Children of The Sea 11: Nightwish

When I first went to Coxsbazar, I was a small child. It was back in 1985. Surprisingly enough, I have a lot of memories of that tour, inscribed in my mind. There was this restaurant called “Niribili”, where my mom and dad went to have lunch on two occasions. I particularly remember that place because when my mom was feeding me rice and fish, a large, white cat came and started cat-walking under the table. I always had a soft corner for the feline species, and Tom was my favorite cartoon character. One of my childhood fantasies was Tom and Jerry would visit me someday, and me and Tom will have a great time chasing Jerry together. I even had a Tom and Jerry bed sheet!

I tried finding Niribili restaurant when I came here with my GP colleagues, but didn’t get enough time to do so. This time, I really wanted to visit that place, just to find any resemblance with the vague memory clips that are stored in my mind and the present. My friends were also interested in visiting that place, as the name is still known for good food at a cheaper price.

After the shopping spree, all of us were lacking in funds. Moreover, we spent a lot of extra money, mostly on food and drinks. The meal at Angel Drop proved to be too expensive. So we were looking forward to a cheaper meal this time. This might sound funny, and here, sitting in a comfortable chair and with a filled up stomach, it sounds humorous to me as well at a group of young guys spent so much time selecting a suitable place for dinner, when they were on a tour. But hey, food is important!

We got some rickshaws and they took us to some Niribili hotel. This place had nothing to do with my 1985 memory, and I suddenly realized that it was 20 years ago, and I am being a fool by trying to find some of the things that I saw in 1985, standing here in year 2005. That place didn’t look nice, and food was not available either.

We ended up having dinner in some other restaurant. That too was the dining hall of a hotel, and the food was cheap and delicious. We finally had Rupchada fish, which is one delicacy that no one should miss while staying in Coxsbazar.

All of us were tired, and yet we wanted to go to Angel Drop on our way back. None of us were sure when again we’ll visit Coxsbazar, and let alone visiting together. Angel Drop was undoubtedly the highlight of our tour, and Alas, we had no photographs of that place. Me and Tushar were in particular not interested to go. At that time I didn’t express my feelings, but now I confess, it was really hard going there. I was totally exhausted from the day’s toil. We did so many things on that day….we went shopping, we pushed a car out of mud, we visited two sea beaches, we stood still on a Jeep for several hours, we had a heavy dinner, we didn’t have anything for lunch, etc.

However, I must say, if we didn’t go there that night, our tour wouldn’t have been complete. Angel Drop and Kolatoli beach deserved a second visit, and we loved every moment of that second sitting. All of us were present, and we had two rounds of coffee. The sea was mysterious as always, and I had that feeling again….the restaurant is moving on the water like a ship on the sea.

At around 11 PM, the guys in the restaurant told us very politely that they’d be closing soon. So we had to get going. We bade a final farewell to the marvelous view, and started heading towards the rickshaws that we kept waiting. I knew I’ll get back there some time.

“I Will Be Back”, was the sentence that echoed in my mind.

When we entered the cottage, we had mixed emotions. One part of the mind was sad because this was going to be the last night in Coxsbazar. The other part was happy because I was going to get some rest after the day’s hectic schedule. We planned that now we’ll take some rest, and at around 3 AM, we’ll head off to the beach. We wanted to see the sunrise next morning.

I don’t quite remember what the exact time when I heard people talking about getting ready and going to the beach. But I heard voices, got up, and when everyone else (except Sujit) started going out, I joined them. Suji, as usual, was not very interested in going to the beach, and decided to continue the nap instead.

Anyways, me, Tushar, Pintu, Ashique and Murshid reached the beach and found the place very nice and serene. There were some unwanted spotlights lit here and there, which made the place gleaming. It was a Full Moon day, and it would have been a lot better if all other lights were turned off. But there was nothing we could do about this.

There was some beach chairs laid here and there. We rented three of them, and joined them together for our comfort. A young lad made an agreement with us, which also gave him the exclusive rights for selling Coffee and Tea to us!

After reserving the chairs, we decided to take a walk. The sea was calm and the place was quiet. Soon afterwards, we all settled down in to the chairs, and we started a philosophical discussion on the family structure, and essential elements of maintaining a happy family(!). According to Ashique, it is very hard to be happy in conjugal life. This is quite true....jhogras and kechal is almost always there, and apparently, these things are more prevalent in couples who went out together before getting married.

After a while, Tushar got bored and started listening to his diskman. Pintu went sleeping. After a while, I also started "jhimanifying", and hence I don't really recall much else about that night. I heard people talking, but I was trying to sleep under the open sky, and in presence of the full moon. I always wanted to spend a moonlit night outdoors, but never got the right opportunity of doing so.

The Sea at 8 AM

Eventually I fell asleep, and had quite a good sleep. I woke up again just before the sunrise. I was waiting for this moment...when the glorious sun would rise, and I can see the scenery. But unfortunately, although I was awake, I was not fully awake. I was in a "stuck in the middle" state....a constant fight between slumber and awareness was going on. At around 6 AM, we all got up.

Pintu and Murshid decided to go back to the cottage, while we three stayed back. We stayed there till 9 AM, and enjoyed proximity of the sea for the last time, at least for this journey.

This time around, the sea was really violent, with waves after waves hitting us like lightning bolts. I lost control of myself multiple times, and I was fortunate to be able to keep my spectacles with me. I always think that I will leave my glasses behind before entering the sea, but I barely see without glasses, and hence that never happens. Maybe I should get contact lenses. Being able to enjoy the sea properly could be a good enough reason to get a laser operation or a pair of contact lenses.

My legs were feeling heavier by the minutes, and it was a long walk back to the cottage. The distance was not that big, but our heavy minds made it tough. When we were walking, we were not that sad, as the memory of the sea was still fresh in our minds. But as soon as I stepped inside the cottage room, I knew that it'll take a long time before I could actually go to the seas again.

Sigh.....writing this whole story was a memorable incident for me. I smiled while writing, I felt emptyness within myself while writing, and now I am feeling sad for saying that this story is...

To be concluded

in the next episode.