Kolkata

Touring the city I was born in was a good experience. I started the day fairly early with a government organized city tour. The tour guide spoke English which was a welcome feature and the tour was small, only about seven people, which was nice because it allowed us to move at a decent speed without having to wait.
We started with all the major monuments in Kolkata. Unfortunately it was predominantly a bus tour and most of the places we visited can either not be reached by the public, or there is no stopping. The governor's house was absolutely huge and almost all the buildings that we saw had a very colonial British look. I was later informed by Dad's friend Rajiv that this is because Kolkata was once the capital of India before Independence in 1947 when it moved to the present city of Delhi. I had to end the tour early because I was feeling a bit ill but I felt better later that evening.
That evening I went out to a club in Kolkata with Rajiv's son Karan and it was a fun and new experience. Clubs here are very similar to those in Canada and it was a lot of fun.
The next day I woke up later than usual and went to visit Mother Theresa's Mission of Charity. It was amazing. It was much smaller than I expected, with a small courtyard leading to Mother's tomb and a small room that outlines her history among a variety of poster boards. I got so caught up with reading about her accomplishments and her letters that I lost track of time and the opportunity to see her bedroom passed. I knew she was an amazing woman, but truly when you read about all that she accomplished with what she had, it really makes her seem like a saint.
Later in the afternoon I had a lovely lunch at the CCFC (Calcutta Cricket and Football Club) with Rajiv and his family followed by a very special drive down memory lane. Rajiv took me to the apartment I used to live in, the bank building (HSBC) that dad used to work at, and most importantly Woodlands Hospital, which, on May 18, 1986 was the hospital where the world became a better place. Rajiv also took me to buy a pair of Kurta Pyjama's, a comfortable cotton outfit which is very comfortable for lounging but I bought a pair that can also be dressed up and worn with jeans.
Kolkata was definitely a great experience. It was nice being able to see where I was born and spent the first year of my life but was also nice to see India from the pre-independence capital.
Tomorrow I leave for Nepal so I can't guarantee when the next posting will be, so bare with me.