August 2019 was a time where I had made an impulsive decision; travel, particularly traveling to the country where I was born, Bangladesh. Bangladesh is a small country located in Southeast Asia.
Initially, I had wanted to visit my country for about 2 weeks but I knew that my father wouldn’t allow me to do so. Since my father was mostly in charge of purchasing the plane ticket he decided that it was better for me to stay in my home country for a month. My father believed that it was for the best since I’ll be able to explore my family heritage, culture that is away from America. At first I was hesitant and reluctant but after some time I realized that this was an opportunity to get out of my comfort zone and to do something adventurous and thrilling. It was my time to go on a self reflecting, memorable trip.
As I said before this was way out of my comfort zone, it was my first time to impulsively travel alone to a country that I haven’t been to in YEARS.
I was all set for my new adventure. My father dropped me off at the airport with 2 big suitcases that were filled with clothes, medicine, snacks and chocolate; gifts for my sister, nieces, nephews and grandparents on my mother's side.
As I began to board the plane, I realized that I always had a love and hate relationship when it comes to flying; On one hand you love the excitement of being able to fly on an airplane and in the other hand you are petrified of what can happen when you are up so high especially when it starts to rain.
It was the most nerve racking flight that I’ve ever been on as it was a 16 hour flight. My new wild, crazy adventure awaited me and it was on the other side of the world. I couldn’t actually believe that I was about to go back to my home country and live with my sister and niece who has been living there for almost five years now.
While I boarded the plane, I realized that my seat was next to the window; This was great since I was able to look out the window but at the same time it might have been the worst seat since this was a 16 hour flight. I was very cautious of my fluid intake due to not wanting to disturb the people that sat next to me. My father made sure that this flight only served me halal food which was great. First meal with plain jasmine rice with curry chicken- this was not the best meal but it was okay. Some of the other meals were chocolate pudding, mixed fruit, ice cream and lamb- these meals are definitely not something to brag as they were not even that great.
After 12 hours of being in the air the plane landed in Hong Kong where I had my layover for about an hour before I got on the next flight. I was able to explore the airport and check out some cool stuff that was being sold. I was able to exchange U.S dollars to Hong Kong Dollars. Their money was pretty similar to how the Canadian money is which is not real paper and is waterproof. Definitely something I think America should think about doing. I purchased a bottle of coconut water since it's one of my favorite things to drink. I began to explore around and noticed that they had a Burger King. I decided to try it out but the only difference was that the hamburgers had different buns.
Once it was time to board the plane again, I was able to sit alone right by the window. I had about 4 hours left before the plane landed and was able to enjoy the Bollywood movie which I was unable to finish.
It was now 1am in Bangladesh and the plane had officially landed. Once I had collected my luggages I strolled through the airport looking for the exit. Little did I know how long it was going to take to get through the security as they asked me a ton of questions about my education and job occupation and my reason for visiting. I had to also inform them where I was going to reside and had to give them my sisters address. Once that was over I was looking for my sister and had a hard time reaching my sister with my phone and realized my sim card was not going to work there. Thank God for wifi in the airport and Facebook messenger. I was able to message my niece and have her tell me where they were waiting for me. They were by the exit where soldiers have been patrolling and keeping in guard of who comes in and out. Unfortunately, they were not able to enter, and I have no idea why.
When I saw them, I felt a huge relief off my shoulder. A part of me thought something terrible would have happened where I would be stranded in a third world country basically the worst-case scenario. First thing I did was give a huge hug to my niece who has gotten so big over the years. I felt like I missed out on so much of her growing up. Then I hugged my oldest sister who was thrilled to see me and was just still in shock that I actually came to visit her. I would always tell her and my parents that I would never visit Bangladesh for many reasons that I will soon get into.
She got us a van and we were on our way to her place. As the driver was driving, I noticed so much traffic even at 1am. It was like rush hour in the city but instead of just cars on the road you see rickshaws which is a bike and it had seating for about 3 people max in the back, trucks without windows and bikes. One of the trucks that was in front of us had cows in the back with 2 people sitting next to it making sure he is tied down. It was pretty unsafe but I figured they knew what they were doing. There were no traffic lights to let the vehicles on the road know when to stop and go but people rode just fine along with a lot of honking and yelling.
My sister saw the look on my face as I have never seen how this country runs. She was reassuring me that everything would be okay and that we would be getting home safe. I felt a little better. Once we reached her place I noticed a few stray dogs walking along the alleyway. They looked skinny and malnourished.
First thing I wanted to do is unpack my suitcase to show what I have brought for my niece and nephews, but my sister was tired, and I was just anxious and way too excited to fall asleep. So, I stayed up for a bit and forced myself to sleep so I could wake up the same time they did. In the morning I toured around her place and loved the amount of space she had a 3-bedroom apartment that belonged to her and 2 bathrooms. She had a maid come in the mornings to help her clean and cook and the maid would leave the same day once she was done with her chores. It was so weird having a maid as I am not used to it. I almost felt bad for the poor lady, but my sister assured me that they are well taken care of as my sister is paying her well along with feeding the maid. I trust her and know my sister has a good heart and she would never be a mean person to any one even when she experienced one of her maids in the past stealing from her.
I went out everyday for that whole entire month even if it was just for a walk outside. I got a chance to ride the rickshaw which petrified me every time and its definitely something even till this very day I cannot get used to. I was able to try the street food which I was a tad bit skeptical of trying since the air quality and the dust from the streets were terrible. Surprisingly the street food was way better than the restaurants my sister took me to. It is so funny to look at the menu since it never looked like the actual food being served. Like In the U.S we advertise food as huge and with bright colors and it looked very similar to what we were being served but the way the food was portrayed in Bangladesh was like they copied and pasted the menu from America. What they served was nothing on the image shown on the menu.
