45:07
Welcome to Dhaka, Bangladesh. Home to the world's most dangerous roads and public transportation. In this video, I'm going to be taking you all around Dhaka to show you how everyday people commute to school and to work. And we begin right here on this crazy train! To take you in this moment of my life right now is just absolutely bizarre. It's hard to explain the feeling, the dust in my eyes, the horn in my ears, but just seeing all these people smiling on the train like it's their everyday commute.
While it might be crazy for me and you, like, this is normal life for so many people. I'm literally about to go deaf on this train. I've never felt a loud sound in my brain, like I do with this train horn. I guess this would be the fastest way to get through the crazy traffic in town. The streets are just mobbed. Look at all these people just coming to get down when the train stops.
Oh, my God, bro! Insane. All these people are just. Not paying for tickets, just getting on and off the train. Hey, bro. How are you? I'm fine. Where are you from? America. America. Where are you from? Raintreeyuk. Nice to meet you. Making friends left and right out here. Okay, okay. I'm too scared to go up on top of the train, so I gave my little camera.
What the hell, bro. So I gave my camera to a kid, who's now up there with the camera. It's too scary for me. And I can't hear anything. I feel like I just went deaf. That's the guy I gave my camera to, right there. Hey. The craziest thing about this bar is it's wiggly, like. It's freaking wiggly, like, how is this gonna save my life? Yet, I can't even.
I can't even speak right now. Freaking hell! Where are you going? I go to business. And these kids, they go to where? Yup. The kid is sitting on the horn. My head is pounding as I arrive at the train station. Dhaka is the most chaotic city on earth and that's why I'm meeting up with my local friend Nadir, so he can help me navigate these streets. I read a stat that 15 people die every day, in public transportation in Dhaka. It's like, I mean, I've been in accidents and stuff, so, like, I'm not. super shocked that people die, but that's dangerous as hell.
Yeah. So, that I can see why. Yeah. How many times have you taken the train? A lot, as a kid. I mean, that was bi- the biggest way to like, get in and out of the city, basically. There's an entire economy around this train. They sell all kinds of foods, items, things you buy in stores. How are you? Fine, and you? I'm good. Where are you going right now, on the train? Your country? America. Los Angeles? Yeah. Hey, buddy. That kid just literally flew off of a train moving this fast. Where were you coming from just now?
It's a, it's a city called Joydebpur. You jumped out of the train it was moving so fast. Are, are you okay? Yeah. It's a, it's a day-to-day thing. It really doesn't matter to him. What's in the orange bag? So, basically they're collecting all the plastic bottles and they sell it to the, you know, like the plastic recyclers. Oh, so he's a, he's a hustler. You just take the train back home when you're done with the day? So he basically lives on this platform, on these stations at night. So he doesn't quite often go to his village.
He lives alone on the train platform and he's 10 years old? Holy crap! Yeah. I want to help this kid somehow. So every two, three months he goes back to his village. What do your parents do? So he doesn't have his father. His mother works in the. RMG sector, the garments factory. In Dhaka. Tens of thousands of children make their living selling snacks, flowers, or trinkets on buses and trains. Many are barely teenagers, earning just a few dollars a day. For them, public transport isn't a way to get somewhere.
It's the marketplace that keeps their families alive. So before we try out more ways to get around the city, I'm determined to make this day one day that this kid will never forget. Man, I am not well right now. All my energy is completely drained. And after that train ride, my head is spinning. And straight into the madness on the streets of Dhaka we go. I have this crazy headache right now. I don't know how people do that every single day. We brought the little kids with us. Yeah.
This is how we kidnap people. We're professional kidnappers. I brought you with us because I want to take you to lunch and, and hang out for a bit. Is that okay with you guys? They're having the day of their lives, right now. And right now we're stuck in crazy traffic. Is this just completely normal for you? Yeah. Yeah, that's it's, it's very good traffic at this moment. So if this is good traffic, what's bad traffic?
Bad traffic is when you're stuck standstill, like stuck for hours. 6:00 p.m. What do you mean? That's when you don't want to. go somewhere on the other side of the city. We've made it to a restaurant here, taking our friends from the train to get some nice food. That's so cute. He loves Matt, today. Look at that. That's the cutest thing ever. You like that?
