Family in Dhaka!

My father-in-law came to India for work, so he was able to take a long weekend and hang out with us in Dhaka!  It's been so great having family here, and we were sad to see him leave today.  On Friday we had a tour of Old Dhaka and were able to see the Parliament Building, Dhaka University, Lalbagh Fort, Hindu Street, Star Mosque, the Armenian Church, and Ahsan Manjil (Pink Palace).  At the end of our tour, we took a little wooden boat out on dirty, smelly Buriganga River.

The Parliament Building

Dhaka University

A guy selling fruit on the side of the road.  A lot of these photos were taken from inside the car.

Lots of butchers!

One of our stops was the beautiful Star Mosque.  As we walked into the courtyard, I realized that I was the only female present.  I've gotten quite used to being the only woman around, and I feel like I hardly notice it anymore.  But this was different.  I knew I was an intruder since women are actually forbidden to enter mosques in Bangladesh.  Apparently our tour guide had permission to bring me in as I am a foreigner, but I felt incredibly uncomfortable and was ready to leave as soon as we entered.

A little boy at Star Mosque

Walking down Hindu Street took a lot of concentration.  The streets are tiny and there were people and rickshaws everywhere!  We had to keep an eye on the ground to avoid stepping in various disgusting things; we had to keep an eye out for rickshaws so they didn't run over our feet; and we had to keep an eye out for our belongings.  All while trying to see the various shops and small, overcrowded apartments.

The tiny apartments on Hindu Street

As we came to the end of Hindu Street, my father-in-law looked down and noticed he was stepping on something he couldn't quite make out.  After a few seconds we realized he was standing on a squished, dead, disgusting rat.  Surprise!

Flowers offered to the Hindu Gods

The Pink Palace

Another day in Dhaka - getting stared at by hundreds of Bangladeshi men.  I caught the guy below.

A view of the black, oily river from inside our little boat.

Muslim women in full burkas crossing the river

Bathing in the river...

Yep, that's a huge pile of trash along the river's shore

This man is selling betel leaves used for paan

A group of boys hanging out in the middle of a huge trash pile along the river

The weekend was wonderful, even though there were a few hiccups.  First off, I got sick the night my father-in-law arrived.  Then I managed to pass my bug to both my husband and father-in-law, so we had to cancel our plans on Saturday.  On top of that, he had to leave early this morning for Mumbai, fever and all.  He arrived in Mumbai safely, and hopefully he will be feeling back to normal tomorrow!

Thanks again for coming!!!!  :)