Chittagong

Understand

300px|thumb|City Gate 300px|thumb|Shah Amanat Bridge over Karnaphuli River thumb|250px|Patenga sea beach thumb|250px|Karnaphuli River at night with a view of Chittagong Port

Chittagong is one of the great port cities of Asia. It flourished on the Maritime Silk Road and was the eastern terminus of the Grand Trunk Road. It was visited by famous medieval explorers like the Venetians Niccolo de Conti and Caeser Frederick; the Arab traveller Ibn Battuta; and the Chinese admiral Zheng He. The Portuguese, Mughals and British controlled the port in successive periods until the 20th century. It became a major financial centre and the largest port in modern-day Bangladesh after the Partition of British India.

Today, Chittagong is a fairly large metropolitan area with a population of about 6.5 million. As in Dhaka, its streets are filled with masses of rickshaws. Rolling hills and greenery dot the landscape. The Karnaphuli River is a burgeoning hub of shipping. Chittagong puts in a little more effort than other Bangladeshi cities to keep its streets and sidewalks clean. The city's residents are called Chittagonians. Foreigners will notice a distinct increase in nuisance from beggars in certain intersections, like the Central Railway Station. Beggars come from different parts of Bangladesh because Chittagonians are more prone to charity than people in other parts of the country.

The old quarter of the city is home to several historic mosques and Sufi shrines. The Anderkilla Imperial J…

Get around

thumb|300px|Auto rickshaw (aka tempoo)

Getting around in Chittagong is always an adventure. Traffic is, by and large, horribly congested and many drivers will think nothing of quoting ten times the going price to a tourist. Agree on prices before setting off. Transport in Chittagong is similar to that of the country's capital Dhaka. There are various bus systems with different routes, taxis, and smaller 'CNG' taxis which are basically tricycle-structured motor vehicles. Also, traditional manual rickshaws are very common.

See

thumb|Asiatic lion, Chittagong Zoo thumb|Chandanpura Nachghar thumb|Cheragi Pahar thumb|Chittagong Court Building thumb|CRB thumb|Kalurghat Bridge thumb|Masjid-e-Siraj ud-Daulah thumb|Shah Amanat Bridge thumb|Swadhinata Stambha, Biplobi Uddyan thumb|Fountain, Jamboree Park thumb|Shadhinata Complex Revolving Tower thumb|Anandabazar Beach thumb|Foy's Lake thumb|Chittagong Circuit House thumb|Ethnological Museum thumb|War Cemetery thumb|Sculpture of Bengal tiger thumb|Rupali Guitar

Do

There are a few amusement parks and public parks in Chittagong:

Eat

The people of Chittagong love oily and spicy food. This can be a problem for foreigners and lead to upset stomachs. If you are a foreigner you should consider sticking with better restaurants and eating in large hotels. Never eat green salad which comes with your meal as you will not know if it has been washed in sanitized water. Just a handful of restaurants in town use sanitized water to wash salad and this is a recipe for explosive diarrhea.

One oddity in Bangladesh is that restaurants advertise themselves as, for example, "Zaman Hotel and Restaurant" but do not operate a hotel. Where you eat at one of these establishments you can tease them by demanding a room. One-room stores also have signboards advertising themselves as 'department stores'.

Go next

Chittagong is a great base for exploring the famous hill districts.

Chittagong Hill Tracts - Bandarban - a hill district two hours by bus Rangamati - a popular town in the Chittagong Hill Tracts Cox's Bazar - The country's premier beach resort, about 3 hours south by bus. Teknaf St. Martin's Island - an island in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal. Comilla - World War Cemetery, Kotbari Baddha Bihar, BIRD, Salban Bihar