The Dhaka Guide (Part 1 of 2)

Typical Dhaka street.

The Red Fort in Old Dhaka

Although I spent the last few months "on the road", there was one place I spent a total of 40 days in. It was Dhaka, capital city of Bangladesh. Not a place typically associated with leisurely travel, you can hardly find travel guides written on this place. It takes a more sophisticated traveler to appreciate the the crowded Dhaka streets but one can't say the doesn't have its own unique charm. One of the best things about Bangladesh is the amazingly friendly, hospitable and quite good-looking people who are usually helpful in getting you around and will even offer to take you around themselves.

40 days was quite a long time to spend here for me, because I'm used to more freedom of movement and being able to head out alone. However it did give me a chance to find out the best places to break the monotony of going to work and hanging out at the hotel, and those tips are summarized below.

Places to Stay

If you don't want the expensive accommodations afforded by 5-star Westin, Radisson or Lake Shore, opt for the newly opened Platinum Suites in the Banani area, a "real" boutique hotel in one of the more central Dhaka areas. Even if you don't stay at Platinum, I wouldn't mind hanging out their rooftop/bar restaurant for a weekend chilldown. Another option is a "real" serviced apartment, Grihokantee in the posher Baridhara area. I keep on saying "real" because when I checked outsome others claiming to be serviced apartments or boutique hotels, the places were far from the usual standard.

Eating
Eating in Dhaka should have been a simpler process since you would imagine really good Indian food around every street corner. However, its still best to make sure that the place you end up in is safe and has been recommended especially if you have a sensitive stomach. There's some international fare in Dhaka, but of course not as good as let's say, Korean food in Manila, or Chinese food in Kuala Lumpur. Its worthwhile to check it all out for variety, like I did since I could barely stand eating all the days in the hotel restaurant.

Since these are the "good" restaurants, expect to spend between 400 - 1,000 Taka per head...will note the cheapest good deal as well as the most expensive:

• Saltz - The lobster is worth ordering. BYOB, as you should do for most dinners in Dhaka.
  
• Thai House - not quite Thai, but good enough for a taste of Southeast Asia.
  
• Le Saigon - not quite Vietnamese either, but interestingly a restaurant for gatherings of the creme de la creme of Dhaka. I once participated in a trivia quiz here, and the crowd was practically Western.
  
• Bamboo Shoot - Not bad Chinese.
  
• Heritage - The Bangladeshis think this place is overrated, by I liked the Indian food here. as the garden setting surroundings.
  
• La Bella - if you're sick of Italian at Prego, this is a good alternative.
  
• Spitfire (Gulshan)
  
• Dhaba (Banani Road 11) - the most authentic Bengali meal I had, situated conveniently across Platinum Suites. The most affordable meal ticket on the list.
  
• Prego (Westin) - the best Italian restaurant in Dhaka, and the most expensive in town!
  

Other recommendations I have yet to try:

• Spaghetti Jazz
• Koreana
  

Shopping
The most well-known handicrafts and traditional clothing store for international travelers is Aarong, and although they do have quite a complete and beautiful collection, there are other places equally good to check out that may turn out to be cheaper than Aarong. I did most of my Christmas gift shopping at Jatra - love the furniture, wood decor, and jute bags; I also love Folk International for the scarves and Sawal Kameez under 1,000 takas.

I also found myself buying a high quality red leather clutch in Oonag. Two places I have yet to visit are the reported site of H&M, La Senza, Zara, Armani, factory overruns...Bongo Bazaar and an un-named one across Dhaka University. Bangladeshi's biggest business is subcontracting for some of the world's biggest fashion retail chains.

To be continued....

A Taste of Home

Ah the simple joys of being an OFW...having a taste of home-cooked leche flan from a fellow Pinoy's dinner table, with other Pinoy friends and their extensions. This dessert was precluded by Sinigang na Hipon, Adobo, Tocilog and Longganisa, plus garlic rice. Heavenly!

The other day a college friend from home also arrived with 10 packs of Lucky Me pancit canton and shared a few sticks of Pinoy Marlboro lights. Malaysian cigarettes are just not made the same way.

I won't be home for some time yet, so I'm glad to have this slice to remember Manila. Now if only there was a Jollibee around the area.

To Europe and Back Again

I had 2 unexpected Europe jaunts this year. The first one, to Belgium and Spain, came as a huge surprise courtesy of Uncle D's 70th birthday. He and my Mom used to be together for quite some time after my dad passed away, but that ended long ago. Wonderfully, he still keeps in touch by snail mail (postcards!) from wherever he is, and now finally he has learned the magic of SMS. We also have honorary siblings, his children (although they are quite grown up now and have kids of their own). Uncle D, with his new wife in tow, always makes it a point to have dinner with me and my sister whenever he's in KL and Singapore. The last dinner in KL with him, which was a few weeks before his 7oth birthday, I brought over some pocketbooks as a gift. Little to my knowledge, he had an even bigger gift for me. He offered to pay for a ticket for me, my sister, and her husband to join during the big dinner party in Brussels!

