Kolkata or Calcutta as it was previously named, has been the silent spectator of my childhood, boyhood, tennage years. Those pub hopping, night outs, that first crush and then second and then... ,that first kiss, those high highs and then those low lows, the city of joy has seen it all. Every corner of this city holds some memories of my life. There is no wonder about this being my favourite city. I always thought about offering an ode to my favourite city in my own way. Unfortuantely unlike many, I am not gifted with the art of writing long compositions. What would then be the other way? Well i can go about talking about my city but how long would someone remember them or even listen to on the first place. One can only remeber something for long when they have documents or mementoes to remind them. Then it occurred to me why not use my cam and take snaps of the various corners and places of the city and create an album. And that is how i have started my facebook album dedicated to my Kolkata. It was during these photo hunts across the city that I have come to know about places, things that earlier I was not aware of, and I am sure many would still not know as well. If already on Facebook, then why did i think about starting another thread in IndiaMike? Well my facebook page could never reach out to such vast audience who may feel interested about visiting these sites the next time they are in. Then why have I not started a similar thread about any other cities that I have been to? Well Simple answer, May be I am just biased, moreover I know this city better just as it knows me.
This thread I suppose will be an ongoing one as I keep visiting new places every alternate Saturdays or when i get time to along with my favourite and only photo partner( my wife) and there are yet lot of places we would need to visit. I will try my best to describe with my limited knowledge via short write ups about the places and scenes in the snaps. Definitely the thread would have many of those already known places and few of those that I was not aware of, which again can be known to others. It is therefore a request to all Kolkata lovers to contribute if they wish to.
Please the motto is to make people fully aware( if they wish to) of my beloved city through snaps and write ups as much as possible. So the thread might face few criticisms that Kolkata is not an exact replica of and all Jolly Polly like what it appears in this thread, if you know what i mean. Yes there are lot more to any city than just albums and snaps but the idea is to portray only the positive side of this city. I would be skipping the introduction of Kolkata and would start directly from the most iconic monument of the city The Victoria Memorial.
The Victoria Memorial
The Victoria Memorial (Victoria Memorial Hall) is a large marble building in Kolkata (Calcutta), West Bengal, India which was built between 1906 and 1921. It is dedicated to the memory of Queen Victoria (1819–1901) and is now a museum and tourist destination under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture.The Memorial lies on the Maidan (grounds) by the bank of the Hooghly river, near Jawaharlal Nehru road.
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Victoria At Dusk
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Victoria
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Victoria After Sunset
One can even take the famous Horse Carriage Rides here at Queens Way, Kolkata, Just in front of the Memorial.
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Horse Carriages Standing In A Queue
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The Relic Ride
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Lady Trying To Catch A Cab In front Of Victoria
Park Street
In the 1970s and 1980s much of Kolkata's night life took place at Park Street. Many noted musicians had played at popular night spots such as Trinca's, Blue Fox, Mocambo and Moulin Rouge. Even before that, in the 1940s, 50s and 60s Kolkata's prolific night life was centred on Park Street.Park Street remains Kolkata's foremost dining district, with many restaurants and pubs. It is often known as "Food Street" and "The Street that Never Sleeps".
Park Street has many notable showrooms, and several notable buildings such as the Asiatic Society, St. Xavier's College, Calcutta, a Seventh-day Adventist Church, and the South Park Street Cemetery has cenotaphs and tombs of prominent figures from the British Raj era and Kolkata's European population.
This was the place that gave rise to the night life of Kolkata. Park Street introduced the first disks and pubs in Kolkata. The Big Ben, Some Place Else, Anti Clock, Incognito, Cloud 9, Tantra to name a few. With all the new malls and restaurants and pubs getting opened in almsot all localities Park Street is no more the only place you would need to go for food and drinks, but it still remains to be the one of the best places to enjoy. Moreover Park Street is decorated with lights on Christmas Day and New Year's Eve.
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Park Street
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The Front Gates Of Olypub. Buy Your Book and Then Read It Inside With Your Drink. Books And Booze To Mix Here Well.
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Park Street Another View
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Entry To Park Street
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