weekend trip: cox's bazar

one of the more charming aspects of living in Chittagong is that there are many holidays, holidays that i've never heard of or celebrated.  A lot of these holidays are based on a lunar calendar - meaning that our academic calendar isn't set in stone because it's not until veeeery close to some holidays that the exact date is decided upon. 

we were SUPPOSED to have the buddhist new year this past sunday, but were told on Wednesday that the powers that be decided that it would be celebrated during the May full moon, instead of April's.  As teachers, we raised a little bit of concern that we'd already told the students (and expected for ourselves) about the 3-day weekend, so the administration declared a day off classes instead of an official state holiday.  

meaning that 2 of my roommates and i traveled to cox's bazar on friday morning for a 2-night, 2-day little vacay - which was absolutely amazing and necessary.  just getting out of our building, and chittagong, for a weekend helped to refresh our energy levels and totally helped my perspective.  With the first two weeks of classes under our belts, things seem to be going well on the academic side - but it's hard not to feel the stress to do the best we can all the time...and getting away was a great reminder that i do have 15 more months with my students to get them to a university level of English.  

Besides getting out of town, getting to experience bangladeshi beach culture was another thing entirely...it's really interesting that beach culture across the world varies so much...and bangladesh is certainly the most conservative i've ever seen.  Imagine lots of bangladeshi men with their girlfriends or wives and families, in one of two attires: boardshorts/swimsuit and a tank top, or a full out suit you'd expect to see them at work in (some, also, were in the traditional male dress of very long tunics, but not nearly as many).  The women, on the other hand, are all decked out in a shalwar kameez, and go swimming in full clothing. There are beach chairs, that you have to pair for, lined along the shore and vendors with peanuts, water, sodas, etc. that walk around trying to sell you your latest snack.  There are also smaller children who go around selling shell strands, necklaces and mobiles...obviously very poor children who don't normally get enough to eat during the day.  Luckily Mahmuda, one of my roommates who's bangladeshi (and therefore usually acts as our interpreter), was there and is more of a softy than me...she came home with probably 8-10 strands/necklaces and two mobiles.  She kept repeating what the little kids were telling her - that they hadn't eat lunch that day, or they were trying to sell enough shells to pay for school - and would eventually hand over the 5 or 10 taka they were asking for the shells.  they inevitably gave her a few extra because she gave them more money than they were asking for...she's got a heart of gold.  

we also had our first rickshaw ride! (a few, actually).  they're a great way to travel in a town that's deserted right now, at least compared to the high season in the winter (apparently it's TOO hot for many people to vacation in cox's bazar right now).  It was so nice to be able to walk on certain streets without bumping into a gazillion people or swerving every few seconds to avoid rickshaw drivers and fruit stands.  we always had to pay a little more than usual because there were three of us cramming into one rickshaw.  it was a tough balance of bargaining the price down and reminding ourselves that the driver was going to be pulling us behind his bike for a few kilometers. 

On our way back to Chittagong on Sunday I realized one more thing that I'm super thankful for in the US - our exposure to traveling at early ages...whether it be cars, buses, trains, planes, etc. There were quite a few young children on our bus and by the end of the 4-hour trip back to Chittagong, all of them had gotten motion-sick at least once, if not more.  I've realized this traveling around asia since january, and it's such a weird thing for many people to have access to these types of transport during their lives that it makes it even harder when they do...barf bags are a staple for most companies...at least, for most of the more expensive ones I've ridden. the cheap public buses forgo such shows of concern for their passengers, but also allow windows to be open when one gets sick.  

all in all - great weekend - send along any specific questions you've got about cox's bazar...it IS the home of the longest continuous beach in the world, but we didn't actually make it there this time around.  we know we'll be heading back quite a bit since it's literally only a 3 or 4 hour ride from our residence to the seaside (it's also quite close to the border with myanmar/burma, making for a large buddhist population, and apparently there's a burmese refugee camp nearby. so, obviously i'm looking for contacts and hoping to come back and help). 

our lovely hotel...we didn't want to pay for AC so we were stuck on the 5th floor.  we had a great view of the surrounding streets as a result...and quite a few cockroaches for roommates as well...


i liked their sign. fun colors. 


one of the things i absolutely ABSOLUTELY love about bangladesh is the bright colors everywhere you go.  the women are always dressed so elegantly, and their clothes are always bright, colorful and eyecatching.  Women check each other out ALL THE TIME and are very quick to comment on what you're wearing...


everywhere on the beach there are guys walking around with old 35mm cameras, offering to take your photos...you can then find them in these smaller stalls later that day, or the next.  the question is really, though, how do you know which stall to go to? 


there was one section of the beach where poorer families were collecting shells to make into strands, necklaces and mobiles...while it was really sad to watch and know that the few taka each necklace cost was the result of hours of work in and out of the water, the children seemed to be having a fabulous time playing while working. 


this one young boy was helping his dad set out nets to collect shells...

and this kid was a complete ham...the minute he saw my camera he ran in front of me, did a few somersaults, ended up on his back and posed for a picture.  he does have a radiating smile, though. 

one of the little boys who mahmuda bought shells from.  he was so adorable...it's a good thing mahmuda's a bigger softee than i am :)

we spent saturday walking around the town of cox's bazar, checking out the two buddhist temples, a few buddhist stupas, the burmese market and the local water festival (we just happened to catch the yearly celebration).  we passed one family as we meandered through a residential area who warned us to not go much further...and then offered their two sons as tour guides for a few hours, for a small fee of course.  the two boys were studying english in school and were quite helpful in pointing out places to go - they took us to a few stupas atop a hill that had great views of cox's bazar, which was awesome.  


sunset at the beach. notice the women in full shalwar kameez outfits, scarves and all. 


one of the vendors on the beach - what else would you want as you're watching the tide come in but fresh fruit, right?

two young girls who were selling jewelry, visors, shell necklaces and other small souvenirs