Cox’s Bazar trip with school friends (Sudiptha Nath, 22304081)

All hangouts with school friends included this one thing- a vacation plan. Which friend group after a good hangout didn't decide "we need to go Cox's bazar once"? Now we're all in different universities with poles apart, time schedules and with some, even the countries and time zones are different. That one "Cox's bazar"(https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tLP1TcwKsu2zC0xYPTiTM6vUEhKrEosAgBRrAc7&q=cox+bazar&rlz=1C1ONGR_enBD1039BD1039&oq=cox&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j46i20i263i433i512j0i433i512j0i131i433i512j0i433i512j46i512j0i512l2j46i512j0i271.2594j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 ) plan never happened.  

 

                                                                               

 

Well, until last semester break. Five of us one day planned one more Cox's Bazar trip and the next thing we knew, the night after we were in a train. We laughed to our heart's content the entire night at the same old remember-when conversations in the midst of snoring passengers. 

 

One of our friends decided to get down at every station for the "thrill" of it, as he'd call it. The thrill went too far when he was roaming around the station and the train started. Our brother had to run with his life in hands and we couldn't decide whether to laugh first or pull him up. It was hectic and only added to this once in a lifetime experience. 

 

One thing I will personally suggest is to visit Cox's Bazar during off-season. We didn't have to try to book a hotel, the whole place wasn't flooded with tourists, everything was less expensive and the restaurants were almost empty. 

 

The food there is almost heavenly. I can bet I never had such amazing sea food in my entire life. Well, it makes sense considering we were eating seafood by the sea. The "shalik" trips at midnight has to be one of my favourite takeaways from the tour. I never knew bharta and Dal could taste this good until I stepped into “shalik”. I think the running around and exhaustion just made the food taste a thousand folds better. 

 

Then comes the experience of the whole thing. I'll specially highlight the beach at night. We were sitting on the sand every night, surrounded with the sound of monstrous yet so peaceful waves, under the moon and all of a sudden, we realized how far we live from tranquility as such. We played guitar, sang songs, just five 21 years old city guys talking and laughing and charring marshmallows. It was winter, the nights in coastal areas were especially cold. Our teeth were clattering and we didn't have one care in the world. 

 

We went on jet skiing almost every day of the trip, rode scooters around the curvy hilly roads, kayaking(https://www.google.com/search?q=kayaking+in+cox%27s+bazar&rlz=1C1ONGR_enBD1039BD1039&oq=kayaking+in+co&aqs=chrome.0.0i512j69i57j0i512l8.8613j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 ) and everything we could find within arms-reach. The one thing I still randomly think about and laugh is how my friends got their boat got stuck in between two pillars. All I'll say is, we went quite adventurous on this trip. In our defense, if not now, when? 

 

 

When we were laughing our lungs out on the beach, we went back 5 years and were those school kids again. When we were having fist fights on the sand, laughing breathlessly, who'd say we were well grown up 21 years old with real life responsibilities to tend to? 

 

I'll always be glad I took this trip. Cox's Bazar plans are an integral part of every school group. I'm eternally grateful we could make it happen, be it late. Go on the trip you planned for years. Take the risk. Laugh with friends who make life a little more bearable. Full-fill your own dreams. Have that once in a lifetime experience. At least you won't be in your deathbed thinking, "I should have taken that trip when I could." I know I won't live my life wishing I could go to Cox's Bazar with these people because I did and what a tale to tell my kids!