SLC31-W5" // Steem Expedition, Hidden Gems and Local Secrets: Legacy of the Ancients.

Hello friends, I hope you are all well. For the fifth week of the Steemit Challenge contest, I will be sharing my experience and a review of Hidden Gems and Local Secrets. I would like to thank the organizers of this challenge, and without further delay, I am starting my participation.

Alankar Market Building

As a legacy of the past, I have visited the Alankar Shopping Complex building. It is a very old structure that has remained an iconic building to the people of Chittagong. Primarily, it is a market or shopping complex, but it has a history and has undergone many changes, which is why everyone recognizes it.

This market of Alankar is located at the Alankar intersection . The building was named after its location. It remains open every day of the week except Sunday. Not all floors of this building are used as a market; only the first two floors house various shops, while some floors still remain abandoned.

When was this place built or when did records begin? Briefly tell us what its original function was, and whether it still serves that function.

This structure was built nearly 30 years ago, in 1996. The building has a lot of history and has seen many transitions, including incidents as significant as a major fire. Currently, the first 2-3 floors of the building are being used as a shopping mall.

In the very beginning, its structure was smaller and had fewer floors. As far as I know, there was initially a cinema hall here. Later, when the golden era of Bangladesh's Ready-Made Garments sector began, a garment factory was established here. Now, at present, it functions solely as a market.

How important is this place to your community or to you personally?

The service this building currently provides is very important and necessary for me and the people of my community. Firstly, we live in a Upazila town, and the large markets or shopping malls where everything is easily available are very far from us.

Since there are no other large shopping malls near the Upazila town to meet the shopping demands of the local people, everything became accessible once this building was converted into the Alankar Shopping Complex.

It is extremely important for my community because clothing, electronics, daily groceries, and a raw kitchen market are all available here. The kitchen market is located on the ground floor next to the parking area, while the upper floors house the shopping mall.

It is significant to me because whenever I need something, I can easily come here from my house within a short distance and get the necessary items. If this didn't exist, I would have had to journey for hours to reach the big markets in the city, which is no longer necessary.

Why do you think it is important for new generations to know about this legacy?

The new generation needs to know about its legacy. Specifically, the history of how this structure began its journey is intertwined with our economy. The internal structure of this building has been modified several times because different types of establishments were housed here at different times.

The garment factory that was here in the beginning was one of the very first garment factories in Chittagong. This structure played a vital role in contributing to the garment sector of Bangladesh. At one time, it was also the primary place for the people of the Upazila to watch movies.

If you go to the top floor of the building, many abandoned items can still be seen. The paint and the structure of the building reveal just how old it truly is. Currently, because the lower floors house various shops, they are being maintained. It remains the closest shopping complex for the people of the Upazila where everything can be found.

In general terms, what do you like most about this site?

I personally find the exterior structural design of this site quite beautiful. Looking at it from the outside, one wouldn't realize that it is actually such an old building. A significant fire occurred here some time ago; after being closed for several days, the structure was repaired and re-established as a market.

Even though it is currently used as a shopping complex, it does not look like other typical shopping complexes because it wasn't originally built for that purpose. Although the internal structure has been changed several times, the exterior design has been kept the same.

From the outside, the building looks like a garment factory. The structures of garment buildings are usually very wide and not very tall, which preserves the history of its initial structure. Therefore, it looks less like a shopping complex and more like a garment factory. I find its exterior structure quite wonderful.

Here's the Steem Atlas pin and other details

Thank you to the organizers of this challenge. I invite my three friends, @edgergonzalez , @dove11, @jyoti-thelight to participate in this beautiful challenge topic.