Someday you're going to have that someday. I saw you guys hanging on the side of a train, so I think it's, it's nice to calm down a second and have a meal. How many years have you been on the platform? Three years. Yeah. With some kick out at home. Some people just got lost. Aren't you ever scared, like when you're riding on the train, that you're going to fall off? Like this kid, he had one arm and one leg hanging off the edge.
He's like, I got to die someday anyway. Basically, there's a lot of accidents on the train, right. So they, they often do the pull out their dead bodies. What?! Yeah. Cleaning the corpses is, is such. You've clean corpses? The people that are hanging off the side, have you ever seen them fall off and die? He saw it a few days ago. A girl in the morning. Even he saw it, the little one saw it as well. Just had a great meal. And now, he doesn't know yet but we're going to go to a market and buy. anything that he wants.
He can pick out anything he wants, him and his friend. Hi. The kid wants to say hi. Hiii! That's my wife. He's so handsome, Drew. Yeah. I know. Show him your ear piercings. Deanna, look, he has his ear pierced. Noooo. Yeah. Is that real? Yeah, it's real. We just got some food and now we're going to the market. He wants to, he doesn't know yet, but we're gonna buy him a bunch of clothes.
Yeah. Ohhh! Ca-can you buy him shoes for me? Yeah. That's the first thing he asked for, was shoes. Okay. All right say goodbye. Bye, bye. Byeee! Bye Deanna. Bye. Have fun! Bye, love you. See you. His first ever pair of shoes. He needs socks. Yeah, we got to get some socks. It's like, I run barefoot on trains. I don't need socks.
It's like, what is this for? I'm gonna show you how to tie your shoes, okay? So like this. Then you cross like this. Make a bow. Yes. Around and, and then pull it. Hey. Dude, I feel like. Hold on, when I was younger, I think it took me like a day to learn how to tie my shoes. Definitely took me a while. He just did it on the second try. All right, we got the shoes our success! And now we are getting some clothes.
Letting him pick out whatever he wants. He was scared to get on the escalator. He was like, what is that? He's not afraid of getting on top of a train, but he's afraid of an escalator for some reason. Now he sees all the, you know, this is more kid-centric.
We got a new pair of shoes, 10 shirts and pants, all in these bags here. There we go. Good? And his friend is now shopping for the same, behind me. It's very hectic and very chaotic here. Just to go into a market, but we're all good. I'm very happy. It's hard to pull myself away from such a sweet kid. But after a few hugs, goodbye, I'm ready to experience the old town of Dhaka, which is one of the most vibrant and overwhelming places on earth. I'm walking in old Dhaka and the dude is following me with smoke machine! I have no explanation for that.
So you grew up in Bangladesh, born and raised? Grew up in this city, in the south side of the city. You know. Not, yeah, not, not far here. When I talk to you, it's like I'm talking to an American. Really? Like, you just like, have the aura. Yeah, I spent 10 years in the States, so I moved when I like finished high school. I moved to the states back in 2011. Nice. Dude, don't get hit by a car, bro. After living in the States for so long, like, it's so different than here.
What are your thoughts, like walking around these streets right now? I mean, it's. for me, it's so chaotic. Even though I grew up here, it always like, whenever I come back, it takes me. a while to get used to the honking, to get used to. Yeah, bro. the traffic, you know? Yeah. But like, once you get used to it, it's, it's not that bad, Right. I mean, I got to be honest though like, yeah. this place is more chaotic than any city I've been to in India. Yeah. Just like the number of people in one place, I think this is. There's just anything an close to India. Yeah, there's.
There's like 25 million people unofficially that live in Dhaka. That's just insane! The traffic is so incredibly bad here. Like, how does that shape the culture of. Bangladesh? Let's talk about the city here, because that's where the traffic is the worst here in Dhaka. Sure, sure in Dhaka, yeah. Like my friends that move to another part of the city, let's say when we're in 10th grade, all of a sudden from seeing them every day, I would see them like.
Maybe on the weekends or once every like, couple of hours. So that's kind of sad. Like, Yeah. the traffic is so bad that you can't even see your friends if they leave. There's lots of improvements, but there's still like more and more people coming in. I just. The gridlock is so bad. Like, it prevents them from getting to meetings, it prevents them from working more, it prevents them from having more family time. Yeah. There's definitely a lot of time spent on. trying to get to where you want to work, on a daily basis. And not trying to get run over. Yeah.
