Kolkata – the city of joy, established during the expansion plans of British Raj, holds innumerable events making its culture and heritage rich. Today it’s a city with traditional soul, colonial architecture, cultural festivals, car honking and street food. It is known for its finesse artists, poets, writers, film producers and Nobel Prize winners. If your trip includes to visit finest metropolitan cities of India, do not forget to include the city situated on the banks of Hooghly with a spectacular Howrah bridge connecting the central Kolkata to the Howrah station.
Kolkata streets are vivid, hectic, chaotic and yet, brimming with life and creativity. City famous for its Rasogulla, Durga Pooja celebration, floating markets, kathi rolls, phuchka, Alu posto, Bhapadoi, Calcutta silk sarees and many more, attracts the people from all over the world to visit and enjoy the splendid cultural city of India. Kolkata is soaked in layers and layers of heritage and culture and peeling off each layer to look beneath the hood is very rewarding, once in a lifetime experience. As the famous quote goes, “If you want a city with a soul, come to Calcutta”
If someone wants to witness the city’s opulent past, stroll along the streets of North Kolkata, which holds some of the ancient mansions in the city, swathed with vines and everlasting Aristocratic pride. To appreciate the beauty of art, do not forget to pay visit to Rabindranath Tagore’s house converted to museum, where it cases a staggering collection of family portraits and paintings.
Kolkata is a great place for foodies who like to try and explore different delicacies. A visit to Kolkata food walk, will make a person to extend his vacation for a day to treat their taste buds. One can find the best and most mouth-watering street food at scandalously inexpensive prices. One can savour local Bengali food or try out local snacks such as Jhalmuri or Ghugni chaat.
The magnificent city accommodates a book market also known as College Street which is known to be the Asia’s largest book market, a shining testament of the reading culture of the people of Kolkata. Not only the fish in their diet which makes the people of the city wise, but also the reading habit imbibed in them.
When to Travel?
Kolkata is well connected to all the places. The Durga Pooja celebration attracts tourists all over the world to spectacle the festivity. The best time to visit the city would be September – March as the weather would be pleasant (respite from the humidity!). Kolkata has a very lively nightlife and the entire stretch along the Park Street houses plenty bars and pubs where one can party the night away.