The Sights to See in Kolkata

The Victoria Memorial

Seeing as I have been roaming around Kolkata visiting famous historic sites this week, I thought it would be nice to take some pictures and share them with everyone. During the weekend I was able to visit the Victoria Memorial. For those of you who do not know your Indian history, India was colonized by the British until they gained their independence in 1947. Queen Victoria was not only prominent in English history, but is very prominent in Indian history as well.

Their names could actually be Ranjit and Anjali...right?

Overlooking the courtyard at the Victoria Memorial

As I was walking down the gravel path that leads up to the Victoria Memorial, I could not help but compare it to the White House. The architecture is very similar with white stone columns surrounding a central dome. As I walked further down the gravel path I noticed how many couples were there (I don't know if it was because it was a Saturday or if it was that the Victoria Memorial is a date spot) being extremely affectionate (some couples were even kissing, which is odd to see in India because public displays of affection are not commonly seen in India). I was telling Rachel (my roommate) that it was like a Bollywood film with two star-crossed lovers, Ranjit and Anjali, whose parents don't approve of their love and instead they must meet in secret...at the Victoria Memorial. Rachel could not stop laughing as I walked around the memorial relating the story of Ranjit and Anjali. As we were walking we saw some men being affectionate (it is quite common in India that men hold hands when they walk and are friendly in public without being considered homosexual--homosexuality is frowned upon in India however) and I started relating the story of Ranjit and Rahul, two star-crossed lovers who must hide their true identities from their parents. In other words, I was in story-telling mode for quite awhile.

Queen Victoria on her throne

Going inside the memorial was interesting. We walked around and looked at many paintings and read some of the history of the memorial. As we were leaving we walked outside and saw a large statue of Queen Victoria sitting on her throne overlooking the memorial. The memorial is a tourist destination in Kolkata and they even have carriage rides outside the entrance for those visitors who are interested in taking a ride around the memorial (although some of the poor horses looked a little underfed). It was a nice place to visit and an important piece of Kolkata's colonial past.

Sunset on the Hooghly River

Another place that I visited on my tour of Kolkata was the Dakshineswar Temple. Located in Northern Kolkata, the temple is quite a distance away from many of the places that I usually travel to in Kolkata (it is even past the last metro stop). We took the metro and then was directed to a bus by a very nice Indian man who told us where to go and when to get off the bus. As we walked down the street to the temple, there are vendors selling everything! You can buy snacks, flowers to throw during your prayers, trinkets of different gods and goddesses, etc. Before we walked inside the temple area, we were directed to take off our shoes and give them to certain people whose job it is to watch your shoes while you go into the temple (there are such places in many Hindu temples in Kolkata). We entered and walked around, lighting incense and throwing our flowers at the statues of the gods as tribute. Then, similar to the Birla Mandir (one of the other temples I visited), we rang a bell as we exited one of the praying areas. Walking around the back of the temple area, we came upon the Hooghly River (which runs into the Ganges) and saw many people submerging themselves in the water or cruising around in boats on the river. We just dunked our feet in the water which was quite refreshing seeing as it was around 87 degrees Fahrenheit today, although I have know idea why anyone would want to refresh themselves by jumping in the river because it is extremely dirty.

Boating and bathing...favorite pastimes on the Hooghly River

On our way back to collect our shoes we walked around the souvenir stands that were nearby and some of us bought trinkets for friends and family back home. We collected our shoes from the men and then decided to head back because the sun was starting to set. We caught a bus back to the metro and now are quite exhausted from our journey (we were gone for 5 hours at the temple today). It was a long day and now I must be getting to my homework. Duty calls!

Dakshineswar Temple