Bangladesh is tagged as a “moderate” Muslim country, but how long can it hold this image? Even today the country witnessed rampages by Muslim fundamentalists in Dhaka. Anyone with a minimal IQ and sense of humour will laugh at the cartoon published on 17th September issue of Prothom Alo’s supplement magazine Alpin, but the twisted minded fundamentalists has turned it upside down.
The cartoon depicts a conversation between a little boy with a cat on his lap and an elderly cleric:

Elderly cleric:  Hey kid, what’s your name?
Little boy:  My name is Babu
Elderly cleric:  You’re supposed to say Mohammad before a name. What’s your father’s name?
Little boy:  Mohammad Abu
Elderly cleric:  So what’s that on your lap?
Little boy:  Mohammad cat

The cleric teaches the boy to use “Mohammad” before a name and like any kid he follows it and says “Mohammad” before saying “cat”. Anyone will laugh at the mistake the boy makes, but …

Timeline: July 18 – July 19, 2006
Public transportation service from Khulna to Bagerhat is extremely poor. These two districts are only 30 kilometers apart, though the bus takes almost an hour to reach. Rupsha river separates the districts, and the newly built 1.4 kilometer bridge stands high. Yes, it’s named after Khan Jahan Ali as well.

I stayed overnight at Khan Jahania Gono Bidyalaya, which is less than a kilometer away from the famous Shat Gombuj or the “Sixty Dome” Mosque. Contrarary to it’s name, the Mosque doesn’t have sixty domes, but a total of eighty one. Seventy seven domes are over the roof and four domes are on four corners. There are sixty pillars supporting the mosque, and that’s how it got it’s name. Built in 1459 entirely with stones and red burn mud, the mosque measures 160′ x 108′ and the interior is beautifully decorated with terra cotta.
Bagerhat Museum …

Timeline: Jan 15 – Jan 19
I reached the port city on Sunday evening, on the very comfy Shohag Volvo Bus. I stayed at Asian SR Hotel this time, and I’m extremely happy about their service. It’s very apparent that the hotel authority has taken extra special care in training the staff. The room was great, so was the food! The hotel has a bar as well, and I tried out some Chinese liquor!
I’ll skip the reason why I went there, since it will only bore you. Instead, I’ll leave you with a few impressions and observations I had about the city of Chittagong.

- With so many small and not-so-small hills around, the natural scenery of the city is a truly magnificent. It’s an old city, and the buildings and the oak trees bearing the sign of it. One of the attractions of the city is Patenga sea beach, which is …