First thoughts on Dhaka, Bangladesh
As I write this, I've been in Dhaka, Bangladesh, for about 18 hours.
The city is chaos. There are people everywhere, seemingly just hanging around; on the tops of buildings, on the sidewalk, in the street, at the feet of the monuments — everywhere.
Buildings appear to have been erected at random, in all directions, and there are more structures being built all over the city.
The roads are in a frenzied state, with all manner of cars, rickshaws, trucks, bikes and buses competing for what little space the drivers can see. Cars continually beep their horns, apparently having been taught to do so.
Billboards advertising everything from bank services to soft drinks are scattered throughout the city.
At night, hundreds of people line the sidewalks, sleeping side by side in a confused mass of bodies.
My cellphone managed to last through the night and then gave itself up in the morning, apparently after being slept on by mistake.
Dhaka is a strange place. My friends who live here — two locals — last night told me that 10 years ago, Dhaka was a great city, "But then we ruined it."
People seem generally confused by my presence. They don't get many foreigners here. Immigration asked a lot of questions and insisted I disclose my exact intended whereabouts. The manager of the hotel where I'm staying wrote down all my details, copied my passport and took my photo to satisfy the police.
So I'm here, now without a phone, trying to figure out a way to tackle to the city and get through the dozen or so interviews I've tentatively scheduled. Of course, I can't do this without a phone, but my friend's driver will be picking me up soon and so we'll work on my predicament.
This is my home for a month, a place to explore. How it will all pan out, I don't know, but I feel this is one of those life experiences you come across now and then. I'm happy to be here, to see the urban mess with my own eyes.
My journey started at 7 am Sunday morning. Two flights and 12 hours later and I was in Dhaka. Two hours of traffic later and I was at my hotel room. One peculiar soup, some fried chicken and a hamburger later and I'd had dinner. I was understandably tired and slept through until about 11 am.
And now, approaching midday, I need to get my bearings. Wish me luck.
