~story by Mikey Leung~

At the Guide Tours’ Hillside Resort, you awake to a stunning view of hills poking out from the clouds. See more photos of Bandarban here.

It’s absolutely outrageous to say this, but be prepared to be followed by the police where ever you go while visiting one of Bangladesh’s most attractive destinations, second only to the Sundarbans.

It happened to a group of us last week (all foreign tourists). Before we even knew it, we were being followed by three uniformed police officers carrying aging rifles. They were not aggressive or overbearing, in fact they were usually quite kind and curious like all Bangladeshis are, and they were simply doing their job. Nonetheless, we didn’t formally request their presence, but we got it whether we wanted it or not. It did sour our experience of Bandarban—I felt bad mostly for my group.

The bottom line:

We do not want to scare anyone with this article, as Bandarban is one of Bangladesh’s must-see destinations. We simply want intrepid travellers to be prepared for what they will encounter.

Show me more… »

Tags: Bandarban,Bangladesh,Chittagong Hill Tracts,Responsible Travel,security advice
Categories: Chittagong Hill Tracts, Destinations, FAQ
1 Comment »

~story and photo by Belinda Meggitt~

Originally published in the New Age, Feb. 13, 2008. More photos available here.

For a country that blossoms with national pride, the majority of Bangladeshis fail to respect the country’s natural wonders.

St Martin’s Island, where once thousands of migratory birds sought refuge, turtles laid eggs and coral grew, now bustles with migratory tourists and growing piles of plastic. Economic development drives tourism, but what tourists and hotel owners fail to acknowledge is their impact. The gold rush of tourism to St Martin’s Island will be short-lived unless changes are made immediately.

Only a few years ago, the island was an ecological refuge. ‘It was the best place for turtle nesting and even schoolchildren protected the nests,’ recalls Elisabeth Mansur, Chief Executive Officer of Guide Tours. ‘The biodiversity was truly amazing.’

Tourists were still able to visit, but it was a form of adventure tourism. The rocky journey – via a country boat crammed with the islands supplies – limited the number of tourists, as did the one beach hut. But the tourists that came were rewarded by natural beauty, an experience that didn’t resemble a Thai beach Mecca. Now, four large vessels ply the crossing daily during high season. Most tourists stay anywhere from three hours to a little over 24. It’s not hard to imagine why the island is disappearing in a state of disrepair.

Mansur says eco-tourism was discussed at length before the hotel explosion in 2005. There was a plan to maintain St Martin’s biodiversity.

‘Private industry sat for many months making a good development plan of how soft-ecotourism and responsible travel could develop,’ says Mansur. ‘But that’s when the government went ahead and opened the land rights for people from the mainland.’

Show me more… »

Tags: Bangladesh,Responsible Travel,St. Martin's Island,Tourism,Travel
Categories: Destinations, Editorials
No Comments »

While the beach at Cox’s Bazaar becomes more and more crowded with people this tourist season, very few know visitors know that there is a refugee camp not far from Bangladesh’s much-heralded beach paradise.

And the people at this camp need help. World Food Programme Volunteer Lindy Hogan writes:

As most of you know, I work with Burmese refugees who are living in
two camps near the Bangladesh-Burma border (approx 27,000 refugees). Recently a library has been established in each camp but the problem is that they hardly have any books in them!

So I’m writing to request for book donations. Any type of material would be useful - kids books, novels, educational materials, textbooks, magazines etc - so long as it is culturally appropriate.

English or Bengali, new or second hand is fine.

Thought I’d get this out as I know a few of you are coming down this way in the next couple of months - so you can leave books with me then.

Thanks for your help on this everyone.

Cheers,
Lindy

VIDA Volunteer
World Food Programme
Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

To contact Lindy, please write to her by e-mail letting her know of your visit: lindymay [AT] gmail.com.

Tags: Bangladesh,Burma,Cox's Bazaar,Myanmar,Refugee Camps,Responsible Travel
Categories: Destinations, Responsible Travel
No Comments »

~story by Mikey Leung~

Are you down with a terrible case of the “Chitta Shittas?” Then you might want to consider a visit to the new ICDDRB Travellers’ Clinic.

The ground reality is that only the hardiest of tummies manage to escape Bangladesh without experiencing a bout of travellers’ diarrheoa, and for those who live in Bangladesh for long periods, it is a right of passage.

Prevention is of course the best medicine. Try to choose food that is hot and fresh, and never feel ashamed to ask restaurant waiters to re-heat food. Choose well-frequented restaurants by eating at regular meal times (people in Bangladesh tend to take lunch between 1 and 2pm, and dinner from 8 to 10pm). If a restaurant looks busy, you can bet that they’re turning over food quickly, which is always a good sign. Best of all, in Bangladesh you will receive frequent invitations to join for dinner at people’s homes—take advantage of this hospitality and enjoy home-cooked meals which is typically the best food you can eat in Bangladesh.

Nonetheless, travellers should expect to experience some digestive discomfort upon arrival. This could be due to any number of reasons: a change in diet could cause it, as well as exposure to a whole new set of bacteria that your digestive system may not be accustomed to. Some expatriates have complained of persistent digestive problems, resolved only by a hydration, a steady diet and inclusion of more raw ingredients than is typically served at a Bangladeshi meal.

And when you get the bug that just won’t go away, head to the clinic and take their advice.

The clinic also offers a range of other non-poo related services like blood testing, kidney testing, travel vaccinations, cervical smears (ladies, there are expatriate doctors here) and a whole bunch of other stuff that should address all the weird and wonderful tropical diseases you manage to acquire while living in Bangladesh.

The cost is extremely reasonable: US$15 per consultation ($50 for insured people).

