A Calming Cocktail in Bangladesh

By Sandra Scott

Granted, Bangladesh is not high on many people’s list of places to visit. It was for that very reason that John and I decided to include it on our recent trip to Asia. It helped that Air Asia had reasonable tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Dhaka, the Bangladesh.

Fortunately we booked the Pan Pacific Sonargaon in Dhaka which included airport pickup. As luck would have it we arrived during the Moslem World Convocation which was held near the airport, so the normally crowded roads of Dhaka were in gridlock. The 30-minute ride to the hotel took three hours. When we arrived at the welcoming and beautiful Pan Pacific it was like arriving in heaven. The hotel is wonderful with great restaurants, a beautiful pool, and very friendly staff. Unlike most of our travels where the hotel is just a place to sleep and have breakfast we kicked back and enjoyed the hotel for several days.

Feeling a bit guilty about not seeing the sites we booked a city tour. However, the Dhaka traffic gives new meaning to heavy traffic even on a normal workday. There are many cars along with bike-driven rickshaws, motorcycle cabs suitable for two passengers, motor bikes, and trucks. It all made visiting the historic sites in the city difficult, so the next day we decided to head out of the city for a river trip. Once we left the city the traffic was normal and there were many interesting things to see along the way. We arrived at the river bank of the Meghna River, which originates in the Himalayas. We boarded a traditional wooden boat and began our day trip. Bangladesh is a country of rivers so rivers are best way to transport goods and people

Our river trip was lovely and relaxing. Joining us was our guide, Catherine, along with Ferdous, the owner of the travel agency, and his wife and baby. We stopped at a fishing village on a large sand island in the river where we were welcomed graciously and given a village tour. There are very few tourists in Bangladesh so we attracted a great deal of attention. Many local people asked if they could take our picture, especially with their children.

On the way back to Dhaka we stopped at Sonargaon, the ancient capital of Isa Khan’s kingdom in Bengal. Given that Sonargaon is part of the Pan Pacific’s, name it seemed appropriate. We toured what once must have been an incredible palace on the small lake. A new museum had some interesting artifacts from the era. Arriving back into Dhaka it was rush hour—really there was no rushing; it is inch along and wait. Once again the Pan Pacific became our oasis of calm and serenity.

After a refreshing dip in the pool we headed to the Balcony Bar for a pre-dinner cocktail. Given that one of the cocktails is called Sonargaon, John requested, “Assalamu alaikum, Sayeed, we have had a long day and are so happy to be back at the Pan Pacific. We would like to celebrate with two Sonargaon Glory Cocktails.” Sayeed quickly mixed the Campari, Sweet Vermouth and soda water and served. Aaaah, John and I agreed that Bangladesh is interesting but at the end of the day returning to the spiffy, calm Pan Pacific for one of their cocktails was especially wonderful.

Visit www.panpacific.com

Sandra Scott is a frequent contributor to travel publications and to Creators Syndicate
and has co-authored two books on local history. She lives in Mexico, NY.

Photos by J. J. Scott.

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