West Bengal – World Travel

West Bengal Hills West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 08:01:04 +0000

The seemingly endless bus-and-train combination required to get from Kolkata to the hills of West Bengal is well worth it. Feel your blood pressure drop along with the temperature as the scenery gradually changes before you. Once you get to Darjeeling, be sure to have a nice cup of tea – you’ve earned it.

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West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:01:05 +0000

Emerging from the tempestuous Bay of Bengal in a maze of primeval mangroves, West Bengal stretches across the vast Ganges plain before abruptly rising towards the mighty ramparts of the Himalaya. This long, narrow state is India’s most densely populated and straddles a breadth of society and geography unmatched in the country. As the cradle of the Indian Renaissance and national freedom movement, erstwhile Bengal has long been considered the country’s cultural heartland, famous for its eminent writers, poets, artists, spiritualists and revolutionaries. Overshadowed perhaps by the reputation of its capital Kolkata (Calcutta), it is nonetheless surprising that this rich and diverse state receives so few foreign tourists.

In the World Heritage–listed Sunderbans, the Ganges delta hosts not only the world’s most extensive mangrove forest, but also the greatest population of the elusive Royal Bengal tiger. On the Ganges plains a calm ocean of green paddies surrounds bustling trading towns, mud-and-thatch villages, and vestiges of Bengal’s glorious and remarkable past: ornate, terracotta-tiled Hindu temples and monumental ruins of the Muslim nawabs (ruling princes).

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Sunderbans Tiger Reserve West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 09:01:38 +0000

Home to one of the largest concentrations of tigers on the planet, this 2585-sq-km reserve (03218-55280; admission per day Rs 15) is a network of channels and semi-submerged mangroves that is part of the world’s largest river delta. Royal Bengal tigers (officially estimated to number 274) not only lurk in the impenetrable depths of the mangrove forests, but also swim the delta’s innumerable channels. Although they’re known to have an appetite for humans, tigers are typically shy and sightings are a very rare exception. Nevertheless, a trip to this watery World Heritage site is rewarding with or without a glimpse of the big cats. Cruising the broad waterways through the world’s biggest mangrove forest and watching wildlife, whether it be a spotted deer, 2m-long water monitor or luminescent kingfisher, is sublime and a world away from Kolkata’s chaos.

The best time to visit the tiger reserve is between October and March. Visiting independently is difficult, with permits and tricky transport connections to organise, and it’s not cheap; you’ll have to bear the cost of boat rentals alone. Organised tours are the easy and comfortable alternative.

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South Of Kolkata West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 09:01:03 +0000

The star attraction south of Kolkata is the languid, mysterious Sundarbans, home to tigers, mangroves and heat-inspired dreams.

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Siliguri And New Jalpaiguri West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 09:01:09 +0000

The vibrant, crowded trading hub encompassing the twin towns of Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri (NJP) is the jumping-off point for Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Sikkim, the northeast states, eastern Nepal and Bhutan. For most travellers, Siliguri is an overnight transit point where there are good meals, great shopping and a glimpse of snowy peaks.

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Shantiniketan West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 09:01:14 +0000

Shantiniketan is the epitome of its Bengali name, which means peaceful (shanti) abode (niketan). Rabindranath Tagore founded a school here in 1901, which later developed into the Visva-Bharati University, with an emphasis on humanity’s relationship with nature.

Spread through the leafy university grounds are eclectic statues, the celebrated Shantiniketan Murals and the Tagore Prayer Hall. Oddly, Tagore’s car, a black Humber, sits silently behind a glass-walled garage, its fate sealed by the fact that it was used by him. The museum and art gallery (admission Rs 5; 10.30am-1pm & 2-4.30pm Thu-Mon, 10.30am-1pm Tue) in the Uttarayan complex are worth a peek if you’re an aficionado of Tagore. The bookshop at the main gate has plenty of Tagore’s titles (Rs 80 to Rs 250) in English.

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North Of Kolkata West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 09:01:29 +0000

A slow trip up the Hooghly River takes the traveller through industrial areas, peaceful villages, some tranquil meditation retreats and the terracotta temples of Bishnupur.

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Murshidabad And Berhampore West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 08:01:43 +0000

In Murshidabad, rural Bengali life and 18th-century architecture meld on the verdant shores of the Bhagirathi River. When Siraj-ud-daula was nawab of Bengal, Murshidabad was his capital, and he was assassinated here after the defeat at Plassey (now Palashi). The Bhagirathi River flows south to the Hooghly and was once the major trading route between inland India and the port of Kolkata, 221km south.

Hazarduari (Indian/foreigner Rs 5/100; 10am-5pm Sat-Thu), a palace famous for its 1000 doors (real and false), was built here for the nawabs in 1837. It now houses an astonishing collection of antiquities from the 18th and 19th centuries, including historical paintings such as Marshall’s celebrated Burial of Sir John Moore. Beneath the lofty dome of Durbar Hall hangs a vast chandelier, rumoured to have been a gift from Queen Victoria. In the Archive Gallery rests a lustrous Arabic manuscript from the 13th century. The dilapidated Great Imambara stands on the palace grounds; its renovated interior deserves a look.

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Mirik West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 08:01:00 +0000

Nestled near the Nepal border, halfway between Siliguri and Darjeeling, is this low-profile hill station and honeymoon destination. Mirik is surrounded by an undulating carpet of tea estates, orange orchards, cardamom plantations and forests of tall, dark Japanese cedars. It is a quiet retreat that remains off most visitors’ radars. Some of Mirik’s higher hilltops offer wonderful views of morning’s first light striking Khangchendzonga (8598m).

Check email at Krishnanagar Cyber Café (Main Rd, Krishnanagar; per hr Rs 30). There are no moneychanging facilities in Mirik.

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Kalimpong West Bengal India Travel

WorldTravelDB.com — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 08:01:21 +0000

This bustling bazaar town sprawls along a ridge overlooking the roaring Teesta River and within sight of Khangchendzonga. Kalimpong lacks Darjeeling’s crowds and commercialism, yet it boasts Himalayan views, tranquil retreats, Buddha shops, temples and churches, and a fascinating nursery industry.

Kalimpong’s early development as a trading centre focused on the wool trade with Tibet, across the Jelepla Pass. Like Darjeeling, Kalimpong once belonged to the chogyals of Sikkim, but it fell into the hands of the Bhutanese in the 18th century and later passed to the British, before becoming part of India at Independence. Scottish missionaries, particularly the Jesuits, made great efforts to win over the local Buddhists in the late 19th century and Dr Graham’s famous orphanage and school is still running today.

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