A Drive to Dhanyakuria

Another Sunday Morning and our Maruti Suzuki Ertiga is wondering what road lies ahead. Blue skies with white puffy cotton like clouds is just too inviting for a little road trip. We had heard of a place called Dhanyakuria, a small village/town which was known for its palatial Zamindari Baris. We had done some research and knew there were a couple of them that were worth the 70km drive from Kolkata.

So as the morning progressed with a spat of rain brining the temperature down, once it cleared up, we hit the road by noon.

The road via Rajarhat is lined with beautiful landscapes on either side of the highway.

You will get to see miles and miles of water on either side which are Fisheries and in all likelihood you'll spot a fisherman or two in his boat out catching fish on these vast expanses of water.

At Deganga the landscape changes very quickly and it's like driving through dense forests. We barely saw the sky for miles.

This is the first Building you get to see, once you turn off left from the Taki Road towards Dhanyakuria. The Higher Secondary School. Even this building looks like it was built hundreds of years ago.

Once you come to this building, it means you are in Dhanyakuria and the amazing Zamindari Baris are just around the corner.

The first Zamindari Bari and the Biggest and best maintained on in Dhanyakuria is the Gaine Bari

Drive a bit further and you came across Ballav Bari another one of the Zamindari Baris.

Outside the Ballav Bari is this Tower/Building which is truly magnificent. If you look closely, the intricate masonry is amazing.

Yeah, we do get fans on our travels and these two boys led the way from Gaine bari till here and followed us as we went to our next point.

The main Mandir with a huge ground in front of it and a large pond behind. It is now used once a year for the main Puja.

A dilapidated gate that leads to Sawoo Bari.

Sawoo Bari.

I had to jump over a wall to get into the compound for this view of the Sawoo Bari.

This is another Zamindari Bari on the road in Dhanyakuria. Have no idea what it is called.

We found an old man walking along with his cycle and while chatting with him, convinced him to park his cycle and show us around this little village with its hidden treasures. So this is one Gate he brought us to after navigating through narrow meandering village roads.

Further into the village was this Temple and behind it were some more houses from olden days.

After looking around Dhanyakuria, we drove out onto the main Taki Road and found our final stop. This was the Building we had been looking for since we got here. And this is just the Entrance.

Gaine Gardens. We we just about got this picture, as we strolled in through those huge gates and wandered around till a caretaker came screaming at us for trespassing. So apparently the sign on the gate says so in Bengali. This property has been taken over by the Government and serves as an orphanage for Girls.

Dhanyakuria! off the bucket list! we head back towards Kolkata and enjoy the drive through those magnificent water bodies as the sun goes down.

Our faithful Maruti Suzuki Ertiga basking in the twilight after taking us to another wonder magical destination.

The 3 travelers, my wife, me and our Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXi.

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