It was December month when we visited this northeastern part of Bangladesh. Sylhet is beautiful in every season in its own way but rainy season is the best time to explore its beauty. As I am a private service holder, it is always difficult to get the leaves on my desired time so any time leave is better than nothing. This tour started from Chittagong by Volvo luxurious bus. We reached at Sylhet early in the morning after travelling 416 Km. It was a nice morning with 16 degree temp but we needed some rest badly so we immediately headed to our booked hotel. We took our breakfast and some rest then we moved to the Tamabil border. This is one of the many borders with India. There is a lake (can’t remember the name) connected with India. We hired a boat to ply over river for hours and then decided to take some adventures by going to Bichanakandi riding on motorcycle. It was a lifetime experience for us as we passed several fields, canals (as it was winter, water was very little), villages, bazars (markets) and lush green trees. The lovely cool air was mesmerizing. I will remember this journey long, long time.
Once we reached at Bichanakandi, there was little water flowing from the hills of Indian border. The border is so near that you can easily pass the border by walking a few feet. There is a market which sits every two days in a week when both Indian and Bangladeshi traders open their temporary shops and people all around Sylhet division and country tourist people came here to buy exclusive products of both countries. This is like a trade fair without much commercialization. It is a kind of get-together for both countries people as well. Though it was not the market day but we saw some shops still selling products. We bought a few bangles, body sprays. We took a shower in the cold water of the river. We took some photos and after passing a few good hours, we again rode over motorcycle to return back Tamabil where our car was waiting.
Next day we visited Lawachara Rain Forest, Srimangal which is a great asset for Bangladesh. Lovely big trees and lush green landscape are the key in there. There is a rail line going through the forest. This is the best area to take photos or selfies for the tourists. I came to know that Lawachara forest was seen in the Hollywood film “Around the world in 80 days”. The shadow of the trees, sun rays through leaves of the trees, lovely air, birds chirping are giving you a divine feeling. I felt so cool and calm that my all stress was gone within a minute. Then we visited some tea gardens that is the main theme of Sylhet as it is called the capital of tea. We took some memorable pictures in the tea gardens though it was restricted for general people but we took permission for it. We all knew that seven layers tea is found at Srimangal so we didn’t miss this opportunity. It was really a seven layers tea in every aspect and identifiable but I liked lemon tea the most.
Next day we went to Lalakhal which has unique canal which water color is blue. There is a restaurant which opens till 6pm local time. We took our lunch there and took a boat ride through the canal. The sightseeing was nice and enjoyed the lovely afternoon at there. We had a plan for Ratarkool but as it was winter, there was not much water to get the full beauty of that place besides we had a very limited time. So, we had to leave without exploring any more places at Sylhet but we will visit again to explore as many as possible places. Sylhet is not only famous for tea gardens but also for fishes. We tasted some fishes but we could taste more if it was rainy season.
Here I am sharing some pictures of Sylhet tour:
