The most interesting part of our Mymensingh tour was the Susang Durgapur tour. We went on a family tour. The place was secured enough to move with family members. Durgapur is an Upazila which belongs to the Netrokona district. Durgapur is surrounded by mountains, rivers, and is a unique example of the cultural variations of small ethnic groups. After staying in Mymensingh at night, the next morning we left for Durgapur. We had to go to Jharia by train. It took a couple of hours to arrive. We got down, had breakfast and started walking. Construction work of the bridge was going on. For now, there is no other way but to walk.
We reached Birishiri in Durgapur by CNG. Birishiri is a beautiful village in Durgapur Upazila. Mainly people of the Garo community reside in Durgapur. There are two rest houses, YMCA and YWCA. We stayed at YWCA. They have made the entry in the rest house in my name. This thing seemed very unique. There was a comfortable environment inside. The beautifully arranged atmosphere was all around. We freshened up and went for a meal. The food was so good, especially the vegetable curry. After having a meal, we went out by the rickshaw that they had arranged for us. Rickshaw puller Babul Bhai, a very friendly gentleman acted as our guide. He showed us every place with so much care.
First, we went to the cultural academy of a small ethnic group. The museum has all its traditional items there. They are a very good collection! A sample of Garo house and a house guarding the zoom field looked very nice. The best was a ‘Hajack Lamp’ made with a cane. We left the museum and sat outside for a while. The area is also very beautiful. The open space flower garden was very clean. After a while, we left again. Babul Bhai took us to Birishiri Ghat. You have to cross the Someshwari River by boat. Rickshaws will also cross with us by boat. I saw this system before in Kuakata. The boat carried a whole motorcycle. Here too we sat in rickshaws, the boat crossed the river and reached Vijaypur. Again rickshaw ride.
After spending some time at the memorial of Shaheed Rani Rashimoni, the pioneer of the peasant movement in Boheratali, we went to Ranikhong, the Dharmapalli of Saint Joseph. It is good to say that like Jamalpur-Sherpur, we have got a very secluded environment everywhere. The road is slowly uphill. People are not allowed to go too far inside since it is a place of prayer or meeting of religious leaders.
On the way back, this time was the destination of BGB camp near the border. You can take a boat ride and reach up to Zero Point, meaning the border of India. We spent some time there. Then Babul Bhai took us to Kamala Bagan hill. Although time we have gone by, oranges were not available. My daughter wanted to climb the hill alone, not willing to hold anyone’s hand. That was not very steep, so she could climb easily. After that, we went to see the main attraction of Birishiri, Vijaypur Chinamati hill. We were just enchanted! The green water below, the blue sky above and we were standing on the pink hill. This was really a wonderful creation! Strange and indescribable!
Under the guidance of Babul Bhai, we started to climb the hill slowly. There was a walkway as many people go there. You can get up from one side and go down by the other side. Blue-green clear water can be seen everywhere. The rocks of the hill spread an amazing pink glow. Everything is incredibly beautiful. As this area is near the border, many shops are available here with Indian products. Now it’s time to return. The golden sun was setting in the sky of Durgapur Ghat at dusk as if it’s spreading a light. The scene was memorable.
On the way back we entered the Srikrishna sweets store in Durgapur Bazar and had the famous ‘Balish Mishti’. Gayanath Ghosh was the original maker of Balish mishti.
Gayanath Ghosh, the proprietor of ‘Gayanath Mistanna Bhandar’ on Barhatta Road in Netrokona, was the first to invent Balish Mishti. Gayanath’s dream was to discover a new kind of sweet. One day he made a huge sweet with milk, sugar and flour and gave it to the customers who came to the shop to eat. The sweets were very appreciative. Its shape is a lot like a pillow. So he named the sweet ‘Balish’ as per his customers’ advice. The name of the sweet spreads because of its incomparable taste. To make this dessert, the dough is first mixed with a little flour then with milk. Pillows of different sizes are made with pulp. Later it is fried in hot sugar syrup. After that, it is kept cold and dipped in sugar syrup for a long time. At the time of selling milk cream or kheer is given over the sweets. My suggestion will be, don’t forget to eat real Balish from Gayanath Sweets Store in Netrokona. The price of the sweets also varies according to the shape. These pillows are available in many shops but Gayanath’s sweets are more popular.
After a sweet evening, we reached the resthouse. We were so exhausted but some beautiful memories remained in my mind. That’s the way it is. Travelling never lets the mind get tired.
