20.10.2018
Same as every day I got up by 05:30, opened the window and did some “work”. Do not get me wrong, normally when working on a ship, I have a hard time to get up early in the morning. But the ship here in India is much different from the usual – there is no evening entertainment other than a movie in the salon. There is no musician or dance floor. And there is no TV in the cabin. So, I usually sleep by 22:00 latest and since 7 hrs sleep is plenty enough, I regularly wake up very early even without needing the alarm clock.
The weather was already hot and humid again this morning, but life on the river starts with the sunrise every day.
After breakfast we went in our country boat to Kalna. Ambika Kalna or simply Kalna is situated on the western bank of the Hooghly River. The town is named after a very popular deity – Goddess Kali – Maa Ambika. The town has approx 55000 inhabitants and is especially known for its temples. We took e-rickshaws from the jetty to the temples. The ride was maybe 10 min through the busy town.
A major attraction here is the Nava Kailash or 108 Shiv Mandirs. Built by the Bardhaman Maharaja Tej Chandra Bahadur in 1809, the temples were constructed in 2 circles. One consists of 74 temples while the other circle has 34. The former has white marble and black stone shivlingas, while the latter has only white marble ones. Due to its ingenious planning, all the shivlingas can be seen from the centre of the temple complex and all are pointing north.
A lingam is sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga. It is an abstract representation of the Hindu deity Shiva, who is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. Shiva is known as the “destroyer and the transformer” within the Hindu trinity that includes Brahma and Vishnu. He is the Supreme being who creates, protects and transforms the universe.
The lingam is a votary symbol revered in temples, smaller shrines, or as self-manifested natural objects and is often represented within a lipped, disc-shaped platform called a yoni that symbolizes goddess Shakti. The yoni is usually shown with linga – it’s masculine counterpart. Together, they symbolize the merging of microcosmos and macrocosmos, the divine eternal process of creation and regeneration, the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence.
The 108 Shiv Mandirs are very impressive with the perfect circles they form. They are all identical. At the entrance we had to take our shoes off and walk around the premises barefoot or with temple socks – that is what guests usually call the extra pair of socks they carry to use in the temples. Most do not want to go barefoot, but also not in the socks they wear in their shoes….
We took our time walking around and taking photos. Some of the small temples are more important than others, it seemed, because on some of the lingams there were flowers or painted markings.
In Hindu tradition, the Mukhya Shivaganas – the attendants of Shiva – are 108 in number and hence malas of 108 beads are used for prayer and meditation. Similarly, Lord Krishna had 108 followers known as gopis. Recital of their names, often accompanied by the counting of a 108-beaded mala, is usually done during religious ceremonies.
Opposite from the 108 Shiv Mandirs there is a collection of old terracotta temples from the 18th and 19th century – known as the Kalna Temple Complex. It boasts several magnificent temples ornamented with some of the finest terracotta arts found in West Bengal. The premises are maintained as a historical site and the temples are no longer in real use. We could walk around in the garden like setting – where we spotted a mongoose searching for food on the lawn – and only had to take the shoes off if we wanted to go onto the temple platforms to take a closer look.
The first temple in the ensemble is the Pratapeswar Temple, which may look tiny, but the number of terracotta figures on its facade is grand and the state of detail and preservation mind blowing. It was built in 1849 by Maharani Shiyari Kumari, wife of Maharaja Pratap Chand of Bardhaman and is a Shiva Temple housing a black Shiv linga inside.
There is a single arched entrance and is a fine example of Bengali Hindu architecture. The most stunning stone carvings are those of Durga in Mahisasurmardini – slaying the demon Mahisasur – on the side wall atop the arch. They are flanked on either side by Ram and Ravan engaged in war against each other.
There is also the magnificent brick Krishna Chandra Mandir from 1752. It has an elongated chala type verandah in front, 3 arched entrances and 25 steeples. It is another popular landmark where scenes from the epics are depicted on its terracotta walls. Built by Raja Trilokchand of Burdwan in the name of his mother Rajlakshmi Devi, the temple shows terracotta works of special quality.
