Weekend Getaway: Nimpith and Kaikhali

Kaikhali in Sunderbans

Our plan to Nimpith and Kaikhali was totally an unexpected one. One of my dear friends who stays abroad for studies came home during the Christmas vacation and he loves travelling as much as I do. So we decided to travel to some remote place for a welcome change. My younger brother who is also a travel enthusiast and never miss an opportunity to travel joined us in the trip though he had other office-related priorities to tackle with, still he managed time.

According to the plan we left for Kaikhali on 3rd January 2020. Unfortunately on the day of our journey, the weather turned for the worst. It was raining cats and dogs. We had initially planned to leave in the early hours of 3rd January but we had to delay our journey for obvious reasons. Finally, when we reached the Jaynagar Mojilpur railway station which is the nearest railway station to Nimpith, it was already 11 A.M. Although there was a break in the rain for a while then, the weather changed and it started raining again. Finally, we reached the Ramakrishna Mission, Nimpith at around 12 Noon. The Maharaj who was in charge of the ashram requested us to have our lunch in the ashram. He enquired whether we had any staying plans. We nodded and he gave us the directions to the Kaikhali lodge. The Maharaj in fact, called the caretaker of the tourist lodge to intimate him of our arrival. After having our lunch we left for Kaikhali amidst the rain. Our destination was Kaikhali Tourist Lodge. The lodge is situated on the banks of the river Matla and the only lodge in the vicinity, so prior booking is a must.

  
We reached Kaikhali at around 3.30 PM. After completion of the check-in formalities, we went for a stroll. Here I would like to mention one thing that Kaikhali Tourist Lodge is the only in the area and all its bookings are done from Nimpith Ramakrishna Mission. We went to a tea shop and met a few local elderly people who shared their experiences and hardships living in Kaikhali. The livelihood of most of the people there is fishing.

On returning from the walk, we were served with hot tea and pakoras.  We were so exhausted from the day-long exertion that we went for a short power nap until dinner was served.

"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page..."

Few pictures from Kaikhali...

A temple at Kaikhali...

The next morning we were welcomed with a bright sunny day. My friend Sandipan was suffering from jetlag and had been awake all night. He was in a deep slumber. I and my brother went for a morning walk to the nearby village and the experience was wonderful.

"The further I travel, the closer I am to myself..."

"People forget years but remember moments..."

After roaming around for about an hour we had to rush back to our lodge as the checkout time was approaching. After checking out, lunch was served and it was a simple yet delicious one. We had rice, dal, one curry, chicken curry, and chatni. We left the place at around 12.30 PM in our previously booked auto with an enriched heart and charged up in spirit.

Our team to Kaikhali and Nimpit...

My personal feeling after visiting the place is that it's a great place for a one time visit. Also in order to find solace and feel the beauty of the place, one has to match our frequency of thinking as the place has only the bare minimum. It cannot promise you with the greatest of comfort but the greatest of peace, for sure. It has a friendly atmosphere but the attire of luxury has not yet reached the place. However, retracing our way back to the bare minimum is sometimes the order of the day.

Panoramic view of the Lodge...

Until next time... 

(Picture Courtesy: Piangshuk Mukherjee and Sandipan Mandol.)

Murshidabad : The Land of Nawabs

Hazarduari Palace

When it comes to visiting a place, it attracts me the same way honey attracts bees. This time instead of heading out for a typically adventurous trip we went on to find the essence of history by visiting the forgotten capital of Bengal, Murshidabad. When someone visit this place, he/she is bound to be moved by the magnificence of the unforgetable history of the place. It is the land of last independent Nawab of Bengal, Siraj-Ud-Daula. This time when we sat over a cup of tea to decide where to visit,  unanimously it came up to be a historical place and what else could be more historical than our very own old glory Murshidabad.

At the railway station...

Our journey began on 18th October, 2019. We boarded the heritage train Hazarduari Express from Chitpur viz. Kolkata railway station at 6:50 AM in the morning. This time around our team comprised of five members including myself & my younger brother.

The Heritage Hazarduari Express....

We reached Murshidabad on the same day at around 10 AM. From the railway station we boarded a horse pulled cart and reached our hotel Purity Mahal near Hazarduari Palace. It took us little longer than usual to check into our hotel as there was a technical glitch from OYO's end. After having a quick shower we went out for our lunch and local site-seeing. The first place we visited was Katra Mosque built by Murshid Quli Khan from 1723-24 AD.