My favorite street food would be Phani Puri which is this puffed fried …filled with mashed potatoes with amazing seasonings and drenched with this liquid where once you pop it in your mouth you taste so many flavors and spices. It is something to try if anyone is ever interested in visiting Bangladesh.
After a week of exploring the city, my sister wanted to show me around the village where my mom grew up. We took a bus that smelled like gasoline and was by far the dustiest bus I have ever been on. This bus had no seat belts nor a bathroom, so I definitely had to hold on to my pee. It took about 5 hours to get to Nukhali from Dahka. My sister and I did a little food shopping to bring over to the village. I stayed at my parent’s house that my dad had built a few years back which had 6 bedrooms and a huge back yard and a lake. Next to the house was a grave where my dads’ parents have been buried which was slightly a little creepy, but I thought nothing of it. I got to see my grandmother who was not doing well. My oldest aunt was her caretaker and has been for a while. My grandmother was very old to the point where she was not able to talk much but make sounds and hand arthritis on her left hand. It made me sad to see her that way. I always imagined meeting my grandmother slightly a little healthier enough to tell me stories and maybe even tell me something wise. I met a ton of kids in the village and got the chance to hang out with my cousins from my mom's side. Although they were young and less fortunate, they had huge dreams of becoming something and traveling the world. They all want to come to America to be given a chance to free education and work to give back to their parents back home but unfortunately its not easy when it's hard to even come to America.
I had a day where I spent fishing with one of my cousins who created a fishing rod with just materials he had found in the woods or in the backyard by the lake. He made the fish bait out of bread and dirt where he shaped it to look like fish bait. One thing I have noticed was they were all very inventive and worked with what they had. They have a skill that most kids lack in America. Patience and just being humble. They worked hard for what they eat as every day was an adventure for them. The next day I got a tour around the village and the land my dad and his 3 brothers owned. Coconut trees, papaya tree, mano trees and even banana trees. I had to walk a lot that day and considering how it rained a ton my pants was wet from the knee down. Along the way I saw a snake that passed over my feet and my reaction was to stay still and squirm praying it was not going to bite me. I was proud of my dad seeing that he had owned so much land and him helping my mom's side of the family. Although my parents have built a huge house in the village it was not helping out anyone as it is abandoned most of the time. The only time anyone ever can come to the house is when my sister or anyone from my family is visiting Bangladesh. Which is rare considering none of my siblings are planning to live a life here.
I had a few more days to tour around the village of where I was raised. The pond and the lake was not as clean as I imagined it to be since everyone uses that water to bath and wash their pots and pans. All the chemicals from the soap they use is definitely harmful for anyone who drinks the water and lets just say I swam in the lake one time and realized there isn’t much life underneath the water. Just tiny little fishes which surprised me that they were actually alive and still swimming. I enjoyed being able to see ducks wandering about and cows being fed inside the little hut. One thing I noticed is when I pass by a store it's mostly men drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes just talking amongst each other while the women cover up and try to walk as fast as possible to avoid any eye contact and not be seen for too long. Bangladesh is predominantly a Muslim country and many of the women are dressed pretty modest especially in the village. So in order to fit in I had to wear the appropriate attire and obviously the most important part of covering my hair. My cousin whose name was about 5 years younger than me helped me and my sister to take some fruits and vegetables home. We got to enjoy fresh coconut water and eat tiny little bananas on our way back home and as a reward my sister gave him some money at the end of the week when I left to go back to the city. The air quality in the village was slightly better than the city since there is less road space for traffic.
Back on the bus I headed back to the city. I got a chance to enjoy a meal at a local restaurant by the gas station. One thing I liked about this spot was they always served a bowl for everyone to wash our hands since that is how everyone eats. Forks and spoons were not something they had unless you asked as there is a tourist who comes around and uses it. Since I was already accustomed to eating with my hand I definitely fit right in.
I’ll admit the experience on the road in Bangladesh was not something I enjoyed. In fact, I was petrified. I don’t know how people can go each day and be okay with knowing that there are no traffic lights or stop signs. I did see some places with traffic lights and a cross road guy directing vehicles on which way they can drive. I felt bad for the stray dogs that are walking around the roads searching for food and inhaling all the dust. Whereas in America dogs are pets living pretty decent considering they are well taken care of.
I got a chance to check out a modern mall and a not so modern mall. I was told that when you are shopping in Bangladesh you can always negotiate the price. Whether it is food or cloth they are both durable. There's so much supply and demand that there is literally competition everywhere you go. I remember when My sister and I wanted to take a break from shopping to grab a bite to eat and there were men standing in front of the restaurant just pressuring us to choose their restaurant to eat at. Trying to persuade us by yelling and shouting that they have something that the other place may not offer when really, they all offer the same thing. It was funny but also a tad bit aggressive. My sister is probably by far the best person to shop with as she is really good with negotiating the prices, so I managed to save a few bucks and with some of the money I had left over I gave it over to anyone that was poor and begging for food. I definitely can say I have a soft side for people that are less fortunate than I am. It felt good to be able to offer something even if it meant I would be losing money. ….
Each day was somewhat of an adventure and being here for a month definitely took a toll on me as I got so tired of the humid air. I missed New York. I missed my family and friends. The day I was booked to leave was an emotional day for my sister and my niece. I cried and hugged both of them, said goodbye as I would not be seeing them for a while. It was a bittersweet moment for me since I was also excited about getting back home to my bed. I missed taking the trains and being able to wear jeans again.
One thing I would take away from this trip is to always appreciate what you have because you just never know what other people are going through. I may not be rich myself, but I know I am accessible to many things that others here might not have and that I have to be thankful for.