The Lalji Temple was built in 1739 and is the oldest temple in the complex. It is dedicated to Lord Krishna and his wife Radha and is a magnificent brick-built temple with 25 steeples – called Panchavimshati-Ratna.
This is my favorite temple in this complex. It is still a place of worship. The terracotta decorations here are magnificent and only on the weather side of the temple they are time worn.
Our guide Amit was telling us the whole story of the temples – unfortunately one of the guests – who we already nicknamed the Swiss express train, because she had not realized yet that the clocks are ticking differently in India – did not listen and rather chatted – standing directly next to Amit – in very loud Swiss-German to her fellow Swiss lady about some totally irrelevant dessert issues. She would be the one that in the end would be complaining that the guide did not tell enough of the historic background.
We took the back entrance to leave the temple complex walking through the local fish market back to the jetty. Here were even still alive fishes sold. As usual a walk through a local market is something very special and most guests enjoy it immensely. Some others rushed through it with more or less closed eyes – like the Swiss express train – and the final resolution to eat vegetarian for the rest of the trip like the majority of the Indians…. Well, that is probably the biggest myth about India … that India is a largely vegetarian nation.
But that’s not the case at all. Past estimates have suggested that more than 1/3 of the Indians are vegetarians. But new research by US anthropologists and Indian economists point too much evidence that these are inflated estimations because of cultural and political pressures. Taking all this into account only about 20% of the Indians are actually vegetarian. Hindus, who make up 80% of the Indian population, are major meat-eaters. You would think, maybe the common people with lower income would be rather vegetarian due to the financial factor. But in the contrary, government data shows that vegetarian households have higher income and consumption and are more affluent than meat-eating households – Isn’t that the same in the Western world? The lower castes, Dalits – formerly known as untouchables – and tribes-people are mainly meat eaters. Think about that!
At the other end of the market we also saw the butchers with chicken and goat meat. The freshest of the fresh – chickens get slaughtered à la minute. You choose the chicken and – voilà – it gets prepared for you.
Of course, there are also butchers with goats. Some of the guests – the not so squeamish ones – actually inspected this section and one said – But I would never eat goat! … Now, we did have Kosha Mangsho Mutton Curry on board before. However, that could have been goat curry or lamb curry – a dish that originated during British India. The usage of the term mutton shop is actually a British legacy. The British knew mutton – sheep meat – only and as per the English Dictionary – lamb refers to the meat of a baby sheep whereas mutton refers to the meat of an adult sheep. However, in Sub Continent Countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh etc. mutton refers to goat meat whereas lamb refers to sheep meat. Hence, when westerners come to India they probably get confused – lost in translation, so to speak …
The truth apparently is that millions of Indians, including Dalits, Muslims and Christians, consume beef. Some 70 communities in Kerala, for example, prefer beef to the more expensive goat meat. The conclusion is that in reality, closer to 15% of Indians – or about 180 million people! – eat beef. That’s a whopping 96% more than the official estimates of 7%. Nevertheless, you would never see a beef butcher in the market. Those are usually hidden away in side alleys or in Muslim quarters….
There was also the usual vegetable and spice market here. And same as in the fish and meat section the sellers had spread their produce on tarps on the floor and as usual there was every vegetable you could think off in this season – I guess all vegetables are always in season contrary to the fruits. At the moment there seemed only apples, oranges, bananas, watermelon and pomegranate in season. – But I so looked forward to eating mango! – Well, there is no mango season at the moment here, madame! Mango season starts in the end of March with the fruits hitting the markets by mid-April and last usually till the end of June, in some regions until August. – Oh, what a pity!
