Bangladesh, and its capital Dhaka

Much of the land of Bangladesh lies on the delta of the rivers that flow down from the Himalayas. The southeast part of the country is the only part that is hilly; the rest is flat. Natural gas and coal are some of the country’s underground resources. The country is spacious and land quite fertile.

Bangladesh, which lies on the Bay of Bengal, has a tropical climate with a mild winter between October and March. The weather becomes very hot and humid between March and June. Between the months of June and October, heavy rains known as monsoons begin, drenching the country and leaving much of the land underwater. Actually, some say Bangladesh experiences a total of six different seasons a year: storm season, rainy season, dusty season and so on. And, of course, the rainy season greatly affects the country as much of the nation lies below sea level. Bangladesh has approximately 580 kilometers of coastline.

Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world.

Though enormous steps have been taken in recent years in both the textile and the construction sectors, the annual per capita income is still only $300, and a full 45 percent of Bangladeshis reportedly live below the poverty line.

Bengali: spoken by 230 million

Commuters on the Buriganga River

The people of Bangladesh call their language “Bangla,” also known as “Bengali.” It is spoken by around 230 million people if you include the Bengali speakers living in the western reaches of India. In fact, Bengali is one of the world’s most widely spoken languages. The alphabet used to write this language is quite different from the Latin alphabet; it is an alphasyllabary alphabet. 

[QUICK FACTS] Capital: Dhaka Official language: Bangla (also known as Bengali) Government: Parliamentary democracy President: Zillur Rahman Area: 143,998 square kilometers Population: 156,050,883* Gross domestic product (PPP) $226.4 billion** Main religions: Muslim (83 percent), Hindu (16 percent) *July 2009 estimate **2008 estimate

Some estimate that around 10 million Bengali people currently live outside of Bangladesh. Of these, around 1 million reside in England, and many also live in the US and Canada. There are around 500,000 to 600,000 Bengalis living and working in the Gulf states. The reason so many Bengalis live abroad is because of their drive to earn more money.

Bangladesh has six regions and 64 provinces. The most important cities, following the capital Dhaka, are Chittagong, Silet, Khulna, Rajshahi and Barisal. As for Dhaka, it is a city of contrasts. The poor and the rich live side by side, and you can see modern apartment buildings rising into the sky not far from tin metal shacks.

The influence of the monsoon rains on Bangladesh must not be overlooked; in a plane, what appear to be rivers on land are actually water sources that have collected. When the monsoon season begins, the water level rises even higher. This means that much of Bangladeshi soil is underwater.

A difficult capital to trek

A Bengali girl in folkloric clothing

In Dhaka, there is a foggy, misty atmosphere, making it difficult to make out things in the distance. The lakes of water that has accumulated tend to make life most difficult for the people who live in shacks. Some can only reach their homes by wooden boat. One of the largest poor parts of Dhaka, “Koralbosti,” has a population of about 4,000 people. Around 16 percent of the Dhaka’s population lives in tin metal shacks such as these.

But not far from the shacks are some single-family homes that are actually quite modern. As mentioned before, Dhaka is a city of contrasts, a fast-growing city. The construction sector is very active in Dhaka, though there are no Turkish construction efforts in the city.

The sheer number of rickshaws filling the streets is incredible; it seems as though everyone who couldn’t find another job decided to drive a rickshaw for a living! There are sometimes three, at times four, passengers in these vehicles, which are basically tricycles with a seat. The drivers’ work is difficult; they make only around 50 cents for even the longest of distances. Normally though, people who ride the rickshaws only have to go short distances. In Dhaka alone, there are 300,000 registered rickshaws and another 700,000 that are thought to be unregistered. One of the results of so many rickshaws is that they sometimes manage to bring traffic to a standstill. But, of course, the rickshaw sector actually employs many, including the drivers, the rickshaw producers, the rickshaw repairmen and the owners of the vehicles. Some authorities wish they could eliminate rickshaws from cities, but at the same time, they don’t dare since Bangladesh is already so poor.

One more interesting note about rickshaws is that rickshaw drivers often wear a kind of skirt called a “lungi,” which helps them pedal more easily.

Another vehicle that fills the streets is the special Bangladeshi inner city bus, which is made by hand and has a good motor. These buses are everywhere, though it appears that each one has been in accidents and repaired many times.

A heaven for fish lovers

The giant wholesale and retail fish market that is set up every day in Dhaka sells lots and lots of fish, both freshwater and saltwater, but is completely empty by around 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., as almost everything is sold by then. The ocean fish are brought to inland Dhaka by train every day, and this market is incredibly packed with people and actually quite difficult to walk around in.

The sheer variety of fish available here is breathtaking, from the very smallest to the largest, with some still jumping around.

We notice some train tracks cutting through the center of Dhaka but see that they are covered with people. We learn that it is only when a train comes that people clear out of the way, though the tracks fill right back up -- with vendors, people cooking things, people carrying items on their heads and some who just sit and wait -- after the train has passed again. Crowds are everywhere; we see a barber doing his work out in the open and then someone with a megaphone trying to collect money for a Muslim organization. One of the notable things here though is that despite the rampant poverty, people have smiles on their faces!

There are lots and lots of brick factories around where handmade bricks are made. The first step in making these bricks is to mix a special mud. Then one must shape the bricks and then let them dry. The people who work as brick makers could probably do this work with their eyes shut; they appear to be so knowledgeable about what they are doing! After all, the production of thousands and thousands of bricks results in hand dexterity and speed that is unmatchable. Interestingly, sand is sprinkled between the brick molds to ensure that they don’t stick together, and when the bricks emerge from their molds, they carry the stamp bearing the name of the company responsible for their production. Also it is interesting to note that rickshaws play an important role in these Bangladeshi brick factories, carrying defective bricks back to the beginning where they are reformed. The factories seem to work nonstop producing these bricks, and smoke stacks are everywhere as a result. This is because the construction sector is so lively right now in Bangladesh, and there is a constant need for bricks. There are no modern brick factories in the country, and we didn’t see a single example of bricks with holes like those used in Turkey.

It is surprising to learn that Turkey has never made a significant showing at any of the trade fairs held in Bangladesh. But then again, the trade volume between Turkey and Bangladesh is not at the level desired by either country. Fikret Çiçek is the head of the Turkey-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry and has been living in Bangladesh for around nine years. He says this nation should be quite attractive for investors. He notes that more Turkish investors should come to Bangladesh and that they should be supported as much as possible when they do. Another person who expresses strong support for increased Turkish investment in Bangladesh is Bayram Saatçi, the general director of the Ümit Turkish School here.