Howdy from Kolkata,

This morning we woke up to eat breakfast in front of our 7th-floor view. Natural light flooded the room as we ate a filling breakfast. A stroke of luck allowed us to have a late start to our day. We took full advantage of our newfound time. Playing card games, reading, laughing together under the gentle light of our wall-to-wall window view. Finally, our guide arrived, and we were off to explore Kolkata.

Our first stop of the day was an unassuming multi-story building. It was painted a gentle pale blue. It had brown wooden window covers. If you paid attention, you would see a wooden sign hanging off a metal pole. The sign read “Missionaries of Charity – Mother’s House.” We have arrived at the residence and headquarters of Mother Teresa. Born on August 26, 1910, in Skopje, modern day Macedonia, Mother Teresa was given the name Gonxha Agnes. She was eighteen when she joined the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known as the “Loreto Sisters,” in Ireland. Gonxha joined the Loreto Sisters specifically because they had a mission in India. In September of 1928, she left home and set out for Dublin, Ireland. During her time there, she was granted a new name; Sister Teresa. Two months later, in December of 1928, Sister Teresa set sail to India. Once she arrived in India, she spent two years studying and training for her life ahead. Sister Teresa also learned Bengali and Hindi. In 1931, she was relocated to Calcutta to teach geography and catechism at St. Mary’s Bengali Medium School. In 1937, Sister Teresa made a permanent vow to live a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. That moment was when Sister Teresa became Mother Teresa. In 1944, Mother Teresa became the principal of St. Mary’s School. In 1948, Mother Teresa was allowed to break from her original mission and begin her work in the slums. First, she took nursing training to deal with the medical needs of those in the slums. In 1949, Mother Teresa opened a school and dispensary in the slums. In 1950, she opened her first home for the dying. Mother Teresa named it Nirmal Hriday, which means pure heart. As her work in the slums grew, her work spread past Calcutta. In 1965, she opened her first mission outside of India in Venezuela. In 1979, she won the Nobel Peace Prize. She continued her work till the day she died on September 5, 1997. Mother Teresa’s kind and compassionate way of life can still be observed today as we visited Mother’s House. We walked into a courtyard area, which is the center of the place. First, we visited her tomb, which was a room with a large white stone block sitting in the middle. On her tomb, it is engraved “Love one another as I have loved you.” After visiting her tomb, we went to a small museum one door down that described her life and work in the slums. Finally, we exited back into the courtyard and headed up a staircase to see her room. It was a humble one-bedroom. It had a wall for sorting mail, as Mother Teresa received and answered a lot of mail. On the wall was a small map of the world with labels pointing to where the homes she founded were. Seeing how she lived in such simple conditions showed how she truly lived a humble life. After such a profound and powerful experience, we headed to another marvel. This time, however, it was an engineering marvel.

On our way to our next landmark, the true colors of Kolkata could be observed out the window. Hundreds of cars and people were hustling through the streets. All are moving in sync with traffic. We arrived to our destination, Howrah bridge. It is an iconic bridge in Kolkata that spans 2,313 feet and reaches 270 feet tall. Saying the bridge is massive is an understatement. The bridge dwarfs anything that comes near it. It makes us feel like ants rummaging through a child’s playset. Built in 1943, the Howrah Bridge is one of the busiest in the world. We took our photos and took a quick walk to the flower market.

The flower market was an experience like no other. Walking from the bridge to the market, there were people selling all kinds of things from toys to food to spices. The smells and sights were not all pleasant, but they are all a part of the true culture of Kolkata. Once we reached the actual market, we were bombarded with all kinds of colors, textures, and smells. It was an open-air market with stalls selling all kinds of flowers. Some in bunches, some on ropes, some on crowns. There were dozens upon dozens of people hauling big bags above their heads. The bags were full of flowers. Each flower has its own specific use, such as weddings, funerals, temples, cow gifts, and more.  Walking through the bustling alleys that made up the flower market felt like walking in some fantasy land. The bright colors and smells were a sharp contrast to the serious people selling flowers to make a living. We wrapped up our time at the flower market and headed to the potter’s quarters.

The potter’s quarters are an area well known for its abundance of statue-making shops. The statues made there typically depict Hindu gods. The statues range in size. The smallest can fit in the palm of your hand, while the largest reaches the height of a stop sign. The process of making the statues is an interesting cycle. First, the artisan collects clay from the bottom of the river. Then they create a frame out of bamboo. Next, they wrap the frame with straw to create the desired shape of the body. After that, they apply clay. Once the statue has been used, typically for festivals, the statue is placed in the river. The river washes away the clay and straw. The artisan collects the bamboo to reuse it for another statue. This self-sustaining cycle is a great example of the ingenious practices of the artisans. Walking down the potter’s quarters felt trippy seeing all kinds of gods shaped and contorted into different poses. Felt like walking through Medusa’s Garden. After our time there, we headed to Lunner (Lunch + Dinner).

We had Lunner at Bhojohori Manna. It serves authentic Bengali (the region in which Kolkata is in) cuisine. We ordered the Bagda Chingri Thala. The meal was fish served with other Bengali dishes and rice in separate containers. The purpose of separate containers and rice is to mix and match the food to engineer your food to match the flavor and texture to your liking. The meal experience was unique. Once we were full, we boarded the van to go to Kali Ghat.

Kali Ghat is a temple complex dedicated to the Hindu god Kali, the god of destruction and transformation. The main temple was super crowded, the line to enter the temple was full of people, shoulder to shoulder. Realizing our time constraints, our guide led us to the side of the temple. He paid a group of men sitting on the side. The men promised us a view of the interior of the temple. Not knowing what to expect, we huddled around the men. They talked amongst themselves. Then, with one strenuous effort, they shoved their way into the crowd. They held people back to allow us to see the head of Kali. You could see the strain on their faces as they held back a sea of people to create a path for us to see. After 15 seconds, the crowd collapsed back onto them, and they retreated to their position at the side of the temple. All of us were shocked. We didn’t know what to expect, but it certainly wasn’t that. We walked away from the main temple and saw the area where they sacrifice goats. The guide showed us the blocks that hold the goat when they cut its head off. When sacrificing, the head of Kali must have a direct line of sight to the goat. After observing the place some more, we made our way back to the van to get some Chai.

We went to a place named Sharma Sweets. It is a Deaf owned business that sells Chai among other Indian food. The owner is a Deaf man named Manoj Sharma. He inherited the business from his father. The Chai was very filling. We had something to drink, so it was time to find something to eat.

We took a vote and decided on ice cream. Trusting our guide, we walked towards what we thought would be an ice cream shop. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t. This time, we placed our trust in Google Maps to lead us. That turned out to be another dead end. You know what they say, third time’s the charm. We made it to an ice cream place named Dairy World. We all got ice cream and chatted. It was a good time, laughing and eating ice cream. Once we finished our ice cream, we hailed some taxis and headed back to the hotel. We headed to bed to get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.

Live in the moment,

Antonio