This is just so hard to believe. It seems like yesterday when I joined the two-year course at IMI, and today began my last week here. My student life is coming to an end, and I take this moment to recount my trip to Rishikesh recently.
About 51 of us are part of a course called Self Discovery and Personal Growth, or SDPG, which is easily the best course I've ever applied to. It was all about, as the name suggests, introspection. So the classes we had encouraged us to talk about our deepest emotions - for ourself, for those around us, for anything under the sun. And the best part of it was a three-day trip to Rishikesh for the purpose of instilling in us necessary qualities as leadership and teamwork.
We left campus at 11 pm on March 17, and were to return on March 22 at midnight. Our friends who weren't part of the course saw our two buses off, and we arrived at Rishikesh at 7 the next morning. Our campsite was right at the riverside, and we descended a hill to reach it. Temporary arrangements of sanitation seemed to be quite a dampener to the trip, but it was a necessary part of what we called 'adventure'.
Day 1 began with three fun activities post-breakfast. The first was called 'Trust Fall', and required us to jump off a boulder with our friends below to catch us. Mind you, I'd never felt more grateful to my friends before that moment. The next two activities involved team spirit, and were great fun. Lunch followed, and after that was done we were too tired to continue with anything else. So I with a group of friends went trekking back into the village. We returned when night began to fall, and were greeted with our friends holding kerosene lamps - the campsite, after all, had no electricity. A bonfire was lit and we dined besides the cackling fire.
Day 2 dawned bright and cheery, and soon after breakfast we headed off to a mountain for the first activity of the day. 'River Crossing' required us to simulate crossing a river through a rope bridge, only there was no gushing water beneath us. We created the rope bridge between two huge trees, and crossed it in turns. Soon after, it was time for the most awaited of all activities - rafting. Oh!! It was so much fun, especially the rapids and us going right into the water (no less than four times, including once into a rapid). Those hours spent in the Alaknanda aboard a raft are definitely amongst the most memorable times of my life. And I thank our guide Arjun for making it such an unforgettable event. Once we were back to the camp after having coursed the river, we were much too tired to attemot anything else, so we called it a day. We were famished, to say the least, and could concentrate on nothing more than eating (read hogging).
Day 3 began with rock climbing, early in the day since we had to leave for IMI in the afternoon. This was as much fun as rafting, and we had a great time either climbing or watching others climb. The success of the event was duly celebrated with soft-drinks and crisps that the little boy from the kitchens had bought us. Immediately after lunch, we hiked up that hill we'd descended the first day to board our buses. Homeward bound, the bus journey was no less memorable as we screamed ourselves hoarse when playing dumb charades and antakshari.
We reached college at midnight, as per the schedule, and went straight to our beds - tired and worn-out, but so very happy. Undoubtedly, Rishikesh is idyllic, and rafting is pure bliss. The crystal-clear sparkling water and the glittering sands override the scorching heat, and all one sees is Mother Nature at her prettiest.