The city sprawls along the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, a tributary of the Ganges, which divides it from Howrah on the western bank. For travelers, the most relevant parts of Kolkata are south of the Howrah Bridge in the areas around BBD Bagh and Chowringhee.

• Take a walk along the river. There is a good promenade near Eden Garden.

• Take a stroll down memory lane at Princep ghat.

• Take a boat cruise in small boats under the starlit sky at Outram Ghat.

• Several modern cinemas are dotted around the city, including INOX at the Forum Shopping Mall and the City Centre in Salt Lake, 89 Cinemas at Swabhumi near Salt Lake City and Fame at Metropolis Mall in Highland Park, all showing Indian and American blockbusters.

• Nandan, 1/1 AJC Bose Road, (east of Rabindra Sadan metro station) +33 2223 1210. The symbol of art and culture in the city and the site of the Kolkata Film Festival every November.

• Football (soccer) is a passion for many Kolkatans with the national clubs, Mohun Bagan Athletic Club [8] and East Bengal Club [9] being the best known teams.

• The Kolkata Book Fair [10] takes place from the last week of January to the first week of February. This is the largest book fair in Asia and is a major event in the city.
• Durga Puja, a festival honoring the Hindu goddess Durga, takes place in October. The biggest festival for Hindus in Bengal and Eastern India, Kolkata takes on an almost carnival like ambiance. Streets shut down for the construction of pandals, large stands that depict events from the Ramayana and crowds flock to the biggest and best ones. A great time to visit Kolkata (unless you have a fear of crowds!).

Kolkata was famous for having the best restaurants long before Indians in other cities learned to eat out. Many of the restaurants that line the streets in the Esplanade area have been around for more than a hundred years (unfortunately, many also show their age!). Flury's, on Park Street, was once considered the best English bakery in all of Asia and you can almost imagine Joe Stilwell and Lord Mountbatten arguing over who had command over the allied forces in Burma while enjoying tea, scones, and clotted cream!

But the joy of food in Kolkata is in its Indian foods. Nizam's, in New Market, is credited with the invention of the famous Kati Kebab roll and still serves up the best of the best. Street vendors selling egg rolls/chicken rolls abound and their freshly prepared kati rolls are safe to eat and enjoy. Mughali Paratha (a paratha stuffed with minced meat) is a Calcutta speciality and can be found in various 'cabins' off Chowringhee Road. 'Chops', a sort of deep fried ball stuffed with beet and veggies is another peculiarity that you won't find anywhere else in the world. Puchkas, the Calcutta version of paani-puri, is available on the streets but be wary of the water!

Bengali sweets are famous all over India. Rasagolla (cheese balls dipped in a sugary syrup), Pantua - a fried variant of the same, Rasomalai- the same cheeseballs dipped in creamy sweetened milk, Mishti Dahi (sweet yogurt), Sandesh (several variations available). Try some shops like K.C. Das, Bhim Nag, Nakur Nandy, Sen Mahasoy, Ganguram and not to forget Mithai. These are cheap and should be eaten fresh.

Kolkata is also the home of Indian Chinese food (now making inroads in far-off New York!). Chinese restaurants are everywhere so try the Indian variant of hot and sour soup and the famous Indian chinese dish of chilli chicken.

Bengali food is centered around fish. Macher jhol, literally fish in water, is a watery fish curry available everywhere and goes well with rice, but Bengalis everywhere swear by the hilsa fish (a variant of shad). Hilsa, lightly marinaded in mustard and steamed is up there with the best fish dishes in the world. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to find a restaurant serving Bengali food so try to make friends with a local! There are a few restaurants which serve Authentic Bengali food, try out "Aaheli" at Peerless Inn or "Oh! Kolkata" or the Cheaper "Suruchi" at 89 Elliot Road