Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Day Two: A Little More Lost, A Little Less Sweaty

Today I got a little more lost, but a little less sweaty. Instead of heading out on foot, I decided to take a CNG (also called a Baby Taxi) directly to the Liberation War Museum. However, the driver was just told to take me to the Museum, which usually refers to the National Museum. They are close together, and I planned on seeing both, so I thought no big deal. And regardless, the CNG ride ended up being the highlight of my day. The driver was of course curious to know where I was from. When I told him New York, he promptly pulled out a newspaper that featured a picture of the Statue of Liberty. He pointed to it and said it was one of his greatest dreams to go to America, but all he will ever be able to do is look at pictures. It was a touching, but somewhat sad moment. I told him that at least I could bring a picture of him back to America...

He was quick to say he was fond of America, and that the country does a lot of good for Bangladesh. I said I hope so.

When I got out at the National Museum, I went to purchase a ticket, which was 5tk. However, the smallest note I had was 100tk (which equals about $1.40), and he said he didn’t have change, and refused to take it. Frustrated, I decided I may as well just walk to the Liberation War Museum – it’s what I wanted to see anyways. Yet, for the second day in a row, I walked down the street thinking it was Kazi Nasrul Islam Ave when it was not. So, instead of ending up in the vicinity of the Museum, I ended up in the vicinity of a low income housing tenement that resembled a prison – or perhaps vice versa. Either way, it had barbed wire fences and barred windows, and did not seem like a pleasant place to stay. After yesterday’s hours spent wandering I thought why not quit while I’m only slightly behind and hop a rickshaw back to the hotel. I found an impressively fast, young driver, who passed traffic (at least rickshaw traffic) all the way there. I wondered if he was always that fast, or if he was just trying to impress me, being a foreigner. He ended up overcharging me, though, I suppose he earned it. Besides, I was in no place to argue over 20tk.

The first thing I did when I got back was buy a better map and get smaller change.


3 comments:

  1. Wow, you've been there for 2 days and already getting into trouble? Nice work buddy. Keep the stories coming. Glad to hear you're enjoying your developing country experience with all the weird smells and random animals strolling across the street (I grew up with that stuff).

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  2. buy a compass, it is incredibly useful

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