COLORKATA

TRAVEL • JAN 2013 • KOLKATA, INDIA

In the Lonely Planet travel book of India, Kolkata has but a mere 5 pages of coverage, yet the six days spent venturing deep into its various districts bear no justification to this blatant disregard of what must have been the most magical and fulfilling experience that I have had in the longest of time.

The first two things that caught my attention about Kolkata are its charming tram ways, the only one that is still in operations in the whole of India, and the yellow ambassador cabs. Coupled that with an entire city that is magically locked still in a vintage era many decades ago, I'm totally sold. It was a street photography trip turned vintage goodies shopping spree as I made the pleasant discovery of old alarm clocks, switches, fans and typewriters all going for dirt cheap prices.

And in this third trip to India, the locals proof yet again that they're the friendliest street photography subjects that you'll ever get in the world. The daily life can be a string of painstaking chores, but they always have to pose for you.