A bright, sunny day brought tens of thousands of Kolkatans outdoors on Sunday.
The usual tourist hotspots — the Victoria Memorial, Alipore zoo, Maidan and Eco Park, among others — teemed with people. There were long queues outside almost all restaurants on Park Street.
The shopping hubs, including New Market, too, were bursting with people. Many people were outdoors till late in the evening soaking in the festive ambience a day before Christmas.
The pavements along Park Street resembled a sea of heads as people from far and near gathered to see the festive lights.
Saikat Konar had come with a large group of 15, which included friends and family, from New Town. He was among those waiting outside Peter Cat on Sunday afternoon. “It seems like it would be a long wait. The tables inside are fully taken,” he said.
“Mocambo and Peter Cat both were full by noon. Peter Hu became fully occupied a little later. This year has been better than last year and we are having full occuancy every day. Things started building up from early December,” said Nitin Kothari, owner of Peter Cat, Peter Hu and Mocambo.
“There was a good turnout for lunch. We had jazz playing,” said Anand Puri, owner of Trincas.
Those arriving in Park Street in own cars struggled to find parking space.
Shubhankar Sengupta, director of Alipore zoo, said nearly 71,000 people had bought entry tickets on Sunday. It was the highest single-day turnout at the zoo this winter.
“We open our gates at 9am. But today the gates were opened at 8.30am because there was already a sizeable number of people outside waiting to come in,” said Sengupta.
There were altogether 36 ticket counters, incluing six for those who had purchased online tickets.
A group of 20 from Haldia was spotted in the zoo compound. “The kids in the group — and there are quite a few — are becoming impatient because of the long wait at the ticket counter,” said a member of the group.
“We also have plans to visit the Victoria Memorial and a few other places.”
About 5,000 people descended on Elgin Road for various activities on Sunday morning. The activities included bursting of baloons, graffiti painting and zumba dances on a stretch of Elgin Road between 5am and 9.30am. The councillor of Ward 70, Ashim Bose, was among the organisers of the events.
The fairs going on in Kolkata and New Town drew sizeable footfall.
A woman who went to Saras Mela in New Town, organised by the state government, said she loved visiting fairs in winter.
“I enjoy the celebratory mood in the fairs. Winter is the only season to have some outdoor enjoyment in Kolkata,” she said.
Eco Park in New Town was a top draw, too. More than 40,000 people visited the park, according to an official of Hidco, which manages the park.
The stretch of the Major Arterial Road (MAR) in New Town had a stream of cars, buses and other vehicles headed to Eco Park throughout
the day.
By 4pm, the parking spaces at Eco Park were almost full. Inside was a riot of colours, red being the dominant one. Many revellers were sporting Santa caps and colourful
goggles.
A picnic feel pervaded the park as many families had lunch in the sprawling 480-acre compound. Boat, cycle and toy train rides were the crowd favourites. Many tried their hands at archery, too.
Nicco Park in Salt Lake, an old favourite, had a footfall of around 5,000.
Families with children were spotted at the park enjoying toy train and moon raker rides.
Neil Sen Chaudhuri, a resident of Salt Lake, visited the amusement park in Salt Lake with his seven-year-old son Aryan.
“We had a lot of fun. I have fond memories of this park as I used to visit it as a kid. My son and I both had a great time and we took nearly all the rides here,” said Chaudhuri.
The father and the son had lunch at the food court.