It was a sunny morning.  We went to a land filled with hills and beautiful trees, Ghatsila and the river Subarnarekha flowing near our guest house.  I got tired after working for more than a year… So I thought I should take a break.  I went out with my father who also got a breather from his teaching job at a college in Howrah.  We started on our journey on June 2 in 2008.  We took the train called Ispaat Express. 

I woke up at 5 a.m. to get myself ready.  I woke my dad.  We packed our bags the previous day and went to Howrah Station in a taxi.  We went to the bus stand at 6 and took the train that started at 6:55 a.m.  The main stations crossed are Satragachi, Jhargram, Chakulia and finally Ghatshila.   The map of Ghatsila is given here:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghatsila .  For details of Jharkhand and tourism contact:  http://www.jharkhandonline.gov.in/index.asp

Ghatsile is 100.3 m above mean sea level.  When we went there it is summer and the sun scorching us.  The hotel in which we stayed is “Annasha”  We took an auto from the Ghatsila station and reached the spot.  As we are moving towards the hotel, I notice the road is serpentine and very few houses are there in this area.  There are some fields where cultivation is done.  There is a school called “Saraswati Vidya Mandir”  There are 2 buildings, one to 5 in one building and 6 to 10 in another building.  We reached the hotel at 10:45 a.m.  We took the lunch around two.  We found that in Ghatsila the hotels check-in time is 9 a.m.  We knew 12 noon as the checking time when we last went to Bakkhali.  I  went there also with my dad.  My visit to Ghatsila was taken all of a sudden!

We took the lunch around 2 p.m. and took some rest.  In lunch, we took rice, dal, potato fries, egg curry, and chatni.  From the hotel’s window, I could see the Subarnarekha river.  I could see the beautiful greenery opposite to it.  I could hear birds chirping.  The mountains can be seen far away…though they seem to be a few miles away.  The sunlight is falling on the water and it seems the water is glittering and sparkling…I felt as if I have come in a fairy land!!  We could see boats coming too and fro from this side to that and people carring goods and bicycles on these boats.  I found that the boats are mainly used for fishing purposes.  We strolled in the river bed in the evening.  The cool breeze is really soothing.  It soothes your soul and u feel fresh when you walk ….

I woke up at 5 a.m. on 2^nd June. In the morning, me and my dad went to the station.  We took some breakfast and took an auto to visit 7 points that are worth seeing.  I took a lot of photos.  We visited the following places:

1.  Gouri Kunj --- Bibhuti Bhushan Bandyopadhyay used to live there.  This author wrote the famous “Pather Pachali,” “Aparajita,” etc. (visit this website:  http://dailylight.wordpress.com/2007/12/11/reading-56-from-bibhuti-bhushan-bandopadhyay/ )

2.  Ram Krishna Mission --- A building of beautiful red color with flower near the gate.  There is a prayer hall where I saw a priest was performing puja.

3.  Hindustan Copper Limited factory.  This factory is really big where a large number of minerals are mined.   (http://www.hindustancopper.com/home.asp )   I saw huge piles of iron dust are there just behind the factory overlooking the Subarnarekha river.

4.  Subarnarekha View Point.  We went to this spot on the banks of Subarnarekha river.  We took photos of this river.  The river is dry in this hot and humid season but gets filled with water during the rainy season.  Large boulders can be seen and people, mainly tribals,  are seen fishing there.  There are small boats which are used for moving from one bank to the other side…and it is used for fishing.

5.  Moubhander of Subarnarekha river.  We saw a Hanuman temple on the way.  It is a lovely temple with beautiful decorations.  The people in this region love and respect Lord Hanuman.

6.  Rankini Mandir  (http://wikimapia.org/1799932/ )  It is located in Jadugora.  It is small temple where Maa Kali is worshipped. 

7.  Fuldungri Hill.  This is a hill where I climbed and reached the top accompanied by my dad.  There is a shed made of cement.  I photographed the place. It is beautiful to see the green countryside!  Birds chirping around! Cool shade of tall trees!!! In this hill, the king comes to take rest. 

8.  King’s Palace (Rajbari) of Ghatsila.  This has been turned into a civil court by the Government of Jharkhand. 

The temperature can become as low as 6 degrees in winter.  There are few crows and no cats can be seen! 

Our hotel charges Rs. 400 per day.  The room is spacious with TV but few channels come, only Akash Bangla and Doordarshan comes.  There is a disk to hold the television channels. 

The people are dipping in the water of Subarnarekha river.  The heat at this season is scorching only being relieved by the rain the next day and the day when we are leaving.  It was accompanied with a storm.  The area is mainly tribal and people can be seen bathing in the rivers and spreading nets to catch fishes.    Here the sun’s heat rises from 8 a.m.  The heat wave lasts 5:30 p.m.  The temperature decreases in the evening and wind starts the blow gently soothing ourselves. 

In the evening, I  was sitting in the large arm chairs and reading a book and listening to 93.5 FM.  In Kolkata, we call this FM, Power FM and here we call “Superhit” FM.  It is transmitted from Bihar.  The songs are mainly transmitted as per the taste of the people of Bihar.  It is interesting to study a FM channel to know the local people’s taste. 

At the night, when I was lying in bed, I saw the river is pitch dark and the other side of bank is completely dark.  I heard there is a tribal village. 

On the next day, between 3 and 4 p.m. the sun and cloud was playing a hide-and-seek game.  A soft breeze is blowing………..local people fishing…………some bathing………some moving across the river in a boat………..it is beautiful ….especially during sunset, I took a photo………….to tell u………..the river was looking like a shining carpet when the setting sunlight is falling on it………..ahh!! its wonderful………its  a splendid view to tell you the truth!!! 

Around 4:30 p.m., I was strolling over the bed of Subarnarekha river.  It was a cloudy sky.  The rain was dripping slowly.  I walked along the road.  I saw three small boys.  They are so cute and lovely….so adorable…when I asked to them for a bottle of water…one of them pumped and another helped to get the water….I blessed them….I felt so happy!!!   I went to my room, passed the evening listening music and then reading and chatting with my dad.  I took dinner around 9 and then went to bed. 

On the next day, June 3, I woke up and did some exercise and woke up my dad.  We went to the station.  We took breakfast and tea.  We went to the riverside on our return.  I collected colored stones containing minerals.  I took some stones that are sparkling containing mica.  Singhbhum is the district where the place Ghatsila is located.  Here we have a big factory called Hindustan Copper Limited.  People move largely on cycles and vans. 

Our hotel manager is Subrata Chakraborty.  He lives here with his beautiful wife!  He has a beautiful garden.  Two people who assists him in his management of the hotel.  The hotel Annasha is located just on the banks of Subarnarekha river. 

It is a lovely spot where people should go to spend the weekend and enjoy the beauty of Jharkhand.  It is a place where the water for drinking has got mineral value.  I mean you are getting water without paying for its mineral properties.  It is good to stay a few moments away from the hustle and bustle of the city to a calm and pollution free environment like Ghatsila….