This part of town, old Town is definitely like, not for beginners, let's say. Tell me about this old town. Like, it feels really historic and the streets are super narrow. I mean, it's old Town, it's the most culturally rich part of town. There's a lot going on here. But because this was built, you know, this is the oldest part of town. Right. It doesn't have the widest streets. Totally. It definitely doesn't have sidewalks. Yeah. Walking through the little markets here, windy little alleys, you can find anything here.
Gold, silver, shirts, hats, women's bras. Hey man, how are you? Hi. I don't know what this guy's carrying. But it is extremely heavy. Damn. Everywhere in old Town there's people hustling. They got their shops like this guy, he's selling peanuts, chips, everything! And he's just carrying it on a wooden plank. It's really inspiring to see that, like they're not begging on the street. They just have little shops here. This is a more quiet little narrow alleyway of town. But the old town is so. busy and everywhere you look there's things to process,
colors, size, smells, food. And I am exhausted, damn. One day running around Dhaka, I'm just freaking dead, man. I still can't hear straight from the train. It's not for the faint hearted, that's for sure. Before we dive deeper into the streets of Dhaka, I have something special to share with you. Thanks to the sponsor of this video, MyHeritage, the company that helps you discover your family history and ethnic origins, MyHeritage is offering their DNA kit for a price they've never offered before.
Use code BINSKY for just $25 for Black Friday. For those that can remember from my Belarus video where I went there to track down my ancestors, MyHeritage has completely changed the way I see and understand my identity and my family story. Not only did I learn my ancestry breakdown across Eastern Europe, but I also connected with long-lost relatives that I never knew existed. All of this is thanks to their online portal, where I can easily access everything online at once. The process of using MyHeritage is super easy.
They first send you a kit to your house, then you swab your cheek, which takes less than a minute and you send it back in the mail. And a few weeks later you get a full report on your DNA, plus access to build your family tree and explore millions of historical records. I found out that I was 91.8% Ashkenazi Jewish and 5.4% Balkan. And most importantly, your data is totally safe. MyHeritage has a strict privacy policy, and they will never sell or license your genetic data. So if you've wanted to learn more about your family history or give a meaningful gift this holiday season, now's your time.
If you click the link down in the description and use the code BINSKY, or just scan the QR code on screen. Then you can grab your DNA kit for just $25, only offered on this Black Friday. All right, now let's head back to the crazy streets of Dhaka. Right now, we are riding on a rickshaw, which is a preferred method to get around Dhaka. There's over 1 million rickshaws in this city, more than any other city on Earth. And a lot of them are manpowered, they're just riding a bicycle. It's insane. The cost for a ride? About 40 cents. Pretty cheap.
There's like, electric rickshaws now, and uh, we just call them Teslas now, because they're our electric cars, let's say. Is this like, how you traveled as a kid? Yeah, I mean, rickshaw is definitely the most, uh. common means of transportation. I don't think. That we didn't have a car growing up. This is how I. would go to school. This is how I would go for like, tutoring. This is how I would go play basketball. Unless the traffic was bad, so bad walking was faster. I don't think people realize the scale of this country.
There's 170 million people living here, and Bangladesh is the size of Iowa. You know, in the western world. Like, we know about Bangladesh, but we don't think about it being so populous. Yeah. A lot of people don't even realize it's a country when I tell them. Like, yeah, it's the, it's one of the most populous countries on Earth. And the language of Bangla is like the sixth most spoken language? Yeah, sixth most spoken first language. There's 170 million of us that speak it. It's actually one of the most widely spoken languages on Earth that. no one really knows about.
No, dude. Thank you, bro. Crossing the road here is getting real tight. Oh, boy! Now it makes sense why Dhaka is consistently ranked as one of the most unlivable cities in the world. It's just the chaos, man. -- Freaking. hell. You know, the craziest part about being in Dhaka is you don't see a single other tourist. Not a single one. It's actually one of the least visited countries in the world in terms of tourists that visit every year. A lot of people go to neighboring India or even Nepal or Myanmar. I mean, those are way more popular. Like, you see the signs are not in English.