We walked back to the jetty and passed an ATM machine. I needed to withdraw some cash. Courtesy suggests in India to wait outside the ATM room if it is occupied. You would never find an ATM just out in the open like in Europe – you know, just stop on the sidewalk because there is an ATM in the wall of the house and get money. No, there is always an air-conditioned room – probably so the machine does not get too hot in this climate – and usually there is also a security man at the door. So, I waited patiently eyeing the customer inside. All of a sudden he turned around and made a questioning-bored gesture and took on a relaxed waiting position. I could catch a glimpse of the screen and it read – Please take your cash – ….. 3 min later it still had not spat out money …. I decided to not take a chance and just ran after the group to catch our country boat back to the ship. Of course, I was not left alone waiting by the ATM – there is always a guy from the boat making sure nobody is left alone in the vastness of India, not even me.
Over lunch the ship sailed for approx 4 hrs to Nabadwip. On the way the vistas were stunning along the river. The ship passed vegetable and rice fields, brick factories and villages. There were farmers tending the fields and water buffalos grazing or taking a walk to the river bank.
Around 14:00 we reached Nabadwip, a town seated on the western bank of the Hooghly river opposite its junction with the Jalangi River. It was supposedly founded in 1063 and served as the old capital of the Sena dynasty – who ruled Bengal from here in the period from the middle of the 12th to the beginning of the 13th century – being a center of learning and philosophy in medieval India and is still noted for its traditional Sanskrit schools. The great Vaishnava saint, social reformer and important figure of the Bhakti movement, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu who lived in the 15th and 16th century, was born here. For his sake, this place has turned into an important center of pilgrimage for the Vaishnavs worldwide as well as the Hindus in general. Many devotees come to Nabadwip for pilgrimage and for various festivals.
The ship stayed at anchor and with our country boat we were taken to the jetty and got into e-rickshaws. There is a great electric-vehicle revolution gaining ground in India, I read in the Times of India newspaper the other day, and it has nothing to do with cars. Apparently there are already 1.5 mio battery-powered three-wheeled rickshaws in India – a fleet bigger than the total number of electric passenger cars sold in China since 2011. But here the e-movement hardly got a hand from the state. It was rather the drivers of the ubiquitous three-wheelers weaving through crowded and often smoggy streets who discovered that e-rickshaws are quieter – you can hardly hear them approach – faster, less strenuous and more lucrative – because more rides a day are possible – than cycle rickshaws as well as cleaner and cheaper to maintain than traditional auto rickshaws. As many as 11000 new e-rickshaws hit the streets everyday all over India, imagine that! And in Germany they are still discussing the diesel scandal, diesel ban and raising the petrol prices ….
The ride took less than 10 min to the center of town where we got off at a small market with was located around an old temple under an even older banyan tree – Poramatala. The huge banyan tree covers this place like an umbrella. It is the temple of Pora-Maa – burnt mother – who is actually the deity of Goddess Kali. Once upon a time, the deity was burnt in a thunder shower and since then, it is called Pora Maa.
There is a market spread around the temple under the banyan tree and it has very narrow alleys. It is a small market, but interesting to look at for tourists – noting you see back home. We gave the guests 20 min free time to walk around and admire or take photos.
Some even went into the side streets looking for things to buy. Every evening before dinner there are snacks in the salon during our briefing to the next day. Yesterday we had Moong Dal which is salty fried split green gram snack. The mung bean (Vigna radiata) is alternatively known as the green gram, maash, or moong lentils and the snack is crispy, tasty and protein rich. It looks a bit like tiny puffed lentils, but it is very delicious – tastes much better than potato chips! Anyway, Mr. & Mrs. N wanted to buy it and I know what to look for and where to get it. The small bag is just Rs 5. We found it, guests happy to have an eatable souvenir to take home to the family. They bought like 10 bags ….
We went back to the jetty with our e-rickshaws and then had a quick pee pee break on board. Our favorite Swiss express train actually wanted to have it spelled out – in German we say – she made a drawing – and wanted to discuss how long is quick. Well, I said – Better get over it and get going, because all the time you sit here discussing all the others are already using to do the business!
Opposite from Nabadwip is Mayapur which is situated somewhere between the rivers Hooghly and Jalangi. It is located 130 km from Kolkata. We had seen the new – still under construction – ISKCON Temple already from afar. It is humongous and even though it is long from being finished it looks very impressive from the distance.