In-front of the Katra Mosque...

Old ruins of Katra Mosque...

The Katra Mosque was built by Murshid Quli Khan, the first independent Nawab of Bengal. The town Murshidabad is named after him. This Mosque was built by bringing down many Hindu temples at that time as a result of which after the Mosque was built, the then Nawab, Murshid Quli Khan, built a temple for Lord Shiva just inside the boundary of the Mosque as a mark of his guilt feeling. One can find the same temple even today in perfect condition now looked after by the locals.

In addition to that, there is one more interesting fact associated with this mosque. The Nawab's last wish was to have his body buried under the staircase of the Mosque, so that each and everyone coming to that Mosque would have to walk over his body irrespective of their caste,creed or religion.This way he tried to eliminate the sins committed by him during his lifetime.

After spending quite a long time there, we left for the Jahankosha Cannon and Fauti Mosque. Here one thing I must say that although the Jahankosha cannon is well maintained by Archaeological Survey of India no heed has been paid towards the preservation of the Fauti Mosque and it is on the verge of collapsing. This Mosque was built by the Nawab Sarfaraz Khan in 1740 AD in only one day.

Jahankosha Cannon being closely scrutinized by Gopal....

Ruins of Fauti Mosque....

Our next destination was the house of famous banker Jagatseth. They say that at that time Jagat Seth was one of the richest person  not only in Bengal but also the entire India.The entire house has been transformed into a museum and opened for the visitors to experience the essence of Bengal's glorious past.

Amidst history time just flew by and soon we reached the last two destination of sight-seeing i.e., Jafarganj Graveyard and Nashipur Akhra.

Silver Chariot of Nashipur Akhra...

The Jafarganj Graveyard is infamous for the grave of Mir Jaffer & his successors. He is known to be the biggest traitor in the history of Bengal.

Mir Jaffar's graveyard...

Finally we called it a day and returned to our hotel as we were too tired and have had our share of fun that day. We had our dinner early that night and chatted for long hours reflecting on the day long journey.

Dinner time at Hotel Sagnik....

Next morning, i.e., on 19th October, 2019 we woke up early as our plan was to visit the other side of the river Bhagirathi. We booked one Toto and after finishing our breakfast we went for the other side of river Bhagirathi. First thing that we visited was Khushbu Bagh (Grave of Siraj-ud-Daula).

Kushbu Bagh...

A mosque inside Kushbu Bagh where Alibardi Khan used to read Namaaj...

After spending quite a few time in Kushbu Bagh we left for the Kiriteswari Temple, one of the piths of Sati's 51 pith. On our way back we also visited the Jagatbandhu Temple.

Inside Kiriteswari Temple....

Jagatbandhu Temple...

Our final destination on the other side of the river was the famous terracotta temple of Charbangla.

Charbangla Temple....

It was 2.30 PM by my watch when we left from the Charbangla Temple and it took us nearly one hour to reach the banks of river Bhagirathi. Finally we had our lunch at hotel Sagnik and retired for the noon as it was getting too hot. We told our Toto driver to reach our hotel by 5.30 PM as we wished to visit the light and sound show at Motijhil's Prakiti-tirtha. As per plan we reached Prakiti-tirtha at around 6.15 PM booked our respective tickets for the light and sound show.

Boulevard leading towards Motijhil....

Prakititirtha...

A surprise birthday party was arranged by other team members for me which made my day. We realized that our time at Murshidabad was coming to an end. Next morning, i.e., on 20th October, 2019 we visited the Hazaduari Museum and it took us nearly two hours to complete thoroughly each and every aspect of the museum.

Hazarduari Palace Museum...

Opposite to the gigantic Hazarduari Palace Museum there is an Imambara which remains closed for most of the time in the year. When the Imambara opens a big fair is arranged for the locals. People from far and distant visit the place.

Opposite to the Imambara...

We left Murshidabad enriched after realising the importance of history in our day to day life. Murshidabad is a place which will stay very close to my heart for as long as I live.

Surprise Birthday Cake arranged by other members of our group...

Our group to Murshidabad...

People without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without its roots.

Azimunnisha's Grave

Until next time....

(Picture Courtesy: Piangshuk Mukherjee and Joydeep Ghosh)