If you need to come just ask for “the cholera hospital” to any CNG or taxi driver. ICDDR,B stands for the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh. Suffice to say that these guys know their shit.

The clinic’s brochure is available at this link. (PDF, 200 KB).

Tags: Bangladesh,Health,hospitals,ICDDRB,Travellers Clinic
Categories: Health, Travel
No Comments »

~story by Mikey Leung~

After reading Kirsty’s recent post about her upcoming visit to Bangladesh, there is one thing that most flashpackers like herself don’t know about this “underdeveloped” nation.

Bangladesh has one of the best internet connectivity services I’ve experienced in the entire world. Although there are mixed reviews on that subject.

From my point of view, it is absolutely amazing that, using an EDGE-enabled mobile phone, one can have wireless broadband connectivity almost everywhere in Bangladesh (except for the Chittagong Hill Tracts, where people use antennas to get mobile signal for voice communications. Often it is not strong enough for data service). EDGE is the successor of GPRS, an older, slower technology for packet data transfer.

Here’s what you need:

• EDGE-enabled mobile phone (our suggestion is the Nokia 6110 for 6,500Tk or about $100 USD). You can check Grameen’s list of phones here, or browse your mobile phone vendor’s site for more information.
• Some way to connect the phone to the computer. If you own a Mac, Bluetooth works alright although there are sometimes modem errors (see this article for more information). Otherwise a PC can be connected with a USB cable, and if you use a Nokia mobile, use the PC Suite application to control the phone’s internet mobile connection.
• Grameen Post-paid SIM card. Head to a Grameenphone customer service center and bring a copy of your passport plus two passport pictures. Make sure they activate the EDGE service on the SIM card. The best part is the cost: Tk1,150 per month for unlimited browsing ($15 USD per month).

If you’re not the most technically inclined person, it is best to bring your computer to the Grameenphone customer service center along with your mobile phone. They should be able to help you to complete the connection and get you online.

There are other services available in Bangladesh, but only Grameen offers unlimited bandwidth service, so it gets our vote because we are data-hungry people!

Hands-On Disaster Response provides an even more comprehensive guide at this link (PDF, 48KB). Cheers for putting that together, HODR!!

Tags: Bangladesh,EDGE service,Grameen Phone,Internet,technology,wireless
Categories: FAQ
1 Comment »

This text originally written by Voluntary Service Overseas volunteer Heidi Eisenhauer for other volunteers. But of course it has some handy hints for those planning a long-term visits to the country.

* self powered flashlight (magnetic or pump)
* head lamp
* travelers wet/dry pants are a good idea
* men wear short sleeve shirts, pants and dress shoes to work
* foreign women may wear what they wish but a mixture of western / kameez and orna is standard
* Flip flops / open toe shoes are essential!! They are sold here but vary in quality
* hand sanitizer
* water bottle / Nalgene bottle
* Gatorade
* Good knives for cooking (if you like to cook the quality of knives in Bangladesh is questionable)
* A laptop if you have one, for watching movies - which cost about 80-100 taka ($1.10 USD)
* Good rechargeable batteries and a charger! The crappy batteries sold here don’t seem to last (most multiplugs are international)
* bring a nice squishy pillow unless you like slabs of rock..
* a backpack

FYI:
1. Almost everything is available here..
2. Some foreign things like coffee are very rare (you may want to bring a bodem).
3. Bring an unlocked phone that takes sim cards if you have one.. if not they average 3,000-20,000 taka $40-$200 here, and a regular sim costs 300 taka.
4. My beds have been 1′ mattresses on wood.. so I was happy to have my yoga mat.. would have been happier with my thermarest.. I bought a foam mattress for 3000 taka when I got settled, and thick stuffed mattresses are about 1,000 taka.
6. you may bring 23kg per bag.. and this will not be a problem for staff picking you up..

Do you have anything else you would suggest visitors bring to Bangladesh? Please give us your input..

Tags: Bangladesh,getting ready,helpful hints,packing list
Categories: FAQ
7 Comments »

Hasan Mansur, on right, at the September 2007 Bangladesh Travel and Tourism Fair. Click the photo to see more images from the fair.

Hasan Mansur likes to think of his work as “seeding fertile ground.”

The former agriculturalist was studying in the United States when he met a Swedish gentlemen who, at first, employed him as an impromptu tour operator and fixer.

Mansur would later become the father of Bangladesh’s embryonic tourist industry, after that same Swede employed him around South Asia and gave him all the background and experienced he needed to set up Guide Tours in 1989. Today he is the president of the Tourism Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB). He has now stepped back from the day-to-day operations of Guide Tours and is working for the development of the industry and its operators with TOAB.

“It was April 1989,” says Mansur, of the founding of his company. “I thought, let me plant a small tree and if it becomes big, it will provide shade, many people can come around and take shelter.”

Several years later, that tree is still growing and Bangladesh’s domestic tourism industry is now growing steadily.

“I have proven that it is possible to have a tourism business and survive in Bangladesh,” says Mansur.

Today, we bring you a two-part interview with Mansur. First, we get his perspective on how on how the industry needs the government’s help in creating a fruitful tourism market in Bangladesh. Second, we hear the back story of Mansur himself and how he got his start as a tourism operator in Bangladesh.

 

 The Potential of Tourism in Bangladesh [11:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (217)

 

 Hasan Mansur - the back story [7:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (211)

Please note: If you are located in Bangladesh you may have problems hearing this podcast due to limited bandwidth availability. Please download it first as the player will stop when it reaches the end of the data it has downloaded so far.

Tags: Bangladesh,Hasan Mansur,TOAB,Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh,Tourism,Tourism for Development
Categories: Interviews
No Comments »