The headquarters of ISKCON – International Society for Krishna Consciousness commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement or Hare Krishnas – are situated here in Mayapur and it is considered a holy place by a number of other traditions within Hinduism, but is of special significance to followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism as the birthplace of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, regarded as a special incarnation of Krishna in the mood of Radha. They claim it is visited by over 1 mio pilgrims annually. ISKCON was formed to spread the practice of Bhakti yoga, in which those involved dedicate their thoughts and actions towards pleasing Krishna, their Supreme Lord. ISKCON as of 2017 is a worldwide confederation of more than 850 temples and centres, including 60 farm communities, 50 schools, and 90 restaurants. Its most rapid expansions in membership have been within India and especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.
The guests had to get changed on board, because long pants or ankle long skirts and covered shoulders were in order to visit the temple. The ride in the country boat across was quick and since the temple only opened at 16:00 it was still relatively quiet. We walked to the main entrance of the premises past many souvenir stalls selling anything – mostly kitsch – what a Krishna devotee could need – made in China most probably.
There is a temple like building with a museum, but the lines there were very long already and time was an issue. Walking around this and the new temple – which looked close up much less finished than from afar – to the old temple which is in use till the construction of the new one will be finished. A huge sign on the construction fence stated 2022 as the finishing year. It has changed slightly since I came here the first time in January 2016. But it kind of looks like it has a similar fate as the new Berlin Airport …. OK, that was a very German joke …..
We had to leave all bags and cameras and mobile phones outside along with our shoes and the boat staff was watching it for us. Inside the temple it was very noisy – loud almost monotonous chanting and drumming was going on. Huge altar-like stages displayed the magnificent deities of Pancatattva, Lord Nrisingha Dev, Srila Prabhupada and Radha-Madhav with the Gopis. Everyone took a more or less quick look around and then we went out again. For me this is more like a sect, because the level of dedication is apparently measured in the amount of donations.
We gave the guests 30 min free time to walk around back to the main entrance by themselves. There were also souvenir stalls inside. While the sun set we walked back to the jetty and our country boat awaited us. On the ship they had pulled anchor in the meantime and sailed towards us giving us a nice sunset-ship-temple photo opportunity.
21.10.18
My days began always with the same ritual – get up early, have a cup of tea and watch the scenery glide past. This morning again there were many Gods floating by. On the final day of the Durga Puja Festival the Durga statues get ceremoniously dumped into the holy river or the nearest body of water, that is.
In religious terms, this ritual represents Durga’s return to her husband Shiva at their home in the Himalayas, and celebrates her defeat of the evil god. In terms of urban governance, though, the hundreds of thousands of statues dumped every year represents a huge source of pollution throughout the nation’s waterways and lakes. Nowadays campaigners are trying to encourage worshippers to use statues made of a softer clay, which would dissolve quickly and sink to the river or lake floor, and natural food colorings rather than chemical-based paint. Local authorities are also increasingly arranging large clean-up operations in the wake of festivals. Another solution is to create special, synthetically lined pools for idol immersion, since Durga Puja is not the only festival and not the only time gods get immersed.
However, idol pollution still pales in comparison to the other types of refuse pouring into India’s lakes and rivers – 80 per cent of the nation’s sewage plus agricultural runoff and waste from unregulated small industry end up in the waterways. I guess, they cannot blame the gods for everything ….
The ship sailed at 06:30 this morning towards the small village of Matiari which is a Brass workers village. This history dates to about 100 years back. The senior leaders of the village went to Calcutta to work in the brass utensils making factory, but as they grew old and less efficient to work there they, were sent back to their native place. Since the villagers had nothing to do for their livelihood they made a virtue of necessity by starting to make the brass utensils at their homes. And that is how the tradition is going on and today it has become the main source of income for the people living in Maitari.
There was much happening at the river banks near the jetty – and there was an actual pontoon jetty there. Brand new, I suppose, since last time I was here it had not been there yet. Our ABN Rajmahal could dock right at it – no country boat shuttle needed.
We walked past a small Hindu Temple into the village. At the chai stall men were having their morning cup and read the newspaper.
