Dhaka
Welcome to Dhaka, the worst Guinness world record city, and to Daulatdia, the largest brothel in Asia.
Dhaka - Masuda Khan Juti
If you go east, you'll die in Bangladesh. From air or water poisoning or as a result of a STD.
Welcome to highly contaminated Dhaka and to Asia's largest brothel of Daulatdia
When visiting India, I wanted to go further east in my trip, in quest of some kind of spirituality. I asked an American friend, who had recently visited the country, for advice about Bangladesh. He said to me: ”Man, you don’t want to go there, nothing is holy over there, it’s a filthy place with cheap prostitutes and you might get cancer just for breathing the fucking air”. So I went there to find out for myself.
And indeed, they got some serious shit to solve. First of all Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries in the world. 40% of its 165million inhabitants live in extreme poverty conditions.
Bangladesh holds other sad world records. Its capital, Dhaka, is a crazy bedlam of 15 million people in perpetual motion. It is one of the most densely populated cities on earth. It is also the most polluted city on the planet. The capital is crossed by the Buriganga river which is an open-air landfill. You’ll find literally anything floating: from animal carcasses to toxic fluids fermenting under the boiling sun. The smell of flesh putrefaction mixed with strong chemicals is unbearable.
There’s no such thing on earth as Dhaka. It’s the most non eco-friendly place in the world. There is no waste disposal, trash is everywhere, in every street corner and filling up an entire river. The city rises in a toxic bubble fog. Air contamination is a very serious issue, causing the death of more than 100 thousand people every year (WHO, 2021). Most of Dhaka’s inhabitants suffer from respiratory diseases: from asthma and emphysema to lung cancer.
Another terrible issue is water contamination. The soil is rotten and infiltrated with arsenic. Everything you eat or drink, if not labeled, is potentially lethal. Vegetables grow out of poisoned earth, animals are bred in the junk.
Despite all of this, Dhaka is special because of its people. Everybody is really nice and welcoming and seems in a constant good mood. They are all curious and grateful to westerners who visit their fucked up country.
Bangladesh is certainly a unique place for another solid reason: it is the only muslim country where prostitution is legal. There are several brothels in the Dhaka area. Even more: there is an entire red-light village called Daulatdia 100 km west of Dhaka where more than 1500 sex workers are based. It is one of the largest brothels in Asia and worldwide.
