| On the winter morning of January 17, 2009, the eleven participants of the Duke of Edinburgh Award (DEA) of AIUB embarked on an adventurous journey, which was the fourth task requirement of the DEA. The journey lasted for 2 days and 1 night, but will surely serve as a memory of a lifetime. For many of the students, it was the very first trip that they spent without their family and perhaps was the biggest challenge of all.
All the students with their tightly packed luggage gathered at Campus 1 at 8 o’clock in the morning. The weather was cold and they were eagerly waiting for the bus to arrive. Mr. Abdul K. Nazmul, Assistant Professor of AIUB and AIUB’s Award Leader and Mr. Suman Kumar Saha, the National Director of DEA Foundation, also joined the students.
After the arrival of bus, the students set of for the destination point; Sripur, Gazipur. They had a briefing session during the journey by Mr. Suman Kumar Saha. Together they set out a plan for the journey and arranged their documents accordingly.
The students reached Sripur at 11 o’clock; the AIUB’s farmhouse was located in a village called Bhangnahati.
Right after their arrival, the students were in a run, covering up a range of activities like walking miles in search of the village market and purchasing all the necessary food items (rice, chicken, different fishes, all the spices, vegetables etc) that would last for two days. Even though the fish & chicken bazaar smelt awfully horrible but the spree was something that many of the students never experienced in their lives.
However, then they began their next struggling challenge which was cooking. They had to clean and chop the vegetables and cook on mud stove lighting it up with bamboo and tree trunks, which was tough. The cooking was finished at 4.30pm.
After the delicious lunch at around 5 p.m. the students conducted a nature study, mapping their way, and that’s when they saw nature in its most beautiful array. In a while they came back and played some enjoyable sports including tennis and badminton. In the mean time, they also had their barbeque preparation for the night and the dinner was served at 12:30 p.m. The dinner was delicious!
As soon as the students were done, around 2 a.m., they gathered bamboos and chopped tree trunks for the campfire. After many failed attempts they did light it up. Under the foggy night, circling the campfire, they bubbled with jokes and laughter even though their bones were breaking with fatigue. The night moved on in a hurry.
Most of the students did not sleep at all but we were all energetic in the early next morning enjoying the soft winter sunshine and a heavy breakfast. Shortly, they set out on foot for conducting a survey into the sparsely populated village. The village was very neat and clean. They were all divided into two groups and began their exploration, crossing many farms and cultivated lands. They talked with the villagers and questioned about their lifestyle, health, family planning procedures and also about many other aspects. It was really special getting across with so many different people, discussing about their problems, feelings & emotions, dreams and expectations.
At the end, the students hiked back to their pavilion with the surveyed paper. Ultimately, they had to submit a report based on the exploration.
The students then had their lunch, discussing about all the memorable events of the day and how it had been such an eye opening experience. Finally, at 3:30 in the afternoon, they packed up and set off for Dhaka.
Perhaps all of the members of the group together feel closer and dearer to each other. The relationship, companionship, friendship and the strong bond of love that has developed between the students are something that they will cherish forever!
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