For the first time on this trip we watched village women preparing cow dung cakes – some guests were appalled by the method of doing that. Dung cakes are made from the by-products of animal husbandry and are traditionally used as fuel in India for making food in a domestic hearth called a Chulha. They are traditionally made from cow or buffalo dung by hand by village women – show me only one of our guests who would stick their bare hands in a pile of cow dung! … OK, I would not either ….
The dung cakes are stuck to the walls of houses or on tree trunks to dry in the sun. This bio-fuel is used primarily for two reasons – for easy disposal of cow dung and as easily available and cheap fuel. One dung cake of an average size gives 2100 kJ worth of energy.
Even though the festival was finished, most of the villagers seemed to be in holiday mood still. We usually visit a couple of the brass foundries and did so this time. Unfortunately, none of them was working today. A foundry where nothing is happening is rather boring, because it is hard to imagine how they work.
There are different workshops in the village. In some of them the metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools.
In another workshop those molds are for example heated again and rolled into thin brass sheets which are later – in yet another workshop – processed into bowls, pots or pans.
The 2 brass maker families we usually visit were not on holiday and happily showed us their brass art works. In the first one they hammer plates and bowls with delicate ornaments of gods or patterns.
In the courtyard of the family home they had spread out their works and set up a workstation of the hammer artist. While most of the guests watched in awe, the Swiss express train was interfering with their lifestyle – there was a cage with a parakeet and she actually paid the owner Rs 500 to let the parakeet fly – Oh, I do not like animals in cages! – He took the money grinning – the bird flew off, but would most likely be back in the evening… Easy made money for the guy.
The second family we visited was specialized in manufacturing solid utensils like spoons and ladles. Last time I got one of the big spoon from them. You have to polish it all the time, but I like it anyway. It is solid brass and has a good size to ladle spaghetti sauce.
All the workshops were set in family houses in the residential area and from there we strolled through alleys towards the market area in the center of the village.
Usually the entire square was full of vegetable sellers, but probably due to the holidays today there were only a few. Still enough to get an impression and fulfill today’s special task. To get the guests a bit immersed into the life of the locals and not just watching from the outside, every guest – including me – had gotten a paper with one vegetable item they had to buy plus Rs 20 to do so. The English and Bengali name of the vegetable was written there. Now we had to go to the market shopping and bargaining to get as much as possible for our Rs 20!
And since we are German, of course, the guests started first discussing about the prices of the vegetables. – But it is not important to know the price, just bargain for your Rs 20! – But we need to know how much the vegetable normally costs! – No, you do not! Just ask how much of your vegetables they want to give your for Rs 20 and then say – No! It is not enough! – Easy!
My paper stated aubergines/eggplant. Well, cannot be that hard to buy aubergines. Many sellers had them in various sizes and different colors. The purple ones looked better than the green ones and I found a woman selling those… Namaste! – She smiled at me questioningly …. Showing her the Rs 20 I pointed to the purple vegetable. She nodded and said something in rapid Hindi. Taking my rupees she picked 2 up and wanted to hand them to me. – No no no! – Shaking my head I signed for a 3rd one. – One more, please! They are rather small. – The woman grinned and shook her head…. I smiled back and nodded – Yes yes, 3! … After some friendly bickering and entertaining the people around us she laughed, handed me 3 aubergines and waved me off chatting away. I might have made her day. Bargaining is part of the Indian culture and the interaction breaks the monotony of the seller’s day. And even on the vegetable market in a village in the middle of touristic no man’s land bargaining is a must. Indian’s are the best negotiators or bargainer in the world – after the Israelis, probably. Years ago when I was backpacking Rajasthan I met some Israelis and the guy in the Handicraft Emporium had found his match in them! In the end, I think, he just gave up.
