Getting Warmer

The Orientation had been successfully over and all the students of the institute were familiar with the names of each other.... More to a few than the others. Before the commencement of the programmes, there was a psychological gap between the students and the faculty; and among the students which needed to be reduced. So here we were, for the trip we were all waiting for... A trip to Puri, Konark and the Bhubaneswar city; and looking back at the events I must admit that it was the phase which brought us all closer.
The first and the foremost priority was to explore Bhubaneswar, the city of temples as the natives call it. There were some remarkable events which are carved in our memories through this trip. The traditional art and culture of the city were the centre of attraction for everybody. A noticeable thing among it all was the cleanliness of the city. People here are so much concerned about keeping their city clean. It might not be exposed to the western culture like the metros, but it maintains its own identity. We came to know about the handloom industries here which contributes greatly to the fabulous textiles and apparel industries. We also moved on to see one of the finest B-schools in India- XIMB. It was good to see the bonding which was formed between the students during all this.
By now, everybody started to know each other well enough to laugh freely and play some charades in the bus. The journey between the destinations were proving out be the best part of the whole trip. The Antaksharis, Dumb-charades, and the dares were the only things we could have done to make this journey more exciting, and most of us will remember it for a very long time to come. It was taking quite some time for the next stop. Nevertheless, we reached Konark just at the right time to have a look at the most amazing structure ever made in this part of the world- The Sun temple. It was awe-inspiring to see a rock cut temple which was carved out magnificently to portray the art and some interesting scientific facts on what was the Chariot of Lord Surya itself. A building made centuries ago and still standing tall with some dedicated work which went into it. For me personally, the carving in the rock were something like I could have never imagined. In short, It is among the most Awesome things I've ever witnessed. All hail Lord Surya!!!
The next stop was Puri, and trust me all the students were eagerly waiting to feel the refreshing sea waters at the Puri beach. We reached there just at the hour of the sunset to see the beautiful sun setting amidst the sea. We all entered the famous Jagannath Puri temple which was as magnificent as the Sun temple of Konark. It was really crowded. We could have just imagined what it would have been like the 'Rath-Yatras'. The environment inside the temple was totally different. We all felt like we were in the court of Lord. Simply devotional. The facts which we came to know about the temple were even more interesting. The only thing all of us could have done was to feel the ambiance of that place. Jai Ho!!
We couldn't have waited any longer to take a plunge in the salty waters of Puri. All the students, especially the MFM boys rode the waves as if there was no tomorrow. To some of them it was the very first experience of the sea. And it will be memorable since it was the place where all the NIFTians had loads of fun. The splashing of the salty waters, which threw us all away is still missed by most of us. We hope to get some time to visit the beach again.
Finally, when we returned to the bus, we were all exhausted but had that smile on our faces which we wanted to have since the time we got here. We made our friends, we were all wet and silent while returning because we knew, that the next day wouldn't be the the same. At last, we were all warm!! :))