Bangladesh
Links to Bangladesh Embassies and Consulates
Fast Facts
Coutntry Full name: |
Weights & Measures: Metric |
| Population: 147,365,352 |
Country Dialing Code: +880 |
| Languages Spoken: Official - Bengali |
Time Zones: GMT/UTC +6 |
Electric Plugs:   220V 50Hz |
Currency: Name: Bangladeshi Taka Code: BDT Symbol:Tk |
Exchange rate:
Weather
The best time to visit Bangladesh is in the cold season, from October to February, when the weather is dry and fresh. Avoid April when humidity and heat gang up to make conditions intolerable.
The climate of Bangladesh is subtropical and tropical with days still averaging 25°C (77°F) in January, 35°C (95°F) in April and lingering around the 30°C (86°F) mark for most of the year. Bangladesh has three main seasons: the monsoonal or 'wet' season from late May to early October; the 'cold' season from mid-October to the end of February; and the 'hot' season (known in Bangladesh as the 'little rainy season') from mid-March to mid-May. There is also a 'cyclone season' - May to June and October to November. Despite the fact that these are the only observable seasons, locals commonly refer to six: Basanto (spring), Grishma (summer), Barsha (rainy), Sharat (autumn), Hemanto (misty) and Sheet (winter).
Money & Cost
Bangladesh is a very cheap country to travel if you're prepared to travel on a budget; in fact there's often no choice but to get by on budget food, accommodation and travel. It's possible to average US$4 a day if you go 2nd class on trains, travel on local buses, stay in the cheapest of hotels with shared bathroom and no air-con and eat at the very cheapest restaurants. If you want to escape nerve-shattering buses and reduce your risk of stomach bugs, US$10-15 a day will get you a decent hotel room with its own bathroom, a couple of good meals a day and first-class train travel. If you want to spend big, it's possible, but there isn't a huge range of top-end accommodation or restaurants outside Dhaka.
Cash and travellers cheques in US dollars are preferred by banks to British pounds. Outside Dhaka and Chittagong you'll have problems changing pounds. Credit cards are widely accepted at hotels, guesthouses and restaurants in Dhaka and Chittagong, but virtually nowhere else. Amex users can get a cash advance with their card.
A tip, or baksheesh , seems to be demanded in almost every exchange, and is an essential part of the Islamic social order of being compassionate to those less fortunate than oneself. In restaurants, Bangladeshis almost never tip, but waiters may expect a 5% tip in Dhaka restaurants, especially those frequented by foreigners. Most transactions require bargaining, which is considered a normal part of life in Bangladesh. A rule of thumb is to offer about half the original price and work up. It's worth remembering that a few extra taka are likely to help your bargaining adversary more than they'll hurt you.
Currency
Name: Bangladeshi Taka
Symbol: Tk
Average Room Prices |
|||
Low |
Mid |
High |
Deluxe |
Tk60-300 |
Tk300-600 |
Tk600-6000 |
Tk6000+ |
Average Meal Prices |
|||
Low |
Mid |
High |
Deluxe |
Tk30-120 |
Tk120-300 |
Tk300-700 |
Tk700+ |
Getting there and around
Getting There
Although Dhaka International Airport is far from being a major Asian crossroads, there are plenty of international flights. Indeed, many travellers use Dhaka as the gateway to the Indian subcontinent to take advantage of cheap fares from Europe. Bangkok and Kolkata are the main destinations for flights in and out of Bangladesh.
The situation with overland crossings to/from India is vague. The main crossings are at Benapole-Haridispur (on the Kolkata route) and Tamabil-Dawki (on the Shillong route). If officials tell you that you cannot cross elsewhere, be sceptical, insistent but polite, since travellers have been crossing in small numbers at Hili-Balurghat, Godagari-Lalgola and several other border crossings.
Overland routes between the subcontinent and Myanmar have been closed since the early 1950s. Even if the border was to be opened in the future, it's likely that all the formerly navigable roads across the frontier have long since been devoured by the jungle. The Myanmar army has also planted landmines along the border.
A change of route permit is required for travellers who entered Bangladesh by air but leave by land.
Getting Around
Internal transport in Bangladesh is cheap. The rule is: if you want a seat, get there early and be assertive and be patient. Biman and GMG have flights radiating from Dhaka to cities, including Chittagong and Cox's Bazar. Flights are cheap but are still more than three times 1st-class train fares.
Bangladesh has a fairly extensive system of passable roads but they are crammed with buses. Bus drivers in Bangladesh are among the world's most reckless, as evidenced by the incredible number of bus accidents occurring every day. Trains are a lot easier on the nerves, knees and backside, and those plying the major routes are actually quite good, at least in 1st class. However, travelling by rail between Dhaka and points west is quite complicated for three reasons: unbridged rivers requiring crossing by ferry, circuitous routing, and differing gauges between the east and west sections of the country.
The distinguishing feature of internal travel in Bangladesh is the presence of a well-developed and well-used system of water transport, though travelling by boat is slow. A trip to Bangladesh which does not include taking a trip down a river is like going to the Alps and not skiing or hiking. The famous (though slightly accident-prone) 'Rocket' paddlewheel steamer runs from Dhaka to Khulna four times a week, but there are plenty of other fascinating ferries to catch.