In the 20 min time we had given the guests to get their vegetables, everybody actually managed to do it. We had also gotten a shopping bag and those were all filled in the end. Success! Some guests had great stories to tell, others had not been so bold to get into it too much. Mr. N was very proud he had gotten for Rs 20 so much green chili to fill half his bag! And Mr. & Mrs. R had to walk all the way to the market hall in the next side alley to actually find carrots and since they were not persistent enough had only gotten the not so perfect broken bits. In the end the chef on board had plenty vegetables to cook the next few meals for us. Only the green chili would be mainly eaten by the crew.
We also watch a man make Jalebis. Those are typically orange-colored coils of deep-fried batter prepared from maida, an all-purpose flour, which are then dunked in an intensely sweet sugar syrup. He used a metal cup with a hole in the bottom to make – in a neat and easy way – the signature jalebi squiggle – a circle and then many more circles over the first – in the kadai – a woklike vessel – full of sizzling ghee, which is clarified butter, or vegetable oil. Jalebis are customarily eaten hot and are frightfully sticky. We had them on the ship for dessert one day, but here on the market I did not dare try them. I am working … although I am convinced that Dehli Belly is mainly in the head. Most travelers recover within a couple of days with little or no treatment. About 10% of people may have symptoms for a week. Bacteria are only responsible for approx half of the cases and the risk is greatest in the first 2 weeks of travel. People affected are mostly from the developed world, because they are not used to the food and the spices. Dehydration has similar symptoms. For all of it primary treatment includes drinking lots of fluids and replacing lost salts – our ships manager has the best cure for it – Salty Lemon Soda! I prefer it Salty Lemon Water – without the bubbles – but I love it! Best thing for dehydration and prevention of Dehli Belly – along with meditational beers, of course. That is why I never – knock, knock, knock on wood – have it! Having an iron stomach and being a seasoned traveller helps as well.
It was again very hot and sunny today. We walked back to the jetty for a well deserved break. It was not yet lunch time yet. Therefore, for some entertainment there was a Baul music performance organized for us on the sundeck before lunch while the ship sailed towards Plassey.
Baul are a group of mystic minstrels from the Bengal region which includes Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura. Bauls constitute both a synthetic religious sect and a musical tradition. They are a very heterogeneous group, with many sects, but their membership mainly consists of Vaishnava Hindus and Sufi Muslims. They can often be identified by their distinctive clothes and musical instruments. Although Baul comprise only a small fraction of the Bengali population, their influence on the culture of Bengal is considerable. In 2005, the Baul tradition of Bangladesh was included in the list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. The origin of Baul is not known exactly, but the word has appeared in Bengali texts as old as the 15th century.
The music of the Baul is a particular type of folk song. Baul use a number of musical instruments – the most common is the ektara, a one-stringed “plucked drum” instrument, carved from the epicarp of a gourd, and made of bamboo and goatskin. The group performed for us for about 30 min and it was something very special, something you do not hear every day. Certainly the guests had not heard that type of music every before.
The musicians left us en route and were shuttled over to the next village on the go. The rest of the morning was for relaxing and watching the scenery. Lunch was just around the corner.
Our afternoon excursion took us to Plassey. The river bank around the jetty here was very busy as well. A couple of ferry boats – wooden boats with bamboo platforms shuttled people, motorbikes and rickshaws, while a slightly bigger steel boat took cars across. On the river bank many busses and shared tuktuks waited for passengers and when a boat arrived noisily competed for them.
There was a 14-seater mini bus from ABN waiting for us when our country boat docked at the steel ferry and we climbed across. The minibus would accompany us for the next few days since there was no chance to hire suitable vehicles with the necessary All India Tourist Permit along the way. As I said before we are in touristic no man’s land since leaving Kolkata and suitable vehicles are as rare as suitable hotels. Good thing, we had our little luxury enclave – our beautiful ship – with us all the time.
The bus ride to the former battle field only took approx 10 min, but was rather eventful. Along the road near a sugarcane field we spotted a jackal who watched us intendedly. Everybody got nice photos of it. The golden jackal (Canis aureus) is a wolf-like canid that is native to South Asia. The jackal is small and it’s coat can vary in color from a pale creamy yellow in summer to a dark tawny beige in winter.
