museum in India.It was established in 1814 and so it has actually completed 200 years!

The textile section

It was an afternoon well spent and the walking around made us all feel hungry again…but more on that later as I have to rush and get ready for a party…see you on the other side.

 

Science City, Kolkata

If you are visiting Kolkata with kids, a visit to Science City is a must.It is the largest Science Center in the Indian Subcontinent under the National Council of Science Museums.It is a unique effort to bring everyone to love the laws of Science.Munch and Perk had a great time there too.They thoroughly loved the place and so did we.There is something there for everyone..

The Evolution Park

It is a theme park covering 7 large walk through dioramas with robotic prehistoric animals and plants.It shows the history of evolution of life.

The entrance to the evolution park

The Dynamotion Hall

Here there are various exhibits and props for visitors to experience and use and understand the underlying principles of Science.It is actually learning with fun. The Space Odyssey

It comprises a Space Theatre which is like a planetarium and we enjoyed the screening of the film Greece. This place also has a 3D vision theatre, a Mirror magic zone and a Time Machine which provides a virtual experience of a space flight.The kids specially had a gala time with the magic mirrors.

dining with yourself

It was an amazing place to be in and I would recommend it to all those who visit Kolkata with your little ones…this is a must visit .It is a fun day out for the entire family.

Oh!Kolkata – Day 1

As I mentioned in the earlier post,we are back rejuvenated from our short trip to the “City of Joy” —Kolkata.One of the oldest cities of India and capital of the British Raj before they moved to Delhi..the city has a heart and soul unlike other metros.The pavements full of books,the innumerable music shops(some even now selling LPs or records),the intelligible chatter of people going past and the numerous eateries scattered all across the city speaks of the rich heritage and culture of the past.But sadly most of the colonial buildings are now in a sorry state of decay.

We were staying  centrally at a building aptly named “Hooghly View” on the eleventh floor which was ideal as it afforded a view of not only the Hooghly but also the famed Howrah Bridge,Victoria Memorial and Vidyasagar Setu from the bedroom window itself.

The girls were pretty excited on seeing the beautiful white marble building from the window and first thing in the morning wanted to visit it.So off we went in a cab and were at the gates of The Victoria at 9 am dot.The garden surrounding the Victoria were beautifully maintained but dotted with lovebirds hanging around on their way to college or work.We were lucky to be early as the place was comparitively less crowded at this hour than at any other time of the day.We spent half an hour taking in the beauty of the place and clicking pictures before we went inside the museum which opens for visitors at around 9:30 am.The museum has a vast gallery of paintings and one is not allowed to take pictures.One can go upto the second floor.

After going around the museum, we took the eager kids on a baggi ride around Maidan.You have to really bargain with the owners here as they will charge you anything from 500 bucks for a ten minute ride.The hubby who is great at bargaining booked us one for 150 Rs and we were happily up and away.

the elated girls

this was an afternoon well spent followed by lunch at Aminia in New Market which serves amazing biryanis and Moghlai food.The evening was spent shopping in New Market and drooling over the stuff on offer.We had a traditional bengali dinner the first night at Bhojohori Manna in Esplanade.The food was better than the ambience.Since I have never resided in Kolkata,I only had reccos on the net to go by.The place was pretty deserted,the staff casual but the prices reasonable and food authentic.

And we go on a break..

With the kids exams being over and the schools due to open only in the first week of April, we decided to take a short break and come back before the declaration of the results.We decided to make a short trip to the City of Joy…. yes to Kolkata.

I’ve been to Kolkata many times when I was a kid and it has been one of my least favourite metro. Coming from a small town ,I hated the crows…be it on the roads,the trains,the shops,the restaurants…you name it and there were hordes and hordes of people everywhere .Secondly the weather in summers used to be really humid and bad.(I usually went there with my parents during the summer hols).Delhi and Mumbai are also crowded cities but somehow I preferred them to Kolkata.

But this time when I decided to show my kids The City Of Joy..the heart of Bengal and what our culture is all about,this trip to Kolkata had a different meaning altogether.I saw the city with a different perspective this time.My husband and kids were literally going there for the first time and I had so much to tell them and brag about things I knew.They hung on every word I said.They went according to the itinerary  I had prepared for them.They ate at places I recommended ,they bought music I chose and books I recommended.

I would take you through my five days in Kolkata in the subsequent posts.