Sail across the unsung side of Calcutta
Explore the unexplored! Calcutta’s Heritage Walk Tour is a gem in the woods in fact a perfect tour for tourists who are affectionate to explore the unexplored areas of Calcutta. Calcutta is a land full of enthusiast people all around the so called “the city of joy” and if you devote at least three-five hours minimum of your 24 hours schedule for the heritage walk, then we can walk past the colonial buildings made during the British reign in the 19th century.
Calcutta was the “the Jewel of the East” in the East India Company days. The tour is an absolute worth it as it ends with the sunset in the banks of the Ganges! Your eyes will encounter the Calcutta’s landmark Howrah Bridge and Vidyasagar Setu (Hoogly Bridge) from the Ghat of the river Ganges which is surrounded by the cool breeze and wonderful walks beside the Ganges river complimented by boats, ships sailing around. Visiting this place, you will have the times of your life so what’s the wait for? Let’s Walk-Explore-Enjoy!
At 7:00 in the morning our CREDO Tour Guide will meet you at your hotel doorstep. Dress up and be ready and to look perfect and suit the occasion CREDO brings to you a guidebook for men where you can find shirts for men which specifically will suit the event. Try wearing CREDO check or stripe shirts. You can absolutely browse the collection of shirts for men in the website of www.credoforu.com where CREDO brings to you an amazing collection of bespoke men’s shirts which will be perfect https://medium.com/@credoforu/credos-kolkata-bb658b1b2de1 and comfortable for your mission to witness the city of Calcutta. You will be driven by a car to ‘the city of joy’ — the colonial city developed by the East India Company. We will walk past the colonial buildings of the 19th century made during the British reign. Let’s explore a few destination hubs of Calcutta.
• Raj Bhavan (Governor’s House):
It’s the Governor of West Bengal’s official residence built in 1803. After the transfer of power from the East India Company to the British Crown in 1858, it became the official residence of the Viceroy of India. It’s a three-storied building which requires permission of the Additional Chief Secretary prior to visiting and mentioning the preferred dates, purpose of visit and numbers of person visiting the place.
• Calcutta High Court:
Calcutta High Court, the oldest high court in India established in 1st July 1862. Designed by Mr. Walter Granville, a government architect, established at the Presidency Town by Letters patent granted by Her Majesty Queen Victoria, bearing date 26 June 1862.
• Hotel Great Eastern:
This is a colonial era hotel and longest operating luxury hotel chain in India. The hotel was established in 1841. The architecture is famous for its combination of Victorian, Edwardian and Contemporary styles. It has 215 operational rooms and suites and 13,000 square feet of banquet and conference space. The Lalit operates two restaurants namely, Alfresco and The Legacy Grill which has a multiple option to dine for. The CREDO tour guide can take you either to Alfresco or The Legacy Grill for your afternoon bon appetite!
• Kolkata Town Hall:
Originated in 1813 by the architect and engineer Major-Gen. John Garstin built in Roman Doric style to provide the Europeans a place for social gathering. It is located in the centre of Calcutta in Esplanade. In the Town Hall there consists a library which has the entire collection of rare books and journals on Kolkata. It now has almost a collection of 12,000 books and journals to name a few valuable books held by the library are: Wilmot Corfield- Calcutta faces and places in pre-camera days, Henry Hyde- Parochial Annals of Bengal, Charles Moor- The Sheriffs of Fort William from 1775 to 1926, Harry Hobbs- The Romance of Calcutta sweep.
• The Writer’s Building:
The CREDO tour guide will take you to the Writer’s Building which is in the capital city of Kolkata. It was originally served as an administrative office for writers. Designed by Thomas Lyon in 1777 and located in Lal Dighi, BBD Bagh, Kolkata. At the time of completion in the year 1780, the Writer’s Building was considered to have the first three-storey constructed building in Calcutta. Isn’t it interesting?
• Lal Dighi (Red Tank):
Lal Dighi existed long before the arrival of Job Charnock. The local name for Lal Dighi was ‘Lal Bagh’ or ‘Lall Bagh’ owing to the name of the area location. The place depicted the celebration of Holi, the festival of colours. It is a man-made water body surrounded by historic buildings of General Post Office, Writer’s Building, Reserve Bank of India, Andrew’s Church etc. Beside visiting Lal Dighi if you want to drop by the places around then you can visit the famous Indian Museum– the oldest and largest museum in the world where you can encounter unique antiques, paintings, sculptors, armour and many more, Nakhoda Masjid -the mosque which is the imitation of mausoleum of the Mughal Emperor Fouzaan at Agra, New Market — the oldest retail therapy you can get in the city!
• St. John’s Church:
St. John’s Church is the third oldest church situated in Calcutta. A Parish church of Bengal built in the year 1787. Did you know that it was in this very church that Job Charnock — the founder of Calcutta was buried with his family?
It is in the North-West corner of Raj Bhavan, Calcutta. The three important memorials you can witness inside the St. John’s Church are:
- Job Charnock’s Tomb:
The founder of Calcutta, came as a British trader back in 1690 to the Sutanuti village and combined three villages of Govindopur, Kalikata and Sutanuti to form the present-day Metropolis of Calcutta. After two years he died following which his son-in-law built a memorial in his honour where his tomb can be found in this church.
- The Black Hole Monument:
This monument was built in the memory of the Black Hole tragedy. In the year 1756, Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah took 146 British prisoners and locked them in a room which measured 14 feet by 8 feet where 123 died out of heart attack and suffocation, only 23 could survive. Do you know the fact that earlier no people other than prisoners, clowns, prostitutes and socially marginalised people were allowed to wear stripe shirts? To know more visit https://credoforu.fashion.blog/2020/01/31/know-your-stripes/ One of the survivors named John Holwell who later became the Governor of West Bengal left this account of this Black Hole Monument.
- Lady Canning Memorial:
She was the wife of the Governor General and Viceroy of India, Charles Canning. The tomb was built in her memory (1817–1861) in which her name was made immortal by a sweet maker, Bhim Nag who made Pantua, a type of sweet and named after her as Ladykeni.
• Eden Gardens:
A cricket ground in Kolkata established in 1864. The second largest ground in India with a capacity of carrying 66,349 crowd. It is almost 156 years old. The Eden Garden was initially named before as ‘Auckland Circus Gardens’ which was built between Babughat and Fort William. Eden has hosted 15 World Cups of both men’s and women’s cricket.
Calcutta is synonymous to the foundation of CREDO (which is ‘I BELIEVE’ in Latin) The spirit of Calcutta believes in the City of Joy to light the passion of culture which dwells in the heart of every resident. Truly, CREDO’s Kolkata is the cultural capital of India. So why to wait? Take a deep breath and start your voyage in the city of joy to find your piece of happiness.
