Cycling Trip to Bakkhali

After a four-hour train journey from Sealdah station to Namkhana station, we were finally ready to start our cycling trip. Soma’s camps had organised a cycling trip from Namkhana to the beaches of Bakkhali. It was a 2-hour ride starting from a starting point inside Namkhana where we would all be delivered our bicycles. After a jittery cart ride through the lanes of Namkhana, after a boat ride and another cart ride from there, we finally reached the starting point of our trip. 10 bicycles were hired by soma from the locals of the area and though they were not racing track material, they would do for the purpose. It was 12 in the afternoon by the time we started.

Now you’d think cycling in the heat of Kolkata, in mid-noon would be a bad idea. But it wasn’t! Cycling through the empty bypass, the breeze was so nice that we didn’t feel much exhausted at all. Everyone cycled at their own pace, passing the vast fields, mud houses, people and their busy lives, we breezed along in our cycles. I have traversed by the lonely bypasses around the villages of Calcutta a lot of times but cycling was a new experience altogether. It was slow, breezy, we had the time and leisure to observe, wait, feel the ambiance and move along. A few short breaks in between to rest our legs and drink water, Soma and her team deftly handling the time and place of the stops and also keeping the group together so we don’t go astray. After two hours we were there, passing through Bakkhali and the several hotels. Soma didn’t stop at any of them and passed on to a narrower lane, I had yet not passed the beach and was wondering where we’d actually be staying. After a few turnabouts, we reached a huge bungalow, overlooking the Bakkhali beach, on the end of a very lonely, less traversed road. I could not believe the house, the location of it and how beautiful and perfect it all was. The house even had its own pond, which was

clean and absolutely usable. It was a bungalow given on rent, overlooking the quiet pristine beaches of Bakkhali. After the two hours ride, we were famished and dug into the elaborate spread and took a quick rest. In the afternoon I went out for a walk, along with the beach. A family of four, a few couples here and there, and mostly stray dogs were all that inhabited the beach. It was free from the chaos of a dozen people, a soft breeze blew as I walked inside the adjoining forest right in front of the beach. Being a Bengali, I have often traveled to Puri and Digha- the getaways for Bengali tourists, but Bakkhali was new. It is the closest to Kolkata journey-wise so secluded and cozy! Well, yes, the waves aren’t huge and you can not go far into the sea but it is great for lazying, taking mild dips into the sea and enjoying your own time. In the evening we all joined in to play a game of Antakshari and within some time everyone was singing along to retro Bollywood music and basking in the light of the moon outside.

Next day during breakfast Soma and her team arranged for some pretty innovative games, making use of a few things they had brought with them. Different sort of games was set up for the young to enjoy themselves while the older people walked along the beaches. After yet another filling lunch, we set out to cycle back home. We left near 2.30 from the bungalow and the weather was nice and not too sunny. While cycling the breeze got cooler and we swept past the fields and houses we had crossed while getting here. Everything seems different from a different light, a different perspective, a different setting and I felt the same while going back. The scenery around looked so beautiful, you’d want to stop and sit awhile. Everyone cycling on their own, maintaining a similar pace but not everyone was cycling together as well. Some cycled and walked, some raced and some like me cycled and observed the surroundings, the sun setting, the breeze blowing and thinking how beautiful this world is.