Traveling: My First Independent Adventure (Part 1)

March 9 - March 14, 2024

I have a dream, the ultimate one, that I will travel to the maximum portion of the earth before my death. I sometimes ask people, “What is one thing that will make you happy at the last stage of your life?” Most of the time, the answer they give is money, fame, or family. In some rare cases, their answer deals with their passion, which is what I want to hear. When I ask the same question to myself, I find that maybe the moment I spend looking at the auroras in Norway, the memory of a beautiful sunset I experience in Santorini, or the day I spend somewhere new, somewhere only a few know, will make me happy in my last days.

How many times have you heard, “The hardest thing to do is start”? Surely, more than once. I want to reiterate that again. Yes, starting is the hardest. Despite having a strong desire, I couldn’t make it happen. It’s been 17 years I've spent with myself, and I feel now it’s time to start. After finishing an exam, I planned to go on a tour with one of my friends. At first, we bought two bus tickets, then told our families that we were going to Chittagong, the largest city in Bangladesh. Since we had already bought the tickets, our families couldn’t stop us this time.

It was March 9, 2024. The reporting time was 11:00 PM for the bus. We arrived at the station, only to hear that the bus would be an hour late due to a technical problem. We were a little nervous because this was the first independent tour for both of us. As we were brave enough to take the decision, it was time to prove that the decision was right. (I feel no decision is right or wrong. It’s always about taking a decision and then making it right.)

March 10, 2024: After a long six-hour journey, we reached Chittagong at 6:00 AM. It was the start of summer, yet we felt so cold, perhaps due to the lack of moisture in the air. No wonder, we were in Patenga, Chittagong. I had a friend who lives in Patenga whom I met in my junior year of high school. I called him earlier and told him about our plan. He strongly suggested that we accept him as the host for the trip, and we accepted. (Fun fact: this friend and I share the same nickname, although his spelling is a little different from mine. He uses ‘Sany,’ and I use ‘Sunny.’)

From GEC, we took a CNG to the Navy Colony. After reaching our destination, we called Sany. He came to receive us, and after a while, we went to his apartment. After completing our breakfast, we took a short nap. Then we took a shower and started to make plans for the afternoon and evening. We decided to go to Patenga Sea Beach first and then to the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel.

I was extremely excited because it was my first time at a sea beach. I enjoyed the evening so much. The beach was a little bit crowded. I saw some couples taking pictures, boys playing football, and some enjoying coffee while watching the sunset. My friends and I took some great photos there. But to be honest, I didn’t enjoy the tunnel for some reason. Overall, the evening rated a 7 out of 10.

The next day's plan was to visit the Chattogram Medical College (CMC) Hospital and then go to the Port of Chittagong. Although the port was restricted for general people to enter, we managed it through Sany’s uncle’s help (Sany’s father is a member of the Bangladesh Navy). CMC was quite good. We met some of our high school seniors there and viewed the classrooms and labs. It was a good experience, and we tried some sweets in the canteen. After that, we went to the port, and my god, it was the best view. We saw one of Bangladesh's two submarines and took in a panoramic view of the entire port. It was a 10 out of 10 experience.

Reflections: This trip taught me that starting is indeed the hardest part, but once you take that leap, the experiences and memories you gather are priceless. Here's to many more adventures and fulfilling the dream of traveling the world!