The City Of Joy And Its People.

Most of my readers are from Europe. Therefore, I decided to write about the place where I have been living since 2003 with my parents. I live in an Indian metropolitan city, Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta), capital of west Bengal, located in the eastern part of India. Kolkata is the cultural, educational, and commercial center of East India. Kolkata is my first love. You may find it bit weird but I am emotionally attached to this city. Kolkata has taught me many things like how to be an Independent person, to love, to make friends, to have fun and enjoy life. Kolkata has also transformed me from a careless teenage girl to a responsible woman. I have made memories in almost every nook and corners of this city. I write about those memories and all the good or bad experiences I have gathered from this city  in A piece of SHE… 

Our beloved State got its nickname “city of Joy” from the book “city of joy” written by Dominique Lapierre in 1985. West Bengal is a huge state consists of 19 districts and if I write about each one of them then this post will never end. Therefore, in this article I would stick to the place where I live, Kolkata. These 19 districts consists beautiful forests, beaches as well as mountains ( Himalayas). Kolkata is a place for both rich and poor people. 

Majority of people in Kolkata is Bengali and practice Hindu religion. Bangla is our mother tongue. A poll conducted by UNESCO in 2010 declared Bengali as the sweetest language in the world. Rabindra Nath Tagore, Swami Vivekananda , Satyajit Roy, Amartya Sen , Jhumpa Lahiri are some well known Bengalis around the world. Kolkata is also known as “cultural capital of India”. You will find at least one or two artist in every house. Every parent encourages his or her kids to learn at least one type of art like singing, dancing, painting etc.

We Bengalis in short “Bongs” are crazy about three things in life, food (especially sweets), sports (especially cricket, football ) and films of Uttam Kumar and Satyajit Roy. When you are here do not forget to taste super delicious sweets available in the shops here like “Rosogolla”, “Mishti doi” and “Sondesh”.

Kolkata is a politically active city. You will find young as well as old people talking about politics in their free time. Currently West Bengal is divided into two political colors Green and Red. Green belongs to the ruling government and red is the color of opposition party. Kolkata had been governed by left front, communist party of India (Marxist) India for last 34 years. The political marriage of the  communist with the state ended in the last general election, which was held in 2011. People were tired of the same old communist party and their ways and were demanding change in the political environment which brought a new political party into power after 34 years. It is hard to predict the political future of Kolkata in the next election.

Now, fastened your seat belt and get ready for short virtual mini trip of Kolkata. Honestly, there is nothing much to see in Kolkata as it is a metropolitan city but there is thousands of places to visit in West Bengal. Therefore, I would advise you if you does not have enough time then allot less time for Kolkata for sightseeing. Do not miss these places when you are  in Kolkata:

Howrah Bridge

Howrah Bridge is the sixth longest and busiest bridge in the world. Howrah Bridge is use as a symbol of Kolkata. Howrah Bridge was built on 1942. You will find description of Howrah Bridge in “city of dreadful night” by Rudyard Kipling.
Image Source: Picture 1


Victoria Memorial

Lord Curzon wanted to build a monument like Taj Mahal for Queen Elizabeth after her death. It was built in 1912 , twenty years after her death. It looks like huge white marble palace with beautiful garden and statues .
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Belur Math

Belur math is a temple of no particular religion. Its open for Hindu , Muslims and Christians. Belur math was founded by the famous yogi, swami vivekanand. If you like solitude and spirituality  then this place is for you. 
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Sea Beaches In Kolkata

Digha and Mandarmani sea beaches are not exactly in Kolkata. It takes 4 hours by car to reach Mandarmani. Sana Beach Resort and Rose Valley Resort are two best resorts in Mandarmani. Mandarmani is India's longest driving beach and less crowded than Digha. 
Image Source: Picture 4

Other places to visit in kolkata : Science City, Indian Museum , National Library, Birla Planetarium, Botanical Garden, Maidan, Tagore House, Dakhineswar Temple etc.

Hope you enjoyed reading my article as much as i enjoyed writing it. I would like to end my post with one of my favorite poem "The Road Not Taken" By Robert Frost.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. 

Author's Bio : Shainee is a 25 years old Indian author and owner of blog “A piece of SHE…”. She has completed her graduation in Journalism and Mass communication in 2007 from a girl’s college in Kolkata, India. In 2009, she completed her post graduation in the same subject. After that, she worked for two private companies and left them soon to start something of her own someday. She is still chasing her dream. She started blogging since last year. She loves reading, writing, dancing, travelling, and playing badminton in her free time. If you want to reach to her for guest post or advertising or for any other reasons mail here: shaineec@gmail.com