Amkhoi Wood Fossil Park, IllamBazar, near Bolpur (Shantiniketan)

Amkhoi Wood Fossil Park

IllamBazar, near Bolpur (Shantiniketan)

The villagers of Amkhoi village, near Bolpur, while digging a pond in 2006 stumbled upon giant bone-like structures. Unable to figure out what they were, they informed the local administration.

Entrance of Amkhoi Wood Fossil Park, Illambazar

These lead to a scientific investigation revealing what look like giant bones were actually fossilized wood. Scientific digging continued at the pond site extracting more such fossilized wood specimen, which was estimated to be 15 to 20 million years old.

Forever Digha

One of Bengalis’ top three tourist destination

The travel loving Bengali is always been mocked as DiPu Da (Di for Digha, Pu for Puri and Da fro Darjeeling) after their three favourite tourist destination. From Kolkata, Digha is the nearest of the three. Probably it is the most visited tourist spot for Kolkatanas.

Tourist walk along the Digha sea front

Interestingly the popular Bengali tourist spot has a long historic connection dating back to the early days of East India Company. In 1780s Warren Hastings, the first Governor General of Bengal, stumbled upon a 7 km long casuarina dotted beach in Midnapore. He was so impressed with the stretch of beach that in a letter to his wife he referred to it as “Brighton of Calcutta.”

A weekend trip to Bhalki Machan, first family outing since Covid 19

A weekend trip to Bhalki Machan

First family outing since Covid 19 outbreak

The Covid 19 outbreak have changed the way we live and after spending over 10 months confined at home we finally decided to hit the road. We are lucky to travel just before the lockdown started in March 2020.

On the way to Bhalki Machan, breakfast stop at Azad Hind Dhaba

Our last family weekend tour involved the visit consisted a visit to a fortified temple complex, an excavated Buddhist Vihar, a canyon not as grand as the Grand Canyon and finally a village of brick built temples (Also see: Weekend Family tour of West Midnapore)

Moghalmari, Buddhist Archaeological Site, West Midnapore

Moghalmari, Buddhist Archaeological Site

West Midnapore

Also see: Weekend Family tour of West Midnapore

Moghalmari is located on the left bank of Subarnarekha River in the district of West Medinipur, 3.2 miles north of Dantan. Since the turn of the millennium an extensive excavation have reveled the remains of an ancient Budhhist Monastery.

Moghalmari excavation site

The name Moghalmari probably originated from a pitch battle of 16th century between the Mughal and the local king. Although the Mughal army emerged victorious but a large number of Mughal soldiers were killed and hence the name.

Kurumbera, A fortified Temple Complex

Kurumbera

A fortified Temple Complex

Also see: Weekend Family tour of West Midnapore

The  fortified temple complex of Kurumbera lies in the village of Gaganeshwar, which is 4 km from Keshiari and 30 km from Kharagpur. The structure resembles the medieval architecture of Odisha, while also incorporating elements of later Mughal architecture.

Fortified complex of Kurumbera, West Midnapore

Kurumbera means stone wall (kurum = stone, bera = fence) and refers to the 12 feet high wall enclosing the complex. The wall complex measured 253 feet by 173 feet and has a gateway on the northern side.

Gangani, a scaled down version of the Grand Canyon

Gangani

A scaled down version of the Grand Canyon

See also: Kurumbera, Moghalmari, Gangani and Pathra, Weekend Family Tour

The wind and water have carved and chiselled the landscape for millions of years creating a unique landscape. The layers of colourful mud and rocks exposes a records of millions of years.

Gangani Canyon

It is not the Grand Canyon but a scale down version of it is located just four hours drive from Kolkata. Gangani or Gongoni, located in the outskirts of the Garhbeta town in West Medinipur district of West Bengal, houses a canyon loving known as the Grand Canyon of West Bengal.

Kurumbera, Moghalmari, Gangani and Pathra, Weekend Family Tour

Kurumbera, Moghalmari, Gangani and Pathra

Weekend Family Tour from Salboni, West Midnapore

A fortified temple complex, an excavated Buddhist Vihar, a canyon not as grand as the Grand Canyon and finally a village of brick built temples and all this in a single weekend tour from Kolkata

Weekend tour of West Midnapore. Clockwise from top left: Kurumbera (fortified temple complex), Moghalmari (an excavated Buddhist Vihar), Gangani (canyon) and Pathra (temple village)

Dol and Holi 9 March (Monday) and 10 March (Tuesday) 2020 provided a extended weekend and an excellent opportunity for a weekend tour to explore the hidden natural and historical treasures of West Midnapore.

Balakhana Heritage Home Stay, Maheshganj Estate

Balakhana Heritage Home Stay

Maheshganj Estate, Nadia, West Bengal

Heritage hotels and homestays are an integral part of the Indian tourism industry. Although late, West Bengal has also joined the trend. In the last couple of years The Rajbari Bawali, Baithakkhana Amadpur, Bari Kothi Azimganj, Rasbari Garden House Belur and Itachuna Rajbari have come up with some amazing heritage properties.

Balakhana Heritage Home Stay, Maheshganj Estate, Nadia, West Bengal

Balakhana, Maheshganj Estate, an indigo planter’s bungalow, converted into a heritage homestay,  is also on the list. The Balakhana Heritage Home Stay, Maheshganj is Italian in origin, French in style and has a rich Bengali legacy.

Bawali and Achipur, A long awaited family tour

Bawali and Achipur

A long awaited family tour

It has been almost two years since our last vacation in Boronti, a weekend destination in Purulia, and my wife and eight year old daughter were desperate for a holiday.

With my wife (Debjani) and daughter (Rupsha) at the banks of River Hooghly, near Achipur Barood Ghar

We decided to visit Bawali in South 24 Parganas and my wife took the initiative of booking the Bawali Farmhouse.

Cochrane Place, Kurseong

A Heritage Resort with a blend of Tea, Train and Tranquility

See also: FAM (Familiarization) Tour of Cochrane Place, Kurseong

Located on the outskirts of the town of Kurseong (near Darjeeling) is Cochrane Place, the restored and recreated residence of Percy John Cochrane, MBE (1866 – 1944), Honorable Magistrate and Barrister of Kurseong Town.

Cochrane Place, Kurseong

It was known as “the Hermitage” because of its splendid vista and tranquility. The original structure was dismantled in 2004 and remodeled into Cochrane Place Resort.

Cochrane Place is a heritage resort with an unique blend of tea, trains and tranquility. Restored in stone, log and cast iron splendor, Cocharne Place  is a botique hotel for guests looking for warm and friendly ambiance.