A beach vacation.....

This January, we travelled to the Andaman Islands. We reached Howrah station on January 11 and then proceeded to the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, where we boarded the two-hour long flight to Port Blair.

At Port Blair, we checked into our hotel and freshened up. After a light snack, we headed out for the famous Cellular Jail, where we witnessed the ‘Light and Sound Show’. We also went to the Sagarika Emporium and bought a few souvenirs. That evening, we took an early dinner and went to bed, for at 2:30 am that night, we were to leave for Baratang – a place in the North Andamans. It was a memorable and rare ride, as we had to go through the deep forest of Jirkatang, which is home to the ancient Jarwa tribe. However, we were not lucky enough to see any of them on the way in. We did see many mangrove plants and visited the Limestone Cave where stones of various shapes occur naturally. On our way back, we were delighted to see a group of the Jarwa tribe.

After coming back to Port Blair, we went to the Satsang Vihar of Sri Sri Anukul Thakur and offered our prayers. We also visited Jogger’s Park. It was fun to see the joggers walking along the narrow, zig-zag, beautiful lanes! The park offered a panoramic view of Port Blair Airport and a greater part of the city.

In the morning, we headed towards our next destination – Havelock. The journey was very exciting as we sailed through the enormous, blue sea. At Havelock, we checked into a hotel and quickly headed for the beach which was right behind the hotel. We played in the water. After sometime, we headed for the Kalapathar Beach. There we played, and drank cool coconut juice. We then went to the Radhanagar Beach, which is said to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. We lazed around on the beach for a long time, waiting to witness the famous Radhanagar sunset. And yes, indeed, the sunset was mesmerising.

The next day we went to the Elephant Beach by a motorboat. There, we went snorkelling and saw a variety of colourful sea creatures, fish and coral reefs. The guide took us deeper and deeper! He also took some underwater photos for us. Oh, what fun we had!

The next day we returned to Port Blair by a ferry and flew back to Kolkata. From there, we boarded the Saraighat Express and came back home with many wonderful memories.