Pottery Village and Dhamrai Day Trip outside Dhaka

The sunny Ullahs packed up in the micro-bus for a trip to Dhamrai and a pottery village outside Dhaka . The aunts seemed to remember the landmarks, hospitals and research centers on the way to the National Monument, while the younger generation yearned every bridge we drove on to have some significance and a meaningful story.

After longhorn styled pictures at the National Monument (6 long horns in all including some of the Experience Bangladesh crew), we took a boat ride through a river with mustard fields on either side to get us to the pottery village. The wooden boat sped through the waters while the Ullahs bathed themselves with sunblock, lotion, popped mints, clicked their half a dozen Nikon cameras, snacked on granola bars that they shared with everyone on the boat, reminisced their childhood and compared the changes in Bangladesh from a decade before. The sisters chit-chatted and smiled at their children and grand children. New memories were being made…

After a short walk into the pottery Village, we found ourselves at Anondo’s house. He, his dear wife and daughter put the Ullah’s to work, showing them how to spin the wheel and shape the soft mud. They all took turns “supposedly” creating pots and vases while throwing mud at each other!

We all ate lunch with Sukanto at his charming mansion and heard epic tales of the Gods and Goddesses. The brass sculptors depicted endless sensual fantasies from the world of the Mahabharata and the Vedas while sipping lemon Kaffir tea.