Like, actually, none of them are in English. It's actually sometimes faster to walk than it would be to take any form of public transportation or maybe as fast to walk. Sometimes it's just like, if you got to get like one kilometer away, just start moving your feet, bro. Hi, what's your name? Hi, my name is Lucky. Lucky? I like. That's a really cool name, Lucky. So I came here because, in my opinion, this is like the craziest traffic in the busy, busiest city in the world.
Is it difficult living here as a local when things are so hard to get from point A to point B? Yeah. You know, when you have to go. to your work or your school, I mean, when you're on a schedule, so it's really tough, and you will be in a stress that, oh, no, I, I need, I need to go there in time. But when you are not and you have available time in your hand, then it's okay. Like now I'm here with my sister, and we're just roaming around. So it's fun! Believe it or not, Bangladesh loses over $3 billion annually, just due to traffic congestion. That is simply hours lost for people that are unable to get to work.
But despite all the chaos, Bangladesh actually has one of the world's fastest growing economies, which just shows you that even in gridlock, there is momentum. Hey, look, they got Best Buy. My white shoes are toast in this mud. Nadir and I have found a little corner here, off the main road to get a little. Shave and a massage for under a dollar, both. Dude, in Oklahoma, that would be like 30 bucks, bro. Hey, he's pretty aggressive. I like that.
Oh, man. Starting off strong. Holy guacamole. Dude, he's squeezing, like, as hard as he can, woah! Oh, it's like a neck crack as well as head massage. Dude, these guys do not mess around with the. the pressure. Woah. This only costs 50 taka, which is like 40 cents. Dude, his grip pressure is absolutely insane. I'm gonna have bruises tomorrow. Massages like this don't exist elsewhere around the world. It's like I've only had him in South Asia.
A mystery water. Okay, thank you. I feel like a completely new person. Nadir and I are about to get on a public bus in Dhaka. Wish us luck. Oh, shit! Are we gonna get in here, man? Oh, my God! Is the bus moving already? Are you getting out? Oh, sorry. It. It's usually. when you're trying to get out of a bus, you have to like start preparing two stops in advance. So you're not going to make it to the door in time.
Yeah, go ahead, go ahead, go ahead. Yeah, you can get out. Bye. You're getting out too? Where am I gonna go? It just. Jeez. Let me get out of the door. Oh, my God, man. When's the last time you were on a bus like this? Only been like a decade, honestly. Really? Okay, go ahead. They like, they want to get out. Go ahead. Which country your? America. Huh? America. Yeah. U.S.
Hey, there's a line of people trying to leave. Okay, I got you. How are you? Bye. Have a nice day, bro. Bye. Yes. I'm glad to see you. See you guys. Yup. See you. Yup. Bye. Oh, my God. It's all over. Yeah. Yeaah! How do people do this?! This is insane.! literally me five days a week. So anytime I was going to. another place that was far away, bus is usually the fastest and the cheapest the way too get their. And it was always this hectic? Yeah, I mean, it this is not that bad. It can be more hectic for sure. Because this guy's holding my belly. Thank you.
How much is a bus ticket? 30 Takas. So it's like 20. 20 cents. 25, less than 25 cents for like a one-way fare. You got to just punch the ceiling, that's the best way. So the women sit up front in the bus and the men sit in the back for the most part. It's really interesting how it works. Use your left foot to step off or the momentum will drag you back. Use my left foot to step off. Yeah. Oh. Whoo! That was about as crazy as a bus ride could possibly get. In Dhaka, the wealth gap is staggering. You can step off a crowded bus and just minutes later, be looking out from a luxury rooftop.
It really feels like two worlds stacked on top of each other. Standing up here on a balcony overlooking the extremely polluted river of Dhaka. It's crazy, all these huge ferries are going to neighboring cities. Like, people ride it for six eight hours. And they're big boats, like four decks. And then you have all the small wooden boats that cross the river, which we're about to go down and try. It's just crazy to. feel the scale of this river. So many people cross it every day. And it's extremely stinky and polluted.