Self-drive cars are not available in Bangladesh. It is, however, inexpensive to hire chauffeur-driven cars in major cities. In cities you'll find rickshaws and auto-rickshaws, which are inexpensive once the compulsory bargaining process is completed.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Medieval European geographers located paradise at the mouth of the Ganges and although this was overhopeful, Bengal was probably the wealthiest part of the subcontinent up until the 16th century. The area's early history featured a succession of Indian empires, internal squabbling, and a tussle between Hinduism and Buddhism for dominance. All of this was just a prelude to the unstoppable tide of Islam which washed over northern India at the end of the 12th century. Mohammed Bakhtiar, from Turkistan, captured Bengal in 1199 with only 20 men thanks to an unexplained 'bold and clever strategy'.
Under the Moghul viceroys, art and literature flourished, overland trade expanded and Bengal was opened to world maritime trade - the latter marking the death knell of Moghul power as Europeans began to establish themselves in the region. The Portuguese arrived as early as the 15th century but were ousted in 1633 by local opposition. The East India Company negotiated terms to establish a fortified trading post in Kolkata in 1690. The decline of Moghul power led to greater provincial autonomy, heralding the rise of the independent dynasty of the nawabs of Bengal. Humble East India Company clerk Robert Clive ended up effectively ruling Bengal when one of the impetuous nawabs attacked the thriving British enclave in Kolkata and stuffed those unlucky enough not to escape in an underground cellar. Clive retook Kolkata a year later and the British Government replaced the East India Company following the Indian Mutiny in 1857.
The Brits established an organisational and social structure unparalleled in Bengal, and Kolkata became one of the most important centres for commerce, education and culture in the subcontinent. However, many Bangladeshi historians blame the Brits' dictatorial agricultural policies and promotion of the semi-feudal zamindar system for draining the region of its wealth and damaging its social fabric. The British presence was a relief to the minority Hindus but a catastrophe for the Muslims. The Hindus cooperated with the Brits, entering British educational institutions and studying the English language, but the Muslims refused to cooperate, and rioted whenever crops failed or another local product was rendered unprofitable by government policy.
Modern History
At the close of WWII it was clear that Indian independence was inevitable. It was attained in 1947 but the struggle was bitter and divisive, especially in Bengal where the fight for self-government was complicated by internal religious conflict. The British, realising any agreement between the Muslims and Hindus was impossible, decided to partition the subcontinent, but Bengal and Punjab, the two overwhelmingly Muslim regions, lay on opposite sides of India. The situation was complicated in Bengal where the major cash crop, jute, was produced in the Muslim-dominated east, but processed and shipped from the Hindu-dominated city of Kolkata in the west.
East Bengal became the runt state of East Pakistan. It was administered unfavourably from West Pakistan, with which it shared few similarities apart from the Muslim faith. Inequalities between the two regions soon stirred up a sense of Bengali nationalism that had not been reckoned with during the push for Muslim independence. When the Pakistan government declared that 'Urdu and only Urdu' would be the national language, the Bangla-speaking Bengalis decided it was time to assert themselves. The language issue quickly became a self-government issue, while Pakistan's response to the devastating cyclone of 1970 was seen as ungenerous and added to nationalist feelings. When the Awami League, a nationalist party, won a majority in the 1971 national elections, the president of Pakistan, faced with this unacceptable result, postponed opening the National Assembly. Riots and strikes broke out in East Pakistan, the independent state of Bangladesh was unilaterally announced, and Pakistan sent troops to quell the rebellion.
The ensuing war was one of the shortest and bloodiest of modern times, with the Pakistan army occupying all major towns, using napalm against villages, and slaughtering and raping villagers. Bangladeshis refer to Pakistan's brutal tactics as attempted genocide. Border clashes between Pakistan and India increased as Indian-trained Bangladeshi guerrillas crossed the border. When the Pakistani air force made a pre-emptive attack on Indian forces, open warfare ensued. Indian troops crossed the border and the Pakistani army found itself being attacked from the east by the Indian army, the north and east by guerrillas and from all quarters by the civilian population. In 11 days it was all over and Bangladesh, the world's 139th country, officially came into existence. Sheikh Mujib, one of the founders of the Awami League, became the country's first prime minister in January 1972; he was assassinated in 1975 during a period of crisis.
The ruined and decimated new country experienced famine in 1973-74, followed by martial law, successive military coups and political assassinations. In 1979 Bangladesh began a short-lived experiment with democracy led by the overwhelmingly popular President Zia, who established good relationships with the West and the oil-rich Islamic countries. His assassination in 1981 ultimately returned the country to a military government that periodically made vague announcements that elections would be held 'soon'. While these announcements were rapturously greeted by the local press as proof that Bangladesh was indeed a democracy, nothing came of them until 1991. That year the military dictator General Ershad was forced to resign by an unprecedented popular movement led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Awami League.
In 1991 democracy was re-established and Begum Khaleda Zia became prime minister. The economy ticked along at a healthy growth rate, and ties with the West were strengthened. By 1994, however, many Bangladeshis had become disenchanted with the Zia government. Some promised reforms hadn't materialised, police violence was on the rise, lawlessness was still a problem and corruption remained endemic. The opposition called for mass general strikes.
A 1996 general election was widely boycotted and the legitimacy of the return of the Zia government was suspect. On 30 March Zia stood down under pressure and elections, generally seen as free and fair, were won by Sheikh Hasina Wazed of the Awami League.
Recent History
The wheel turned in October 2001, when the Bangladesh Nationalist Party won the parliamentary elections and Zia was sworn in as prime minister. The government in the last few years has pushed through some social reforms aimed at improving the lives of women, such as making acid attacks punishable by death.
A series of bombings of political and religious gatherings continues to puzzle authorities. Although the major parties blame each other, extremist Islamic groups may also be a factor.
Source: www.lonelyplanet.com
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