The last good cooffee that I had was in Melbourne before leaving Australia some 4 weeks ago, so I am now hanging out for something that even resembles a Cafe 21 latte. I have told on very good advice that there is a extremely good coffee shop in Gulshaan 2 Circle, but I have yet to locate it. So, this morning after having my normal Maxwell House with powdered milk special at breakfast, I went back to my room determined to go and find that bloody coffee shop, hoping that it would be one of the very few shops that were actually open. So after waiting for my room to be cleaned, I got dressed in obligatory knee length shorts (anything higher will bring looks of utter disdain from the die hard Muslims), and set off up Gulshan Ave towards the circle. I would have been flat out walking 500m before it started to rain, just lightly at first, but then heavier and heavier until it was a typical Bangladesh monsoon downpour. With very little protection to stand under (the shops here do not have awning over the footpath like in Australia) I was starting to get pretty damn wet, And of course I had a multitude of rickshaw pushers, and taxi drivers pulling up to offer their services to what they no doubt saw as a dumb westerner walking in the raain without an umbrella, but I was was determined to make sure thaat I went for my daily walk, which is just about thee only exercise that I am currently getting. Then as usual when they can't convince you to get on board, they offer to take you to a lovely Banglaadesh lady who will keep me happy, or get me some very good gunja to also make me happy. Forget about this being the land of purity and high morals as you can obtain anything here that you can in the west it is just a bit more hidden and probably a lot more seedy E.g., I have been advised that many of the picture theatres that show Bollywood movies are in fact Porn movie theatres, apparently every movie starts out as a Bollywood movie, but then part way through the original movie cuts out and a porn movie comes on in it's place.
Anyway I finally made it to the Westin Hotel where I could at least get under cover and out of the rain. I even thought about just going in there for a coffee and their famous brunch, but all westerners are welcome there, I didn't feel very comfortable going in looking like something that the cat had dragged in. So I waited 20 minutes or so for the rain to die down (at least here I was assured of not being humbugged by beggars or rickshaw drivers as they are quickly ushered away by the armed guards at the front door). So off I went agaain to the circle, but after 15 minutes of fruitless searching, I figured that this coffee shop was either a cruel hoax and didn't reallt exist, or that my powers of seek and find were about as good as a woman's power to read a map. So dejectedely I headed for home again, but then I had a very bright idea and crossed the road to the Gulshaan 2 market were I found that the Swisss Bakery shop (Mr Baker) was actually open, so after buying a couple of very tasty looking things, I then headed down to Agora (Bangladesh's minituarised version of Woolies), where to my surprise and relief I foundsome of those packet Latte and Cuppacino things, plus I stocked up on other snack foods (I even found some Sars on the shelf - you take pot luck as to what is on the shelf each time you visit). So although I wasn't sitting down to enjoy a Cafe 21 latte and lemon cheese cake, I figured I haadn't done too bad, and so off home I set.
On the way up to the circle, I heard what sounded like a very big motor vehicle crash somewhere back down the avenue towards Gulshan 1 circle, but when I looked around, I couldn't see anything because of the heavy rain. But when walking back down the avenue, I came accross the remnants of the accident, which was a medium sized bus that was completely stoved in on the front LH corner (see photos below). Judging by the amount of damage, I can only imagine it had hit another bus or a truck, but where the other vehicle was I have no idea. The odd thing was that it was parked facing the wrong way up the aaveenue which has a concrete wall down the centre that sepaarates the north and south bound lanes. My guess is that the bus has come out of one of the side streets onto Gulshan Ave wanting to turn right (head south) at a point where you cannot turn right because there is no break in the centre island, but rather than turn left and go further up to where there is a break in the island and do a U turn, the driver has decided to turn right anyway and travel the wrong way into oncoming traffic until he found a break in the island to allow him to cross over to the south bound lanes, but has not quite made it. You frequently see rickshaws and taaxis pulling this stunt (usually when you are in the bloody thing), but not buses, but as I said in a previous post, a lot of the buses are piloted by kids with no licence and no understanding of road rules, or the need to keep their passengers safe (they are very brave but not real smart). Looking at the aftermath, it's hard to imagine the Bus Waller who hangs out the door, having survived. One of the reasons that sso many people die and get seriously injured when the buses do crash is that the buses literaally disintegrate due to them having had so many patch up repair jobs in the past and being riddled with rust so that there is nothing holding them together.
