Bangladesh

Bangladesh is an enigma, due to its lush greenery and many waterways where Padma, Meghna and Jamuna rivers create fertile alluvial plains and travelling by boat is common in rural area of the country. On the southern coast is the Sundarbans - an enormous mangrove forest shared with India which are home to the Royal Bengal tigers while on the southeast corner is Cox’s Bazar, the golden beach and top tourist spot of the country with longest sea beach in the world. Bangladesh is often called “the playground of seasons” because it has six – not four – separate seasons, called Grishmo (Summer), Barsha (Rainy), Sharat (Autumn), Hemanta (Pre-winter), Sheet (Winter), and Bashonto (Spring).

Bangladesh, as the name suggests, speaks Bengali or Bangla. It is the de facto national language of the country. Bengali is also the official language of Bangladesh and serves as the nation’s lingua franca. English is often regarded as the de facto co-official language of the country.

Bangladesh is classified among the Next Eleven emerging market economies in the world and one of the fastest growing economies in the region – thanks largely to a flourishing garment export market which contributes a lion’s share to the country’s GDP. It is the second largest apparel exporter of western fashion brands.

The mangrove forests and tigers of the Sundarbans National Park are Bangladesh's most famous attractions while the Buddhist remains at Paharpur and the 15th-century mosques and mausoleums of Bagerhat are both UNESCO World Heritage Sites. While modern Bangladesh is majority Muslim, its hill tracts are still home to Buddhist and Christian Adivasi tribal people, while temples in Dhaka and beyond attest to the influence of Hindu culture on the country.