What to do and not to do when your giving a gift in Bangladesh

For a number of years the 'Goodmorning Bed & Breakfast', located in Bonani, has been a safe haven for visitors from many different countries. The guesthouse was suppose to be a training facility for young underprivilegde youth in Dhaka, and run by the Vialisa Foundation. However due to sickness of the founder of the foundation, the guesthouse had to close it's doors. An honest attempt to keep the guesthouse alive on a different location, with a legal status and a different management, turned out to be an idealistic, but impossible task.

So I decided to use this website for all you people who are planning to visit Bangladesh and can use some real life information about this city. I hope you find it usefull and if you do, please share and spread the word! We thank the people who have supported us and trusted us to be their host during their stay in crazy Dhaka.

Gifts giving

Gifts giving in Bangladesh Gifts are normally given between family members during religious holidays, especially during the two Eids. In larger cities it is more and more a customs also to give presents when someone celebrates his or her birthday.

Keep it simple!
In Bangladesh the importance of gifts is in the thought rather than the value. Part of the reason lies in the fact that gifts should be generally reciprocated and it would be considered rude to offer someone a gift that is difficult to reciprocate.

When you are visiting a Bangladeshi's home, it is more common to bring pastries, sweets or good quality chocolates. Also don’t be offended when you find out that the person you gave a present, used your present to give it to someone else.

Don't give this....
Please, if you bring flowers, remember that white flowers indicate mourning and avoid frangipanis as they are used at funerals. Don’t give alcohol, since this is forbidden by religion and law and don’t give any non-halal meat to Muslims.

Giving money
Children, especially after Eid and also poor people like to receive money, but in the upper-class this is not done!

Remember this...
When you give your gift, please use both hands, as this is seen as an appropriate way to give a present. Gifts usually are not opened in front of the person who gives the present. It will be done when you’re gone. So don’t be offended if they just put the present somewhere in a corner.

Where is the guesthouse?