The Battle of Plassey under the leadership of Robert Clive was a decisive victory of the British East India Company over the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies in 1757. The battle consolidated the Company’s presence in Bengal, which later expanded to cover much of India over the next hundred years. The battle took place at Palashi – the Anglicised version is Plassey – on the banks of the Hooghly River about 150 km north of Calcutta and south of Murshidabad, then capital of Bengal. Siraj-ud-daulah had become the Nawab of Bengal the year before, and he ordered the English to stop the extension of their fortification. Previously there was an attack on British-controlled Calcutta by Nawab Siraj-ud-daulah and the Black Hole massacre. Tensions and suspicions between Siraj-ud-daulah and the British culminated then in the Battle of Plassey, in which Clive defeated Siraj-ud-daulah in 1757 and captured Calcutta. Siraj-ud-Daulah’s army with 50000 soldiers, 40 cannons and 10 war elephants was defeated by 3000 soldiers of Col. Robert Clive. It is judged to be one of the pivotal battles in the control of Indian subcontinent by the colonial powers. The British now wielded enormous influence over the Nawab and consequently acquired significant concessions for previous losses and revenue from trade. The British further used this revenue to increase their military might and push the other European colonial powers such as the Dutch and the French out of South Asia expanding the British Empire.
Not much was left of the former battle field, but there was a monument marking part of the actual battlefield, which however had been partially washed away by a shift of the river. On the 250th anniversary of the battle, a statue of Siraj ud-Daulah was established next to it.
From the monument we walked through the nearby village. Near the monument were a few houses. We encountered an old man enjoying the sun outside his hut. He posed proudly for our photos.
There was also a young woman who was making cow dung sticks – shit-on-a-stick – a different version of the bio-fuel. We could not avoid thinking – and discussing – about how on earth this beautiful young woman will ever get the smell out of her hands ever. Considering that she is probably making those sticks every day … getting rid of the smell is highly unlikely, unless she knows a secret cure.
Behind the huts there were some very tall trees in which huge fruit bats live. They are Megabats and are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats or flying foxes. Compared to insectivorous bats, fruit bats are relatively large, and with some exceptions, do not navigate by echolocation. They are herbivores and rely on their keen senses of sight and smell to locate food. Megabats mostly roost in trees and shrubs.
We took a walk along a tractor path through part of the former battle field towards the nearby village. There are agricultural fields there nowadays. Only in the distance we saw 3 tombs of some generals or such with monuments which still exist.
Close to the huts we encountered a herd of pretty cows – well nourished and well tended to cows. We guessed – probably correctly – they were producing all the dung for the fuel sticks.
There was much wildlife around as well. We spotted a group of 4 or 5 jackals nearby, only they were hiding too fast to take photos. Babu always had his binoculars with him and usually knows where to look for birds. He found a couple of owls in a dead palm tree for us The spotted owlet (Athene brama) is a rather small owl which breeds in tropical Asia and is a common resident of open habitats including farmland and human habitation. They roost in small groups in the hollows of trees or in cavities in rocks or buildings.
The small village we walked through was one of the very basic ones. There did not seem to be any electric power here and the water came from hand pumps. There were no solar panels or satellite dishes to be seen and none of the villagers we encountered seemed to have even a mobile phone. The huts were made of brick or clay.
Some of the small kids have probably never seen a white person before. The babies basically started crying when we came too close or were hiding behind mother’s sari. In any case, they were all staring at us with huge curious eyes.
Sure enough we were not the first Westerners to visit here. I have been here on previous cruises and nothing has changed since. This village walk is a regular excursion on the ship which comes here maybe once or twice every month in cruising season. So the villagers are somewhat used to the tourists. Nevertheless, it is something special that breaks up the routines of their daily live. Especially the kids come running from all corners of the village to the main path to gawk at the strange people. Fortunately, the novelty of that never seemed to cease and they had not been spoilt yet. The boat stuff and guides are always very adamant in not having the guests randomly hand out gifts, pens or money to the kids, since that habit of “Pen, pen!” which is encountered in more touristy places all over the globe has been introduced by tourists at one time as well. Rather guests were encouraged to donate to specific projects or visit schools.
