THANCHI,BANDARBAN
Picture from rubayet hossan collection..
The bamboo poles you see in this picture are the mobile towers made by the hills themselves. Analog phones have been placed at the top of the tower. If you hold the mobile in your hand, you will not be able to talk. Leaving the mobile on the head of the bamboo, you have to sit at the near of the bamboo, dial and turn on the loudspeaker to talk. The network disappears as soon as you move an inch. The name of the place is Thuisapara. Thanchi is only a three-hour drive from Bandarban to Chimbuk Pahar. You will not get mobile network from Thanchi. Remakri is a three-hour boat ride across the mountain river Sangu, pushing a handful of rocks . No network at all. Nafakhum is a two-hour walk from Remakri. Jinnapara is a three-hour walk away from the Nafakhum spring. There are 26 Marma families. There is no network here either. Thuisapara is a small village near to hill from Jinnapara. Thuisapara is one of the deepest areas in Bangladesh. You have to walk for hours to get to the primitive and strange place. There are no people. There is no way to ask someone if they have forgotten the direction. Local guide is to be kept with. You have to recognize the path by looking at Sangu. Your team, Sangu, and occasionally a couple of freshwater fountains are the only companions to enter the primitive age.
Tired of the sun?
have to Drink water?
You have to drink river water. Clear, shaky, cool water. The water of the fountain comes from inside the rock. This water is called mineral water. It is safer and tastier than mum-pearl or fresh-water. Have breakfast?
have to Eat rice?
There is no way. However, there are a few families who cook and feed commercial tourists. The menu is short. There will be pulses. I like this one food. Wild roosters are rare. Raised chicken meat. Or eggs. Potatoes as an addition. At the beginning of the journey, you can buy and eat bananas as you wish on the banks of the Sangu. Banana prices are low. One penny. Banana is cultivated on steep hills.
I am sitting on a bamboo bench at the edge of the hill at night. Someone set fire to the hill next door. Sounds like a torch which is Fired in the bamboo head. On the way I saw many mountains on fire.In hills they cut down the trees after harvesting. Then put a month. After drying they set them on fire and burnt them. There they cultivate again. The strange thing about the deep hills of Thanchi is that there are no wild animals. monkey, deer, elephant, horse, nothing. The only explanation for not being there is that there are no wood trees. Mile after mile of jungle. Occasional banana orchards. Bamboo garden but no tree that will be wood. There are no birds as there are no big trees or fruit trees. There was a nightmare. Maybe I'm sitting on the floor in exhaustion with fatigue. The vast desert is being swept away by the flood. The cool wind is blowing through the mountains. But all heated like fire during the day. I asked those who were at home at night,
‘What do you do when someone is sick?’
they Do nothing, sufferer dies without any modern treatment. There is no medicine or hospital. Some of the rich and powerful came to Thanchi on the shoulders of four people. However, it happens once in many years. When someone dies, they puts it on the ground. A few epitaphs on the slope of a hill (to Thuisapara). What is written in English letters on the epitaph. There are many bodies of grandsons.
I am resting on a platform at noon. A few Marma women are taking a bath. Involuntary eyes went away. There are no clothes above the waist. I removed my eyes. I asked a young sailor named Sa Sui Marma,
‘What happens if there is rape here?’
"There is no rape case."
‘This is how the fair is going around. No screen. Why not rape? Surprise! '
Sa Sui Marma poured cardamom in her throat. Cardamom is the local wine.
"If you like a girl,do you run away and get married?"
"No one escapes and gets married."
‘There is no door in any house. What if it's stolen? '
"there is no one to stole."
‘What happens? I want to know what's wrong! '
Sa Sui stared once. Handsome young man. Age 22. But a few days ago he took the SSC exam. Comes to the forest once a month with tourists. The language of his eyes is not going to read. Laughter and tears can not be separated by looking at the face of the plane. The Marmas, Everyone looks the same. Laughter does not change the expression on their faces. The night is passing while sitting on the platform last night. A few members of the group are dancing uncontrollably on the machang after consuming cannabis and distilled liquor. The house is shaking with the dance. I'm thinking of all the bad things in the world. The journey started from Thanchi when I saw small stones while boarding the boat. The deeper I came, the bigger the stone became. Human error was decreasing proportionately. As if the people of the world of small stones have big sins, and the people of the world of big stones have small sins. For three days in a row we are all out of the network. Mobiles are being used as camera. Most of the time sleeping in a bag. Everyone is burning in the sun, climbing mountains. Drowning in the water, eating pulses on the veranda. No one is pressing the mobile. No one knows anyone but everyone has infinite compassion for everyone. Someone has blisters on their legs. Another is pulling his heavy bag. But he may also have pain in his waist and knees. I will return home. The fourth night once dawned. The moon sank to the side of the hill. When you reach Thanchi, the sun is also on the other side of the double hill. But I entered a strange world. Mobile network is real. A bomb blast near the Sri Lankan border has killed at least 250 people. Facebook's timeline-filled with upset stories. Many rapes and murders have taken place in our absence. The beginning of the second hell life.
Alas! I'll go to the mountains again. I will go deep again.
Special Note: Don't throw garbage wherever you go ... make sure you don't damage the environment.