Self-Driving in Kolkata: The Heaven of the Aged

Kolkata, the city of joy, a land where the aged finds heaven!! Isn’t that what this city is known by? Well, it’s not difficult to understand the reason why tourists come pouring in to this city. There is so much to do and see in Kolkata. From famous architectural marvels to some mouth-watering food, the city has it all. So here’s a little glimpse of my experience of self-driving a rented car in this city.

Landing in Kolkata…

So where to begin from…? Catching an early morning flight and landing in this iconic city was a very different experience all together. Getting out of the terminal, I was welcomed by this heavy traffic of Kolkata and an air hard to describe. So let’s get straight on point without wasting any further time, shall we? Obviously we all know about the city’s offerings right? Now here’s a thing, the heavy traffic congestion in Kolkata alone, let alone the whole of India is a big problem, and so it proved to be for me as well. Settling myself in a nice hotel room and then thinking of moving out and exploring some street food of this city, specially the egg rolls…yep you’re right, those famous egg rolls, I was welcomed with open hands into a world of freaking travels and long walks. Now I thought the metro would be a better idea to travel, but there you go again, what a disaster of an experience it all was!!

Coming to know the rental service…

So sitting in my hotel room and gulping my hard earned egg rolls, I came across something like self-drive car rentals in Kolkata on the net, and thought about giving it a go. At least the travel would be comfortable I thought. The cost didn’t matter although it wasn’t very high. So I chose a small car according to my need, booked it and got it dropped at the hotel itself, just about on time. The condition of the car was fine, I got it with a full tank. So overall it was pretty hassle-free. Now here’s the next thing, how did my experience pan out to be? Well, cling on…

Trying it…   

Now on getting the car I didn’t waste any time and started my exploration around the city. So I drove to the famous Victoria Memorial, that’s right, that iconic marble building of Kolkata and holy heavens what an experience it was!! The car meanwhile worked fine, even though the clutch was a bit hard but honestly, who likes a loose clutch, right? But since it was a concern in any case I informed the road side assistance helpline and they offered to provide me with a changed car even though I didn’t take it. Quiet a service that, getting a car changed this quickly along your travels.

So what should I talk about? I took a halt at some of the popular places afterwards like the Indian Museum or the huge Howrah Bridge. Although the traffic was annoying in the city but honestly you can’t run away from it when in a city like Kolkata right? You’re not going to get any traffic in the metro or local trains there but there will be a lot of crowd to hamper your experience.

Now after a 2 day movement in the city it was time I fly back home but not before dropping the car back. So here’s another surprising part, the car was pickup up from the hotel itself where I stayed and no extra charges of any sorts were levied upon me. So the experience was quiet pleasing as far as the services are concerned. But here’s a suggestion for all the travel freaks thinking of renting a self-drive car, do look for the rentals which offer the most services and best price range. I personally recommend using self-drive rentals in cities where you have even a small amount of trouble travelling. Not only it makes your travel cheap and happening, it also gives you the necessary privacy.    

How Staying in Kolkata Taught Me Necessary Life Skills

You don’t have to be a scientist to understand that cooking is a necessary skill in life, yet men in India choose to ignore it. Thanks to my mother, and then my wife, who never said it even once to me that I should also know the basic culinary skills. My mother brought me up like a typical average man in the family who never needed to enter the kitchen, except when there were guests at home. I would help the ladies in the kitchen by serving food, water, and drinks. However, I would never bother to keep things in place when I entered the kitchen back after serving things.

Nevertheless, there is always a time in life when you have to learn things you always ignored, and this time came for me when I had to live in Kolkata for six months. Now my wife is a working woman, and we had our first baby when my company decided that I should shift to the capital city for a new project. Divya, my better half, could not come with me, but she helped me set up my new home in Kolkata.

Being vegetarian

I am a vegetarian, and that too a strict one. Now I had several presumptions whenever I had to eat at restaurants. I would always assume that my food is contaminated with meat or its gravy, and it would make me uncomfortable. I would not be able to eat in peace, no matter what. I would often complain about the eating problem to Divya, but never to Mom because she would ask me to come back on the next flight! I could not do that at all since I had my stakes and commitments in office.

Nevertheless, after ranting to Divya for 3-4 weeks, I decided that I would cook!

She was shocked at my statement, but she supported me. She said that she was not sure that I would be able to do it, but it was a good start for sure. She asked me if I wanted her to join again to set up a kitchen, but I refused. I told her that I would ask her for help over the phone if I could not manage.

I bought the necessary things the next day, established my new kitchen in the house, and showed the pictures to Divya. She was elated. After struggling at cooking basic daal, roti, and rice for a month, I finally succeeded, and invited her over for dinner. She did not take another minute to book her flight, came over, and we had a blast.

I made pulao for her, daliya for my daughter, and drinks to celebrate our get-together after weeks! I had already looked for Self-Drive Cars in Kolkata and booked one for a long drive after dinner. Needless to say that we had a blast that day. She stayed for three days and I did not let her cook, even once. Till date, she says that the time we spent in Kolkata was the most romantic time ever.