After throwing two darts and going where they landed, Svalbard and then Russia, we decided to do this as a full reality show, consisting of 12 episodes.
Which meant we had to throw 12 different darts, but we needed an epic location. We didn’t want to do it at home, and we didn’t want to do it at a social event.
We wanted to create an amazing experience that no many can do. So, we went to India, where my friend Matt had discovered years ago an amazing team of friends, the boys at Skynet, an IT company from Kolkata that partnered up with him to create Idea Vessel.
I went to India twice to meet and spend time with Arindam Chowdhuri and Satinath Mondal, two of the most amazing individuals you will ever meet. Intelligent, caring, family men, and extremely good at computers – running a team of 30 talented IT technicians.
Actions That Inspire Travel: Find Them
When we told Arin and Sat that we want to throw 12 darts in India, they got excited and promised they would provide us the best experience and set. And boy, did they ever do it.
During my first trip to India, we went for a visit to Arin and Sat’s hometown, Berhampore, in West Bengal. Berhampore has 500,000 souls, but my boys called it ‘the village.’
On the way there, we passed by a fantastic location: an abandoned 400-year old Temple, Katra Masjid, made out of red brick and imposing a powerful respect. In translation, Katra Masjid means the Market Mosque.
This historical place is also the tomb of Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, buried under the entrance staircase, and was built between 1723 and 1724. The Katra Masjid temple has two amazing large corner towers, both having loopholes for musketry.
We knew right away that we want to shoot the 12 darts there, as long as we can get permission to film in such an exotic, yet amazing place.
That’s what happened. It took us about a month after submitting a request to get a shooting permit before we went to India again.
It took us a day to film the dart throws, but we did it with style. Using drone shots, a couple of FS7s, and two GoPro’s. Watch the reduced 2-minute trailer below.
We were debating if we should make public the 12 destinations before going there, and even to this point…we haven’t yet.
One important aspect was that all 12 dart throws were genuine: we didn’t throw again when we hit a bad location, we didn’t reject any of the countries/regions we hit.
You will have to hit the Subscribe button on this page so I can keep you in the loop with spurts of travel inspiration, all the episodes and other amazing videos that we will do in every location.
What you need to know is that all 12 are countries/regions that not too many people go (most of them are remote islands and a couple of big popular destinations).
However, we decided to release the location of the first dart throw. I hit the map in the middle of Pacific Ocean, close to Polynesia. The closest land mass was Easter Island, which is one of the remotest islands in the world.
So… we went there!!! You can follow me on social media to see what happened in Easter Island, but I still have something to write about India.
Places To Visit In Kolkata
Kolkata and its suburbs have 14.1 million people, while the actual core of the city has about 4.5 million. The first time I went there I was in awe with the Victoria Memorial and wanted to throw the darts there, but we were not allowed on short notice, and a permit would take too long to get.
Historical structures like the Writers Building and the St. Paul’s Cathedral are amazing samples of the city’s royal past. On the other hand, make sure you visit the majestic Howrah Bridge, or take a ride down the Hooghly River from Princep Ghat in the evening.
If you are more on the religious side, Kalighat Temple and the Belur Math are good places to see.
Want A Beer In India? Be Smart Like I Wasn’t
I want to share with you a story that is embarrassing, but I had to go through – so hopefully some of you don’t.
I happened to have my birthday while in Kolkata. We went out to a fancy place with a few people. I offered to pay the bill before the waiter took our order. I just wanted to have a few brews.
While my guests and myself looked at the drinks menu, we saw that the bar has Heineken, Stella Artois, and Corona, which I was happy about, since I am a big beer drinker (as a soccer player, I need to hydrate myself a lot, you know?).
The only interesting part was that while the Heineken and Stella was about only $1 per bottle, Corona was about $4.
I was wondering why, but didn’t care much, so I let my guests order a bunch of Coronas, while I was happy with my Stellas and Heinekens. Blindfolded by the price.
Well…. the night went well, but for the next 24 hours I hit the toilet for about six times…my stomach was acting up. I felt like I consumed water, fruits, beer, and milk – all in the same time.
Next day, I shared my pain with a local friend, and he said: “Did you order Heineken and Stella here???” They are brewed by the real recipe, but they are made with local water, which is, well, Indian water”. Which, of course, sometimes may be a bit contaminated.
Corona is the only beer that is imported as is, and is not brewed in India. That’s why all my friends ordered Coronas!
Lesson learned, and hopefully you do, too, if you are there.
Feel free to leave a comment below or read my stories from Svalbard and Russia, where we went after we threw the first two darts. Or, you can check out my adventures in Colombia and Panama.