Tell me a little bit about what it's like to live in Dhaka. Of course, it's one of the most densely populated places in the world. So there's, like no matter where you go, there's an insane amount of people. And with that, like, there's a lot of noise and traffic and, you know whatever comes with that. I know that you grew up here. So it's normal, it's normal for you, but like. Yes if. How does that impact your life that you're stuck in traffic all the time Yeah. Here it's just insane. Like, you can see the contrast when you go to another city.
I know that you're young, but if you could say any message to people in the world, any words of wisdom, what would you tell them? You will feel like the world sort of like. Tries to push you down a lot but if you get through that, like if you get through that feeling, you will find that you can achieve honestly a lot. Honestly, like, more than you thought you could. Are you from Bangladesh? So, yeah, my parents are Bangladeshi. I'm actually from England.
Got it. You're from England, and. what's your experience like being in Dhaka right now? Yeah. I've tried every mode of transport today. I went on the Metro rail, which was really fun. Uhm. I've also learned how to ride a motorbike. Uhh, which was amazing. I, I managed to drive on the. expressway. I really enjoyed that. You go? Yeah. I did, I did actually. You go? My story here is about the traffic. And the chaos and how are people living in this insane traffic and the dangerous roads?
Yeah. You know what's really nice about the people here? They're very patient and resilient. That is true. They manage to get out of very sticky situations very easily and quickly. They've got eyes in the back of their head. We're going to try some paan because she says she likes it. First we got to cross the road. Well, obviously you need to be careful because people don't care about space here, so you just got to. Show that you exist here.
Yeah. Use your authority. I do. I do, actually. When I'm here. How do you deal with all, like the. The stairs on the street and like, maybe harassing me. I stare back at them. Okay, good answer. Is this approved by Mayor? Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I said the sweet paan. Because I quite like that one. Okay, cool. Okay. So. Do you want one, too? Go on. Uh. I will try it for a second, but I won't be able to, like. You can handle it! Come on let's go.
Let's do it together. Because you grew up in the UK, but you're Bangladeshi, do you have like, an identity crisis a little bit? Oh, absolutely. Because you're always fighting both sides, aren't you? You know, the societal attitudes here are very different. Conservative in some ways, liberal in some ways. I mean, over there, Bangladeshis are also conservative in other ways. Yeah. Cheers!
It's like, a thousand different flavors in one. It's good. You like that? Yeah, I do. It's yummy. Keep chewing. That makes your teeth like red. Does it? I love it. I think I've had enough already. No, you have to keep chewing it. The good bit is still coming. Alright, I'm chewing it more. When the juice starts to go. Oh, wow. Is it nice? It's nice, but I'm going to have diarrhea for like, three days. No, you don't wish for things like that.
There's all these dudes trying to get us to ride their boat. There's so many wooden boats here! It is said that 50 to 100,000 people cross this river every single day. That's more than some airports! It's funny that this is the most peace and calmness we've had on this whole trip so far. If you ever visit Dhaka, you have to take this boat ride. It's totally worth it. It's a different perspective of the city. It's really beautiful out here. Now, how much is this boat ride?
It's a 10 taka per person, which is like, 8 cents. That's the most enjoyable 8 cents I think I've spent my entire life. We are floating in a sea of diesel, fish, and lots of people! Hi! How are you? So they just finished their exams for school, I guess, like a Thursday weekend. So they're just going out for, like, a family trip. Just going out chilling, in the river. It's really nice right now. The call to prayer is coming on. All the lights are illuminating the city.
It's like the most peaceful moment I've had in a long time, bro. This is, wonderful. It's a lot happening, but all of it combined, somehow feels peaceful. What is that? So here a food. Yeah, I think it gave us some food. Thank you. The lovely family just gave us some. bread? It's like, like a donut. Try it. Yeah. As we float down the river, I can't help but think about how insane the last 24 hours have been, taking trains, rickshaws, buses, cars and boats across Dhaka.
It's loud, it's crowded, it's unpredictable, but it's also full of life. That's the beauty of Bangladesh. Beneath all the honking and the hustle, there's this unstoppable rhythm that keeps everything flowing. So while the roads might be dangerous, the spirit of the Bangladeshi people is what truly drives this city forward. Thanks again to MyHeritage for sponsoring this video. Scan the QR code or click the link below and use code BINSKY, to get MyHeritage for $25. I will see you guys next week as we explore the smallest and wackiest homes in Amsterdam.
