Touring Kolkata – part 1

After a few very busy days, today was more laid back. We decided to have a much later start this morning and after breakfast we went off in search of local bargains. Firstly, we made our way through the busy streets of Kolkata to a bookshop that stocks English books. We all bought something to bring home with us such as books about the city, Indian culture and Bollywood music. With our purchases in hand, we made our way down to the market, where we had bought our Indian outfits the day before. We split into two groups, one group went into the indoor market to buy pashminas and the other group browsed through the outside stalls, basking in the Bengali sun. The group managed to get a great deal on bits and bobs to bring back to England.rnrnWe returned to the Fairlawn and Mrs Weldon took us to a few places of interest in Kolkata. First stop was a stunning Jain temple. This was a beautiful place with really intricate detail on the walls and ceiling, made up of little mirrors, coloured glass and jewels, which was really brought to life by the afternoon sun reflecting throughout the temple. We saw people gathering for a wedding outside of the temple and preparations for a number of funerals which just further proved to us what an important building this was. We also bought lots of little mementos to remember this lovely place we were lucky enough to visit.rnrn

rnrnAfter hoping back on the minibus we shortly arrived at the side of the River Ganges. We walked along the riverside and then walked down some steps so that we could dip our toes in this sacred body of water to the Hindus. Jason was the only one to touch it, he decided to step into the river with his bare feet! The smell of incense all around confirmed the importance of this place to the people. Afterwards we made our way back to the hotel.rnrn

rnrnFor a change of scenery we walked the short distance to another hotel to have dinner in their restaurant. Most of us chose local food but some took the opportunity to eat something more familiar! We all came back to the Fairlawn feeling very full and decided to have relaxing evening in the hotel.rnrn

rnrnP.S. As we finish writing this we see the hotel’s resident cat run though the lounge, as we let out an adoring ‘aww’ these sounds of adornment soon become loud and horrified gasps of disgust as we saw it carrying a dead rat in its mouth! Liam’s heart dropped as he realised his room door was open, unfortunately (for the rest of us) it ran past his room and onto the balcony. rn

5 replies
  1. Dom Weldon
    Dom Weldon says:

    Hey guys, just read through all your entries – sounds like you’re having a fantastic time! Shame the cat didn’t play the game and go in Liam’s room though.

    nn

    Wishing you all the best for the remainder of your trip.

    nn

    Dom

    nn

    PS. Good effort on the outfit bartering mum…ya wheeler dealer!

  2. Lara Bell
    Lara Bell says:

    Just read through your journey to date. Treasure every moment, it will all go so quickly and yet the memories will last a lifetime. Enjoy!

  3. Derek, Linda and Brooke Yates
    Derek, Linda and Brooke Yates says:

    Good to see you’re all having a great time. The photos and blog each day are great and we’ve glad to hear that Jason washed his feet.

  4. 10 More
    10 More says:

    Hello,

    nn

    Glad to see that you’re enjoying your time in Udayan and are really making a difference to those that you come in to contact with. We wish you a safe trip and you make the most of your experience.

    nn

    We look forward to reading your future blog posts.

    nn

    10 More.

  5. Miss Devlin and the Sixth Form Team
    Miss Devlin and the Sixth Form Team says:

    Hello everyone,

    nn

    This is my second attempt at sending a message!

    nn

    We are all really enjoying following your diary updates. It sounds like you are having an amazing time.
    nLiam certainly had a lucky escape with the cat!
    nWhen you return to Udayan say hello to the children from us all.

    nn

    Enjoy the rest of the trip.

    nn

    Mrs W – we have missed you this week!

    nn

    The Sixth Form Team

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