I also took a photo of the Police paddy wagon that was just leaving the scene when I got there (take a look at the condition of it - sure wouldn't want to be in a high speed chase. The police in Baangladesh are under trained, under paid, under manned, under equiped, riddled with corruption, and totally ineffective, such that the public neither trust them, nor respect them. Which is why the public so often takes the law into their own hands resulting in suspected robbers and mrderers often being beaten to a pulp by mobs of angry locals, resulting in serious injury and frequent deaths.
Anyway I finally made it home at about 1:00pm (bit paast morning smoko time), but nevertheless sat down read my Australian Shooters magazine and had a coffee and cake.
Anyway I finally made it to the Westin Hotel where I could at least get under cover and out of the rain. I even thought about just going in there for a coffee and their famous brunch, but all westerners are welcome there, I didn't feel very comfortable going in looking like something that the cat had dragged in. So I waited 20 minutes or so for the rain to die down (at least here I was assured of not being humbugged by beggars or rickshaw drivers as they are quickly ushered away by the armed guards at the front door). So off I went agaain to the circle, but after 15 minutes of fruitless searching, I figured that this coffee shop was either a cruel hoax and didn't reallt exist, or that my powers of seek and find were about as good as a woman's power to read a map. So dejectedely I headed for home again, but then I had a very bright idea and crossed the road to the Gulshaan 2 market were I found that the Swisss Bakery shop (Mr Baker) was actually open, so after buying a couple of very tasty looking things, I then headed down to Agora (Bangladesh's minituarised version of Woolies), where to my surprise and relief I foundsome of those packet Latte and Cuppacino things, plus I stocked up on other snack foods (I even found some Sars on the shelf - you take pot luck as to what is on the shelf each time you visit). So although I wasn't sitting down to enjoy a Cafe 21 latte and lemon cheese cake, I figured I haadn't done too bad, and so off home I set.
On the way up to the circle, I heard what sounded like a very big motor vehicle crash somewhere back down the avenue towards Gulshan 1 circle, but when I looked around, I couldn't see anything because of the heavy rain. But when walking back down the avenue, I came accross the remnants of the accident, which was a medium sized bus that was completely stoved in on the front LH corner (see photos below). Judging by the amount of damage, I can only imagine it had hit another bus or a truck, but where the other vehicle was I have no idea. The odd thing was that it was parked facing the wrong way up the aaveenue which has a concrete wall down the centre that sepaarates the north and south bound lanes. My guess is that the bus has come out of one of the side streets onto Gulshan Ave wanting to turn right (head south) at a point where you cannot turn right because there is no break in the centre island, but rather than turn left and go further up to where there is a break in the island and do a U turn, the driver has decided to turn right anyway and travel the wrong way into oncoming traffic until he found a break in the island to allow him to cross over to the south bound lanes, but has not quite made it. You frequently see rickshaws and taaxis pulling this stunt (usually when you are in the bloody thing), but not buses, but as I said in a previous post, a lot of the buses are piloted by kids with no licence and no understanding of road rules, or the need to keep their passengers safe (they are very brave but not real smart). Looking at the aftermath, it's hard to imagine the Bus Waller who hangs out the door, having survived. One of the reasons that sso many people die and get seriously injured when the buses do crash is that the buses literaally disintegrate due to them having had so many patch up repair jobs in the past and being riddled with rust so that there is nothing holding them together.
I also took a photo of the Police paddy wagon that was just leaving the scene when I got there (take a look at the condition of it - sure wouldn't want to be in a high speed chase. The police in Baangladesh are under trained, under paid, under manned, under equiped, riddled with corruption, and totally ineffective, such that the public neither trust them, nor respect them. Which is why the public so often takes the law into their own hands resulting in suspected robbers and mrderers often being beaten to a pulp by mobs of angry locals, resulting in serious injury and frequent deaths.
Anyway I finally made it home at about 1:00pm (bit paast morning smoko time), but nevertheless sat down read my Australian Shooters magazine and had a coffee and cake.
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