Alhamdulillah, by Allah’s grace I’m home from the picnic and I’ve sat straight down to write about today. Our department has two outings every year. One is the picnic, where students from every year go somewhere together with all the teachers. The other is the study tour, which is a separate event for each year. Last time we had our study tour, but for various reasons there was no picnic, so I never knew what the picnic was really like. Today I went, and I loved it. I got up early and set off for campus, because yesterday’s first notice said we’d leave at 7, but the last one asked everyone to be there by 6:30. And why wouldn’t they? We were going to Gazipur, number one on the list of roads famous for traffic jams. The Champa resort at Bhawal National Park.
The morning bus
I knew in my heart that the buses wouldn’t actually leave campus that early. I know how everyone is by now. Still, you never know, so I got there on time. I had barely arrived when Sujon called and we talked for a bit. In front of the department there were only a few people and no sign of the rest. I put Shamim to work calling the others to find out where they were and to remind them what time it was.
We finally left for Bhawal a little before 8, the whole botany department in four buses. There was a bit of traffic, but our bus moved along nicely to the beat of the music. Breakfast was good: two slices of bread, a sweet, a boiled egg and an apple. At first I felt a little awkward because our teachers were sitting in the front seats, but the whole way they were right there with us. Whatever the boys and girls got up to, they didn’t say much. The rows of palash and debkanchan flowers along the road kept me staring out of the window. Around 10:30 we reached Champa without any trouble. One of our buses was already waiting outside because the gate wouldn’t open. The gate staff won’t open it without word from above. Our teachers sorted that out, and all our buses drove in together onto the narrow roads of that famous sal forest. Along the road there were signboards about different animals, their current status and how many of them live here. I was a bit surprised that there were only animals on them and not a single plant.
We all got off the buses in front of the resort. Juniors, seniors, the most senior of all, everyone standing together in one place. That’s the real fun of a picnic.
A boat, an auto and a Java cassia
The weather looked like it was turning, and we even got a little rain, but by Allah’s grace it cleared up. Our teachers told us Champa is the best resort there, the VVIP one, and it felt great that they had booked it for us. When they finished talking, everyone scattered wherever they liked. I went straight to the pond and got into a boat. I called Rasif, but he had his own plans and didn’t come. A few of us went out on the boat together. Seeing red water lilies in the pond was a real joy. That alone can turn a boat ride into something special.
I had just got off the boat and was wondering what to do next when a man said, “Bhai, ride my auto. I’ll show you the whole area.” He asked for a lot of money at first, so we said no, but he kept at it. “Who knows when you’ll come again? How will you understand the place if you don’t see it?” In the end he won. Hasibur, Nafis, Tarikul, Jafirul, Jubayer and I went off together. There was a small zoo and a watchtower, and he took us to both. On the way back a flower suddenly caught my eye, one I had been looking for for a long time. I went closer. Yes, that was it, a Java cassia. I never thought I’d find one here.
The three-legged race
We went back to the resort. Our teachers called us for lunch. If you ask me, the food was better than what you’d get in a really good restaurant. We ate till we were full, rested a bit, and then the cultural programme began. Our senior brothers and sisters had organised all kinds of games. The three-legged race. I liked the name. Two people tie one leg each together, so the pair has three legs, and then you run. I was just telling Konok that he and I should run together when Zaman bhai said, “You and I should run. I’ve got a lot of experience in this game.” And thanks to Zaman bhai, we actually came first. The games ended with a prize-giving, and that was the end of the official programme there.
Then it was time to go back. Everyone got on their own bus, and soon all the buses were slowly moving again. Like last time, I didn’t go all the way back to campus with the others. I got off halfway and headed home.
That was the whole day’s fun.
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