Eco-Cottages and Layers of Tea

So, the story of Srimangal continues… Part 2 of 3 maybe?

After fun times playing in the river at Lalpahur, we walked around exploring the area some more. Atticus got to see rubber trees and S. showed him how the rubber ran down the little taps into buckets. Of course Atticus loved this and Jon got it on his favorite pants. Sigh.

So we walked back to the house and had another wonderful meal. We went in the afternoon to have tea with R.’s family, and Atticus and S. took off for a nice evening walk through the rice fields. Atticus learned about rice growing and cricket and told S. that in Boston he was really good at baseball (what? since when?... ah well, upholding American stereotypes I guess!) Once again, Atticus now has a whole body of knowledge about the area that Jon and Sam are missing (This was the same in Boston when everyone came to visit Atticus in the summers and he went on all sorts of tourist adventures while Jon was at work and Sam was in Dhaka!) Anyhow, the sweetest part was watching Atticus so comfortably walking along with S. and just having a little independent time here in Bangladesh.



PHOTOS: A paper boat, rubber trees and walking through rice fields at sunset

After tea we went home to relax and pack up for the next morning when M. and R. would go back to the little village they live at during the week and we would switch over to Nishorgo Nirob Eco-Cottages. We were already excited and didn’t even know how wonderful a place it would be!
So, we arrived at Nishorgo the next morning at around ten or eleven and it was just incredible. The project was actually initially funded by USAID. It has created environmentally sustainable/non-intrusive guesthouses and money from the guesthouses also goes to conservation of the very nearby Lowacherra rain forest. Nishorgo is a great initiative, here is more info on them for those interested. http://www.nishorgo.org/nishorgo_program.asp

The Srimangal guesthouse project has huts that are built by local craftsmen and run by locals. The guesthouses here consist of two bamboo huts (but with lovely concrete/tile bathrooms with actual toilets and running water so it doesn’t become too rustic- if you know what mean…)and a main house where meals are served that has another room available there. All in all, it is a small venture but just perfectly suited to the environment. Also, for the price (1000 taka a night - which is less than 15 dollars)the cabins are a bargain to say the least. It seems to appeal to bideshis, and by the looks of the guestbook and the other guests we encountered, it is mostly Europeans that come stay there. We met a very nice Spaniard from Catalonia and it was fun chatting about travelling, and naturally, anarchists!

The cabins at Nishrogo are really a nice mix of modern and roughing it actually. There is electricity and a fan, but not a lot of extra stuff – just enough. The beds have mosquito nets, which Atticus adored, and the food was a close second to R.’s cooking as some of the best we’ve had in Bangladesh. It was all typical ‘deshi food- egg curry, dahl, rice, veggies and potato chop (Atticus’ favorite) and so delicious! The manager of the resort (who lives just across the street from it) is an awesome guy named Shamsul. He was a perfect guesthouse manager in every way. He was very friendly and available, but totally gave space and wasn’t overbearing and over-helpful in the way that some well-meaning Bangladeshis can be. He arranged for transport when we needed it since there wasn’t the same overabundance of rickshaws and cngs as we are used to in Dhaka, and he had great suggestions for local things to do. He had information on local wildlife, and was just generally so laid back and genuinely nice that you kind of wanted to just hang out with him all day!

The thatched hut we stayed in was located alongside a flowing stream with a little thatched gazebo and the whole thing was also on a working lime orchard. There were cows grazing about and a local population of street dogs (friendly ones) that apparently like bideshis and show up when they are staying the guesthouse - Shamshul said he thinks they like the white skin! We named one of the particularly friendly dogs Murray, and he slept on our porch every night and pretended he was guarding us – even though the one time he tried to growl at a cow grazing in the yard he got completely scared when the cow charged at him and took off tail between his legs. He came back in a minute though and pretended like he won the battle, as he stayed on the porch! At least Murray tried to protect us though, because Jon was a little uneasy with that particular cow… We spent some time playing around in the creek and just relaxing in paradise.

PHOTOS: Here are a few pictures from around the grounds of Nishorgo. Murray is the dog with the white spot and they are camped out on our porch.

After lunch we went out to a place called Nilkantha, which is famous for its “7 layer tea.” It has seven distinct layers that stay distinct. It is also a little famous for not being very delicious, only beautiful, so we had to try it out. We took a rickety rickshaw over to the grounds of a nearby tea garden and enjoyed a nice outdoor seating area (there is a shortage of these in both Boston and Dhaka!). Since we had heard the tea was pretty but bad-tasting, we only ordered one 7 layer tea and three regular milk teas to actually drink.

The tea was just as promised- beautiful, but not so tasty. Well, this is what Jon and Sam thought, but Atticus loved it! He identified the main flavor of ginger, and loved dipping his coconut biscuits in it. Which may be leading you to wonder- ‘What? Is Atticus drinking tea now?’ We made a little exception while in Srimangal to our usual no-caffeine policy. It is the home of tea gardens after all! Somehow that also expanded into him getting a caffeinated cola in the afternoon one day too and sweet milk tea with his breakfast every morning. We got to see a whole new side of Atticus on the afternoon when he had a cup of tea and a soda- he literally didn’t stop chattering away for about 2 hours straight. He was wired! (and we were exhausted by the end of it) It was cute though, and now that we’re back home the no caffeine rule has been re-instated. He’s actually usually quite opposed to caffeine because he says he doesn’t want it to stunt his growth – he apparently has some big plans for something requiring height in the future.

PHOTOS: Nilkantha Tea Cabin and 7 layer tea

Anyhow, not far from our cabins was a copy-cat business that just opened with 10 layer tea (and 9, 8, 7, etc… it is 10 taka a layer!). We had to compare, so we took a trip there the next day. This place is called GreenKontha, and is a total rip off. It was not as good and the environment was not really pleasant at all, so we decided we preferred the O.G. version, even if it is short 3 layers.
PHOTOS: The copycat 10 layer tea (still pretty and still not delicious!)

On our last day we went back to Nilkantha with S. for a last visit, and he explained that it gets pretty rowdy there and there have been numerous political factions having fights, and in one case, even a murder occurred there. We felt bad for taking S. to such a notoriously seedy place, but it was perfectly fine (as it had been the day prior) and every tourist goes there, so the risk was pretty low.

Later in the afternoon we went back over to the stream next to our cabins with the idea of playing in the water some more. However, as we stood out on the gazebo, Jon spotted a long slithering snake creeping across the water. As many of you may suspect, Sam immediately cancelled all contact with the water and nearby vicinity. Jon and Atticus went down to look around a little later, but Sam opted to skip that. We asked Shamshul later if the snake we saw was poisonous (because many water snakes are) and he said no and knew the name of it and everything. Good news, but still no way Sam is going near that creek again! It is really a testament to the beauty of the place that even with a snake sighting, Sam still loved it and is willing to go back.
So that’s it for now, and we will continue next time with the rainforest, a guided tour/death march, leeches, many many monkeys!!!!, and beautiful lake Modhobpur lake.