ODE TO THE ANDAMANS

November was closing in and so were my end-sem exams. So my family,had decided to take a trip to the ANDAMANS. I personally am a mountain person than a beach lover, at least that was what I believed. It was a hopping flight to Port Blair. We were picked up at the airport by the tour operator and transferred to a 3 star Hotel.

We had reached early morning and had to quickly get ready for the day 1 tour. It was ferry ride to a group of three magnificent islands. First the ROSS ISLAND. It had a lavish french history attached to it, along with the clear details of the tsunami damages caused. Our guide was a well over 50 lady having more vigor then any two of us put together. The local deers an uncanny attraction and bonding with her.

Then we went to the VIPER ISLAND. The reason the name is, that the place is full of venomous viper snakes. It is absolutely uninhabited and yet the stillness of the place is extraordinarily mesmerizing. The associated history behind the island is that the freedom fighters who were given death penalty were brought here to be hanged. The guide here again, had lot of vibrancy and a sense of belonging towards the ANDAMANS.

Next was THE NORTH BAY ISLAND. What comes first to your mind when I say corals?... Still thinking..right..?? Exactly. I also never possibly thought what I would be seeing when it meant Corals. They are easily THE most beautiful, colorful and astoundingly astonishing growing creatures that you can't possibly imagine. Those who have any idea of image processing and the 2 to the power 8 -1 possibilities of combination , would also end up biting nails looking at the vastness and variations of color, size, that they are found in..!!AWESOME

The waves were doing their bit by giving quiet a few pushes, on our way back, but amidst the wobbling waters, and right at the nose of the deck (the re-narration of the famous TITANIC scene, only had there been a ROSE too), I watched the already fading sunlight die.

Next morning we took a cruise to the HAVELOCK ISLANDS for an overnight stay. Sparsely populated but having a lot of life of its own, the place promised a delightful experience. It was not late before we learned that there would a Beach Festival taking place in the evening and that along with the locals, LESLI LEWIS was to perform.

So we planned accordingly. We went to the White sand ELEPHANTA beach after a quick brunch. I did snorkeling there too, only to realize that it is very difficult to get over the surprisingly resplendent corals. In the late afternoon, we went to the Radhanagar Beach. The name may sound mundane, but it rightly deserved to be 7th most beautiful beach in the world. We saw the sun die. The innateness of watching the sun go down into the sea waters is that you get lost in the imagery and picturesqueness it produces, so much so, that it gets hard to return.

In the evening we attended the Beach festival. With a backdrop of moonlit clear waters, when you have awesome group of people performing, the whole crescendo goes far beyond reality. It was great. The next day we returned to Port Blair for local sight seeing. In the afternoon we again took a ferry down to the Limestone Caves.Beyond a point, they take you through the thick mangrove covered forest in a steamer boat.Then, it feels you are no less than a NatGeo enthusiast.

In the evening we attended the Light and Sound show at the Cellular jail. It was very touching and made us realize the sacrifice that was made during the freedom fight. The wrath that the revolutionaries faced and still lived with heads held high was although very disturbing but it made me feel really proud of the country. We had to return the next day.

In a nutshell, the phenomenal islands , exemplary food and accommodation and the pretty Kingfisher airlines' hostesses, did the trick. I had a genuine attachment with the place which will stay with me until I visit again.

ADIOS..!!