It was a mad scramble to get my visa ready in time. I had to deal with a condescending consulate official, who kept on asking me for more and more papers. But Uncle D didn't let us down, he made calls, wrote letters, and voila, to the shock of the bitchy consul, I got my Schengen visa within 5 working days and the morning of the last day possible for me to leave to make it to the dinner party! Classic line from her "We have never been able to grant Indonesians and Filipinos visas in under 3 weeks. You're on THAT list." Anyway bless her little heart I'm glad I was able to help her break a record.

Besides the major reunion with extended family, a visit to old Brussels haunts, and a day trip to Bruges the "Asian delegation" also snuck off for a few days to Malaga and Ronda. The Spain trip was off my budget, and almost cancelled because we went to the wrong airport (Charleroi not National!). We made it with barely 30 minutes to sprint to the boarding gate because of the efforts of the efficient (and forgiving) Jetairfly check-in crew and the Vin Diesel-like cab driver (seriously!) who raced us to the right airport. Trying to practice my Spanish and seeing an enthralling Flamenco concert by Marina Heredia and the gorgeous gorges of Ronda made it all worth it.

The second trip to Europe came barely a month after, and this time the Swedish consul was wonderful enought to grant me a visa til year's end. This time I spent a weekend exploring Gothernburg with J.P. and her Swedish hubby, and then a few days in meetings in Oslo and nights out with ex-colleagues which made me see another side of Norway.

And just when I thought I got my Europe fill, 2 more trips towards the end of the year suddenly came up! One of them so close to a long holiday here in Malaysia that it would be a crime not to extend. As one of my good friends put it, I think this is my most "kaladkarin" year ever.

Now to get down to the planning part!

Dinner party at Cercle Royal Gaulois. You can't tell we just stepped off the plane a few hours before, can you?

Food and wine was a huge part of the Brussels experience. This is the raw (!) seafood platter from Les Brasseries Georges.

So this is where I picked up the shutter bug!

A visit to Brussels is not complete without stopping by Gran Place, by day and night.

New for me in Brussels - all that graffiti. But a lot of them are pretty good.

Finally I remember what those Bruges canals look like.

Beautiful old buildings in Bruges.

Alcazaba, an old Moorish fort in Malaga.

Malaga town centre.

The famous Ronda gorge and a view of the old town.

Think only Madonna can take a bow in the famous Ronda bullfighting ring?

Lovers in Ronda.

The springtime sun sets at 10 pm over Akerbrygge in Oslo.

Hiking through the woods in Gothernburg.

Back view of Telenor HQ, by the fjords.

Wet and wild in Gotherburg.

It's Get Skinny Month!

I can't stand it anymore. I've reached my limit. A 30" waistline! This is why I've decided instead of wasting my time thinking of future goals, why not tackle something more urgent and immediate? I refuse to start looking like a mother when I don't even have kids yet. And now I still have the luxury of free time, a gym and swimming pool at my condo, and yoga classes. So I'm giving myself 1 month. 30 days. Daily morning runs (at least 30 mins) on weekdays, at least 2x a week yoga, and a swim ever weekend. Plus no carbs at night.

Hmf, I'll show you!

Adventure Streak

I just discovered Australian writer Matthew Reilly who published 2 books that revolve around a former soldier turned adventuring hero named Jack West Jr who continues to save the world by solving ancient puzzles in the world's heritage sites. I'm a fan of this genre ever since the first Indian Jones movie, and haven't been entranced by any plot-a-likes since this series (unlike horrid ripoffs National Treasure and The Mummy 2 and 3.)

The first book, the Seven Ancient Wonders, kicks off a scavenger hunt around the 7 wonders of the ancient world, while the second is around other architectural miracles of old like the Abu Simbel and Stonehenge. I read the first book on a plane to Oslo and found the second one right before boarding a plane to BKK. I'm sure the historical facts won't be that accurate, but it seems really well fictionalized, and the books contain numerous illustrations to depict the puzzles, carvings and traps found throughout the book. My imagination was really captured. The only bummer is, the second book ends in an almighty cliffhanger. Its a good thing though that I only picked up these books recently, as they had been published in 2005 and 2006 respectively. The next book in the series comes out in October 2009 titled "The Five Great Warriors". Just a few months to wait then.

Lost in Luang Prabang

The view of the Luang Prabang valley taken from Mount Phousi.

Our choices were Tokyo, Shanghai, Sydney...but finally J & I settled on Luang Prabang as our Chinese New Year holiday and first major getaway of 2009. Laos had never really ranked high on my list of places to visit but I had heard nothing but good things about the jewel of the Mekong. So armed with a Travefish guide (instead of the usual Lonely Planet), we set of to spend 5 days in LP, along with a French NFF.

To get to Laos from Kuala Lumpur, the choices are to take Air Asia to Vientane and hop on Lao Airlines to LP, or pass through Bangkok and take Bangkok Airways. Lao Airlines doesn't have the most stellar reputation, but it's extremely convenient to book on their website. Another option is to take I had no problems with the flight whatsoever, so I wouldn't tell people to stay away. A short transfer through Vientiane and we were on our way to the UNESCO heritage site of Luang Prabang.

