Transportation

In Dhaka city, you can enjoy variety kinds of transportation
which may not really comfortable, but must be fun, or at least interesting.

1. Rikshaw
20tk～
The first option is Rikshaw which you can find almost anywhere on the street.

Once a boy asked me if I went to school by Rikshaw in Japan.
When I said Rikshaw won't be found there, he seemed surprised.

Rikshawara, waiting for customer

2. Local Bus
5tk～
Of course, it is the cheapest way of transportation, but.....
You have to get on the bus which IS MOVING,
and have to get off the bus which IS MOVING.
Don't worry, you will get used to it soon.

get into the bus......

get ON the bus....?

3. CNG
100tk～
It is like a taxi which has meter which has never been used.


4 people can get on, at maximum....if try hard

4. Walk
It doesn't cost, good for your health.
Sometimes, why don't you walk with seeing people, stores by your side?
People would stare at you, talk to you, may start walking together.

Hospital

Unexpectedly, I got chance to stay at hospital.
I was sent to hospital because of dehydration.
I went through all the examinations, and nothing serious was found.
So....how is hospital life in Bangladesh??



I stayed Yamagata Hospital where a doctor speaks Japanese and a Japanese nurse is.
My friend described the building as a horror house.

the room I had stayed

If I say anything, I wanted window to see outside.

 I think I had stayed a VIP room, with fridge and bathroom.

Other "rooms" are separated only by thin plastic wall.
When patient stays in hospital, family stays together, and takes care of him/her.
They cook, wash cloth, help to take shower...e.t.c.

So, basically hospital doesn't serve meal.
However, the nurse prepares Japanese food for Japanese patients.
That's incredible!
She said patient needs something comfortable or to look forward.....yes, meal helped me. 

Though there were some problems....
・Nurses use thermometer ON clothes.
・To measure blood pressure, a doctor inflated cuff too much that caused pain!
・My finger was swollen because of drip.
 I told using my limited Bengali, "My left fingers are bigger than right!" A doctor and nurses burst into laugh.
 "No no, fingers are the same! No problem!"

However, overall I was treated well.
Room was OK, nurses are friendly, Japanese nurse was helpful, food was good!
Besides, friends visited me.

can't stay on the bed all the day!

After a while, I started to be bored.

I slept 13 hours for 2 days....eat, sleep, eat, sleep, sleep......so now exercise!

Eventually I stayed 3 nights, and safely back home.
অনেক ধন্যবাধ!

Staying at Bengali family's house (2)

Topic : living

Disparity is huge in Bangladesh.
I could see it from the window of host family's house.

Room I stayed

View from the window

At night, family watches TV

At night, I don't know what people do.



They have a 13 years old servant girl who lives together.

I can do my dishes, cleaning........but 13 years old taking care of me feels strange.

She cooks, clearns, does chores in house.
Her work doesn't seem hard, but she works from the morning to night, 7 days a week.
She said she didn't remember the last time she went outside, and doesn't know when the next.

She is host mother's sister's someone's someone. (I forgot)
So, her treatment is a little different from servants in general.
She lives with fmaily, talks casually with host family's daughter(a year older girl).
She said it was "her house".
She said the daughter was like her sisiter.
Host father said she was like a family member.

However, I can't help comparing her life with the daughter.
While the daughter studies at school, she works.
While the daughter eats, she serves.
They watch TV together, but I never saw her sit on sofa.
She always stands begind, eat on the floor after everyone finishes.

It seems so strange, unequal.
However, it is the way it is.
I could do nothing but telling her thank you for all the work she did.
(and share the story, facts here with you)

She is going to go to school next year.
Because of my limited Bengali, I couldn't know details, but I was glad to know that.
I am looking forward to talking with her again, maybe about her school life.

Staying at Bengali family's house (1)

Home-stay (topic: food)

I had 11 days home stay program with Bengali family.

There was quite a bit of things which surprised me.

My host family is consisted father, mother, and 14 years old daughter. They have 1 driver, and 2 servants. One of the servants is 13 years old girl, and they live with family.

(There are clearly upper class people, so don’t take it as normal Bengali family!)

Food served was Bengali.

At the first day, host mother asked what I wanted to eat. To say exactly, she asked what kind of curry. They eat curry every day, and it is like asking Japanese “what kind of miso soup do you want today?”

Breakfast

Bread with honey, Ruti(kind of bread) with curry, fried egg(actually deep fried egg), e.t.c...

Small snack (around noon)

Fruits, fresh juice, yourgt....

Lunch (at 14)

Rice with variety kinds of curry

Snack (at 19)
Biskets, sandwich, fried stuff, fruits e.t.c.....with sweeeeet milk tea

Dinner (at 21)
Rice with variety kinds of curry



one day



another day

So, how can I not gain weight?

I tried to eat as much as I can, but still was said "you were not a good eater!".

Bengali uses a lot of oil and sugar.
(Their fry is deep fly, for me.)

I ate sandwich and small fried bread for snack though I have fever (I caught a cold), and ended up geting sick by oil.

So I told I couldn't have oil anymore.

Next morning, they prepared porridge for me.(with DEEP FRIED egg)

For lunch, host mother gave me a fish, told to cook by myself as I usually do so that I can eat.

But......how, in this Bengali kitchen?

"Only salt!? No spices? No turmeric? It won't be good. ....and then fry?"

A servant girl who helped cooking asked me, surprised.

"Yes, fry"

She put the fish in PLENTY OF oil, deeeep fried.

Already it was something different from what I had imagined.

"Don't you really need any of spices?"

"OK, add some spices as you tihnk good"

Somehow.....the same dish as the day before was prepared.

It was oily, but tasty.

I learned it wasn't possible to avoid oil, but anyway all dishes were tasty and I servived.

If I wasn't sick, I would have enjoyed more.

Next time, I will prepare my stomach ready for sugar & oil & spices, visit them again :)

This is knife to cut vegetables, meat, fish....

 graining ginger

eat with hand

At a glance

Bring your passport, taking plane, you can go almost everywhere.

Bangladesh seems far country, but leaving at night, I was there next day around noon.

As I arrived at the airport, mosquitossssss welcomed me.

Hartal(strike) was announced at the day, so we volunteers had to stay in the airport for 5 hours.

Perfect greetings?

I was worried, but actually I haven't found much difficulty to live here. (Or, maybe I haven't really known yet.)
I expected nothing, then there (are not many things),  but is something.
People are super friendly and food is good. So, we don't really need much more.

At first, I have to mention to density of population.

Even though road is crowded, Rikishawara(driver of Rikichaw) find small space to get in.

Traffic is mess, of course.

However, live there for 3 days, it becomes normal.

I like to see cars, buildings, stores along the road from Rikishaw.

A store only for.......banana?

Again, only for watermelon?





At roadside, live chikens are sold.

 Cut beef is sold, too.

In Bangladesh, visitng cloth shop is important!

You can find variety kinds, colors of fabrics.

Buy and bring it to tailor, then get order-made cloth for you.

For sawing, you only need about 300tk(less than $4).

Almost all the women on the streets wear salwar kameez, which for me seems so beautiful.

variety kind of fabric!



 Men work with sawing machine.



I only saw small parts of this city, and this is just introduction.

I will find many interesting, unusual(for me), exciting and wierd things soon.