Snapshots – Calcutta downtown

The first time I went to India was in 1991, arriving in Kolkata – then still Calcutta –  from Bangkok. My friend and I said we’d never come back again to India – we were so shocked, even with South-East Asia and China behind us. Yet, a year later I was back, and then again in 2001. Most of the photos here were taken on the last trip, except the one of the beggar who buries his head in the foot path. That was taken in 1991, in front of the Indian Museum. The other images are also from the area (Chowringee, New Market and Sudder street) with the exception of the last one at the train station. Beggars were absent on my last trip; they were pushed out of the city center, although surely didn’t vanish. I wonder how much the city has changed in the last ten years. Massive and run down, I still love it – as much as any other Indian city, it has its own special flavor and vibe.

See also: Kolkata attractions pictures & videos

Busy Calcutta road

Semi-trailer double-decker bus in Calcutta

Street scene with tram

Calcutta street scene

Taxi

Street scene with rickshaw

Resting rickshaw puller

Little street

Little street

Street vendor

Boy taking back sheep from grazing in the park

Beggar with head in pavement

Marx and Engels

Lenin lives in Calcutta

Train station – holy men and kid

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