My solo trip to Dhaka City, Bangladesh. In summary, this country is in a league of its own. Having visited my fair share of Asian countries, the Bengali's have a culture matched by no other. I say this from the bottom of my heart, and if you are skeptical, I am afraid you will have to visit them on your own to experience it first hand. It is the most heart-warming culture I have ever visited. Period.

First off, some notes on my trip for easy reference.

• Dhaka Division
• Sylhet Division
• Total of 8 Days 7 Nights
• Internal travel via inter-city trains
• Dhaka > Sylhet (6-7hr)
• Sylhet > Srimongol (3hr)
• Srimongol > Dhaka (6hr)

Gears used for this trip.

• Leica M2 with Zeiss 25mm 2.8, 50mm 1.5 Sonnar & Voigtlander 35mm 1.4 SC
• Ricoh GRD4

If you prefer for a quick look at a set of photos from this trip, this video clip would be a good summary :)

If you would like to visit this wonderful country for photography, I would advice you to go for it only if you will promise not to treat them as photography subjects, but as individuals who deserve so much respect for their wonderful culture. Trust me, it is amazing. They ask of you as neighbours, and not as tourist. They buy you tea and if you smoke, they offer you cigarettes. They ask you questions such as where your home is, what are you doing in their country etc. They honestly wonder why you want to visit them. What is the answer?

After one day there, I immediately realize why.

They are extremely nice people. Period.

Do you know how it feels to be poor? Do you know how it feels to be happy? Do you know how it feels to be poor AND happy?

Bet you dont (especially if you live in Singapore).

In their hands, are crappy drawings I did for them with a simple charcoal stick. When I say crappy drawings, I really mean crappy. Look at their faces. Do they care? Not a damn. They are over the moon with this simple gift.

A simple cup of tea like this costs about S$0.30. Does it taste good? You bet your last dollar it does! Its DAMN GOOD!

If you meet an English speaking Bengali who has time to spare, he will actually offer his time to talk to you about Bangladesh, and you. Yes, you! They are honestly interested to find out about you and your life. They will even offer to buy you tea. They do not earn that much, yet they offer this as part of their culture, their tradition. The tradition of being nice is not very common around the world. Accept it, and learn from it. Try to imagine this in your country. It may not be very possible.

They are skilled in many ways. Mechanics, tailors, electricians, technicians, cooks, you name it. This little boy (below) was helping his father tend to their carpentry shop in Dhaka City. This was somewhere close to the Kalumpur Train Station (intercity). Shot with my M2 and 35/1.4 Voigtlander.

After my meal at a stall along the main street fronting Kalumpur Station, I could not resist photographing his unique beard. The food was good. Their service is sweet too. They seem to know what you want (wash your hands), tea etc, and that makes it a very heartwarming meal, unlike the mechanical meals we usually have at home.

Kalumpur Train Station, Dhaka City. You dont have to worry about finding transportation after alighting, because they would normally find you instead :)

They have this air of simplicity around them, which makes you appreciate how they can live their lives without the need for computers, cable television and SMART phones.

This is a scene you will not find in Singapore anymore after we built the city into a metropolis. He could not be any older than 11 years of age, yet he tends to his own stall selling livestock. The white basket contains chicks, which I think are bought as pets before they are used for food as they get matured.

These are hand painted, not machined onto canvas or some other wasteful materials that the modern world does. This is a hardwearing state, who seems to me, cares more about the environment than the 'educated' people around the world.

I shall stop here for Part One of 'Wing it in Dhaka!'

See you soon.