Reflections on Rangamati Lake

Visit through Rangamati lake is a wonderful experience.

Rangamati Lake can be called one of the best tourist spots in Bangladesh without any doubt. If any body can go past Shuvlong point and enter into the widest part of the lake, will agree with the statement. A tourist can take a launch or hire an engine boat and take one of the three routes for a journey toward any of the three Upazilla headquarters on the lake. Though the route to Marissa valley via Longadu will be the longest and will give better opportunity for enjoying natural surroundings. This route will give a very good idea about the length and breadth of this artificial lake.

If a tourist can climb up to the top of the Shuvlong hill, will surely agree that the view from the top is as picturesque as the Swiss Lake on any costly poster. If the tourist is lucky, he can even have a glimpse of wild elephants that reportedly pays visit in nearby places. If a tourist desires to walk through the dense forests over the hills will get the feeling of wild life. It will remind them about any scene of jungle life from any hit foreign movie. Some time dears can be seen roaming in the forests or snakes running through the bushes if one gets extremely lucky. Roaming around the lake by a boat can give the opportunity to observe some small fountains or monkeys jumping in the trees or even wild cats drinking water from the lake.

A journey through Rangmati Lake gave us amazing experience. It was observed that there are some signs of human habitation on the island like submerged hilltops through out the lake. The lake was once used to be a valley between two hill ranges and was inhabited by hilly people. Tribal people used to live in the valley on the banks of rivers and cannels, which run through the valley. But now the valley is under water. Only some hilltops survived by not drowning under water and formed island like structures. The lake is now an attractive place for fishing. Many fishermen stay for days in the lake. They use long bamboos to create makeshift houses over underwater hilltops and tie their boats. They use it as their temporary shelter and catch fish. They even use these structures to make dry fishes under the sun.

Kathtali Bazar is one such beautiful and most important hilltop market in the middle of the large lake. This small market is extremely important for fishermen and people who live in hills on both sides far away on the horizon. Tribal people come to this bazar by small boats for purchasing and selling of their products and to avail any type of transportation. This small market is the only way to maintain relationship with the rest of the country. After crossing the market the lake is wide and there is no sign of habitation and is more like a sea. Even seagulls can be seen floating on the water. There are some places where huge colonies of tropical insects can be found. Different types of birds can be seen floating on the lake water. The lake is so wide that in some parts different flying birds sit on the passenger boats or launches ignoring fear of life as there is no place to take rest.

In Longadu, glimpses of natural rain forests can be seen. The villages of tribal people and their temples can be observed. Some can even purchase fabrics woven in local handlooms. In Mainimukh bazar one can enjoy foods from local bakery and even can eat wild fowl curry in restaurants. At the end of the lake a serpent like cannel will carry the boat toward the Marissa valley. The journey through this cannel will give ample idea about the simple life of the people living on the banks as well as about their economic activity. Large bamboo stakes can be seen all over the cannel, which are taken to Rangamati by floating on the lake. The scenery of the Marissa valley is so beautiful that it is often compared with the Kashmir valley. The view of Kachalong bazar from over the hills is really beautiful even if the comparison with Kashmir is questionable.

The magnificent natural surrounding of the Rangamati lake will be unknown if the tourist do not take few boat journeys in the remote hilly villages. A rose garden in a security post will surprise any tourist. Again one will feel sympathy for soldiers suffering from malaria. Many a time a tourist has to listen from young officers about the agony and worry ness of their parents. In one such occasion while we were returning back from a trip to a remote hilltop to our island we saw the sun was setting on the lake water. The light of the setting sun turned the surrounding environment into different shades of red. It seemed that the whole sky was in the water, as the evening sky was reflecting on the lake water like a mirror. There was no boat or any sign of life nearby. It seemed that our engine boat was playing smoothly over the scattered clouds shining in the red lights as the sky was reflecting on the water. Red was all around. It was an unbelieving moment. It seemed that we were in a dreamland. It gave us the feeling of “fade far away, dissolve, and quite forget”. Every body was speechless. We were completely absorbed by the beauty of the natural surrounding. This type of situation forces us to delve deep into our heart. Suddenly few lines from Ode To a Nightingale by John Keats came to my mind where he desired nothing but a painless death.

Now more than ever seems it rich to die. To cease upon the midnight with no pain.

An unfamiliar pain and deep sense of failure started feeling heavy on my heart. A nostalgic feeling starts haunting the memory. The unsolved equation of the difference between the achievements and expectations started spreading wings. There was also a mixture of happiness attached to it, if it could have been possible for me to leave my life like this. Traveling all around the world. Without thinking about any profession or responsibilities. But in reality it was not possible. Money was absolutely necessary to survive and plan for such luxuries like dreaming of traveling to different places and enjoying natural sceneries. The engine of imagination has to be fueled by money power.

At the end of our journey while we were returning back to Rangamati town by an engine boat an amazing thing just happened. After crossing Shuvlong point we saw a wonderful but memorable scene. A Seagull and a Pankoury (Little Cormorant) was swimming together. The Pankuory was playing merrily around the Seagull. It was going under the water from one side of the seagull and coming out from water from the other side in its usual fashion as much seen in any rural river with its natural partners. It seemed that they have learned to live in harmony in the lake. The seagull was supposed to live in seashores and the pankoury was a native bird that lives in a bush nearby a gentle river. Both of them have adopted the lake as their home and have become friends. If only human could learn from them!