I thought 5 days in Luang Prabang was too much but in a place where time hardly moves, it's just right. The pace is peaceful, the days long and nights short, with so many spots to explore both in and out of the town, for the days I was there I gave up looking at my watch, or expecting to have party nights out. I walked, biked (!), relaxed, read, observed, savored.

So in no particular order, here are my personal recommendations for the full LP experience:

1. Stay
Villa Senesouk on Sakkarine Road opposite the Wat Sene. Quiet digs beside a pretty good breakfast place, a mere 5 minutes walk to the center of town and a few minutes to the Nam Khan River. The staff is very helpful, and if you would like to see the monks begging for alms at 6:30am, all you have to do is stumble out of bed to the front of the hotel to witness this amazing sight.

The courtyard of Villa Senesouk.

I loved the look of their reception area.

Monks in a line.


A lot of the monks are really young. They said its the best way to ensure they are educated and they have food and shelter, in a country which doesn't have enough for everyone.


The first monk at dawn.

2. Eat/Drink

Fine Dining at the 3 Nagas for our first lunch.

Pizza Luang Prabang for that river weed preparation I liked so much.

More fine dining by the NamKhan River at The Apsara. They had the most delicious desserts!

Dinner at L'Elephant.

Breakfast at the Morning Glory Cafe beside the Senesouk Guest House. We spent the most enjoyable time checking out Lonely (Hot) Boy having breakfast, and we later ran into him at the bike rental shop. He tried to give us directions, but as usual, the girls were too tongue-tied and sober to invite him to bike around with us!


Must try: the strong Lao coffee.


Another must try of course, is the local beer.


An extensive wine and liquor collection can be found at Pack Luck Liquor Bar, at not bad prices. Try the one at the center of town, because their other branch attached to the guest house is always empty.

Hive, the most "happening" spot in LP of course shuts down by midnight.

3. Bike
Rent a bike and explore the streets of LP, and the especially scenic riversides and markets. As for myself, I was just happy I could still ride a bike. As they say, you never forget. But It was tough going downhill!

4. Cook
Tamarind Riverside was the preferred choice to spend our last day learning to cook Lao Cuisine, over Tamnak Lao whose owner (or booking agent?) seemed difficult to deal with. After a Phousy market visit, the Tamarind guys take you to their open-air class location 20 minutes outside of town beside hills and a body of water (looked like a stream more than a river), but it was really inspiring scenery even if some of what I cooked didn't come out as expected.

The cooking students.

The very popular Lao sticky rice which I was never really interested in eating. Its too heavy a meal!


Chicken in lemongrass. The skinny failure is mine and the one on the left is what its really supposed to look like.

Ah finally, after cooking 5 dishes, including dessert, we sit down to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

5. Temple Hop

You will never run out of Wats to visit in LP, each one different from the rest. I was impressed at the elaborately decorated homages to Buddhism, strikingly different from the simplicity of the river surroundings. But the most impressive Buddhist shrine for me, was 200+ steps up the center of town at Mount Phousi. I couldn't believe that they could have the highest vantage point in LP smack dab in the town centre, like a man made Eiffel Tower. Towards sunset, people flock to the peak to catch nature's best show like it was a spectator sport, and the other side of the mountain affords beautiful views of the valley and river.

Fighting the crowds for a view.



Sunset. Sigh.

6. Shopping
Nothing beats the Luang Prabang Night Market for bargain buys. I bought a couple of pashminas and scarves for US$3 - 5 each, plus 2 handmade bedcovers for US$20 - $30 each. Just walking through the market is an feast of colors and shapes!

They start setting up these colorful tents towards sunset.

These are children's books made out of cloth. Cute!


How can you not buy anything from this adorable boy. I think I ended up with 2 useless bracelets.

Cobra liquor: whether a novelty or as an aphrodisiac, it looks dangerously cool.

7. Go Outside Town

In one day (which really isn't enough), we decided to take in the two major sights in Luang Prabang out of the town, which are the Pak Ou Caves and the Kwang Si Falls. They are both an hour away from LP, in opposite directions. No need to book a formal tour, as you can just ask one of the tuktuk/jeepney drivers to take you there at a negotiable price.

Thousands of Buddha images can be found inside Pak Ou Cave.


The water is so clear at Kwang Si it looks like a well maintained water park.

8. Donate A Book

I was surprised to find a large number of secondhand books scattered in bookshops, restaurant and hotels all around town. There's a really good program to encourage literacy in LP called Big Brother Mouse. It encourages travelers to unlighten their luggage by donating books they are already finished with to the program, in order to make them available to the book-deprived kids in town. Most bookshops also encourage trade-ins. For someone who grew up as a bookworm, I can't imagine a world where I couldn't get a chance to read. This program is trying to change that in Lao villages, and I'm truly touched by the effort.