Taki..close encounter with Bangladesh of second kind

Taki ...Close encounter with Bangladesh of second kind

The trip to Taki which is about 60 km from Kolkata and can be described as almost going to Bangladesh. The driver who was driving our hired SUV said in Bengali " Okhan car manush epar theke dekha jai." The way he told as though the  people of Bangladesh are aliens and it is something like sighting aliens. But then you never know you may start using their mobile network sitting in your room in municipality run guest house and you land up paying international roaming and data charges. Yes that happened to me with my service provider Vodafon but then that is another experience for another time to share.

One can reach this scenic place by road,it takes 1 and half hours. The road to be taken is via Bantala, Basanti etc. We booked the municipality run Guest House in advance by sending money order. The room rents are reasonable at 450 or so, no AC though. The food in the guest house is homely and don't look for Mughlai and all those fancy foods. It is a normal place for for normal people, not for showing off crowd or so called ultra modern crowd. Our trip was one big adda which started from Calcutta and continued in SUV, then in the Guest House, then on motorbike pulled vans and ultimately on boat on Ichamati river. The other side of Ichamati is Khulna of BangladeshYes one can see the Bangladesh shoreline clearly.

The municipality has done good job in developing the river front by constructing gardens and providing benches for the visitors.There is a small market catering to the small needs of the tourists. The river can be enjoyed by hiring a country boat with outboard engine for 600 rupees.The boat will take you to the confluence of three rivers Ichamati,Kalindi and Bidydhari.Ichamati is subsidiary of Padma of Bangladesh,ultimately it and Kalindi joins Bidydhari and meanders to Bay of Bengal via Diamond Harbour.

There are mangroves along the Indian side shoreline and which has been developed for forest walk in 2012. It is called mini Sunderban, about 6 km from the Guest House. One has to cross a BSF check post to go to that forest, better carry identity card or otherwise you won't be allowed to go to that scenic place.The forest walk has been developed by making elevated walking platform, one get the experience of jungle with the smell of trees and various birds flying in and out.
The other important event was the boat ride on Ichamati,going upto the confluence and watching the riverside activities. It is about 45 minutes boat ride. As we went in December,2015 so could purchase authentic khejur gur.
We stayed for one night, and that night was unforgettable experience for me. Three local gentlemen were sitting in the verandah and were belting away all old Bengali hit of Hemanta and Manna plus choicest Rabindrasangeet. 
It was one of those unforgettable experience for me at 9pm in the night with Ichamati flowing by and the melodious songs wafting in. I went out and sat with them for one hour. There was one gentleman with his melodious voice sang for me. These 3 friends out of which 2 are retired headmasters of local school come everyday to the guest house at 6.30 in the evening and they spend time with each other by reciting poems or singing songs. No TV for them or club but they were contended with whatever they have. The simple joy of them touched my heart and i returned with a memory which i will never forget.
This place is highly recommended for a trip.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROL8rcEM-Uk
The link for forest walk is as above.