Kolkata: The Urchin and the Maidan

The maidan looks green on the maps, just like some manicured botanical gardens might look in another country.  In Kolkata, green means bits of groung left to fend for themselves under the relentless priority of masses for somewhere to sleep. Given this, the maidan is amazingly well respected as public space for impromptu soccer matches and contemplation.

Tourists in Kolkata seem to be a significant curiosity to the locals who tend to cease conversation and stare until we pass, then chatter and laugh after we passed: "We were born here, but what bring them to this decayed backwater ?"