Like in most villages the kitchen was in the courtyard of the hut. They use simple clay ovens here, perfectly designed to use the bio fuel shit-on-a-stick and fit the pot on the top.
Leaving the village we walked along the tractor path back towards the main road where our mini bus was waiting for us. On the way we saw same Green Bee-Eaters which are found mainly in Africa and Asia. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage, slender bodies, and usually elongated central tail feathers. They have long down-turned bills and medium to long wings. As their name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat flying insects, especially bees and wasps, which are caught in the air by flights from an open perch. The stinger is removed by repeatedly hitting and rubbing the insect on a hard surface.
The ride back to the jetty was quick. There was still much happening at the river banks. A boat with reed or straw was being unloaded by hand and the porters had to walk through the water to pick up the bales.
Back on board it was time to do some birdwatching. We passed some forested areas. At some point there was a huge colony of storks in the trees lining the river. The Asian openbill stork (Anastomus oscitans) is a large wading bird in the stork family and is found mainly in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is greyish or white with glossy black wings and tail. The breeding season is after the rains, during July to September in northern India. The Asian openbill stork breeds colonially and the nesting trees are usually shared with those of egrets, ibises and cormorants. There must have been hundreds of storks on the trees.
The Indian cormorant (Phalacrocorax fuscicollis) is found mainly along the inland waters of the Indian Subcontinent . It is a gregarious species that can be easily distinguished by its blue eye, small head with a sloping forehead and a long narrow bill ending in a hooked tip. The black-headed ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus), also known as the Oriental white ibis, Indian white ibis or black-necked ibis, is the only native ibis species in its range that has an overall white plumage with a black neck and head.
Then it was time for sunset and a sundowner. I had splurged last night at dinner and ordered a bottle of Indian Sula Wine. Since I have to eat with the guests, they of course count every drop of alcohol I have. So drinking the whole bottle in one evening was not an option …. Some of them were also drinking wine and usually were stuck to one bottle at least 2 evening, sometimes 3. Imagine that – being on vacation, having paid a small fortune for this trip and then having to count drinks because alcohol is – relatively – expensive in India. Mind you, if you can afford this trip, than you can afford any of the drinks on board! But only drinking purified water is sooooo boring. And the sweet stuff like cola is just not cutting it for me. My choice is usually beer. Best thirst quentcher in the tropics! But today it was the rest of my bottle of Indian wine.
Sula Vineyards is a winery located in the Nashik region of western India, 180 km northeast of Mumbai. After the launch of its first wines in 2000, Sula expanded from its original 30 acre family estate in Nashik to approximately 1800 acres across Nashik and the state of Karnataka. Sula introduced grape varieties such as Chenin blanc, Sauvignon blanc, Riesling and Zinfandel to India and as of 2013, they hold a market share of almost 70% in the Indian wine Industry. Sula’s grapes come from their vineyards as well as from contract farmers across the region. The company’s viticulture team trains and educates farmers on best practices. In 2015, Sula announced a price increase of 10% for its contract farmers in order to support the farmers through unpredictable changes in weather as well as to meet the increasing demand for wine in India.
I am not a wine specialist – I primarily buy wine by the label and drink pretty much everything – all for meditation purposes, of course. Not so our precious guests. While I think the Sula white wine on board was absolutely fine, they complained – of course – about the price – for Rs 1800 – which is something like € 22 – it was way too expensive for what you get. They did forget that there was also an Australian – imported – white wine on the card which is at least twice as expensive. And that you cannot compare an Indian wine to a fine French drop – other than in price maybe – is common sense… But then there were also guests like Mrs. L who happily had her bottle of wine and stated clearly – I always drink the local wine if there is any! And I like it just because of that!
I like Sula wine, too and when I buy it in the wine shop in Dehli for example it is half as expensive anyway. And that is the same as in the Western world – buy in the supermarket cheap or order in the restaurant and it costs more. Sometimes I think, guests just forget that.
Cheers!
