Cox’s Bazar – Longest Sea Beach in the World
For most people, the lure of cox bazar is its stunning stretch of beach and endless miles of sand. To others, it acts as a link to Saint Martin’s island. We were in search of another allure and so, with the aid of some school friends, we set off from our hotel on a daylong excursion, away from the beach, away from the sand, and into the heart of the city, the heart of cox bazar.
The easiest way to move in the city is by a rickshaw, be it for close proximity or for long rides. It is interesting to note that the rickshaw pullers are usually the locals and tend to know a lot of the locality. One hint that you are not interested to go to the beach would sprout the rickshaw puller’s attention.
Our first stop was the Buddhist Rakhine temple of Tekpara. Our rickshaw pullers were nice enough to keep our sandals, as we had to walk bare feet inside the temples. Inside, we had heard, was a collection of Buddha statues and ancient pagodas. The temple was old, their wooden walls somewhat tarnished with age.
The most interesting thing about Tekpara is the glimpses of the houses through the trees. They are all small, usually, the one-storied cottage made of wood, some of them more than fifty years old. It is always a rare treat to see wooden houses because they seem so hard to maintain in this tropical weather. These houses belonged to the people of the Rakhine tribes.
By now we were starving and went to Jhau-bone, a local restaurant on the kolatoli road. Amongst all the food we tried, one delicacy that we instantly fell in love with the Loita fish fry. This delight can be found in most of the local restaurants and is quite a delicacy. The fish is cooked first and once the inside is well cooked and soft, it’s instantly deep-fried. The tri Dhara dockyard is a spectacular place to spot a wide range of ocean liners. No travel to cox bazar can be complete without a sojourn to the beach chicken soup dish and Paratha.
It’s amazing to have such a clear view of the vast ocean ahead of you but also the view of the cluster of hotels. The sight is, in one word breathtaking. From this vantage point, we could see the hotels that had the best views, the hotels that had the best rooftop pools, hotels that had flocks of people as well as hotels that were in dire need of a paint job. The feel of the endless ocean from left to right was simply extraordinary.
By now, it was late in the afternoon and we would soon be heading back to our hotel. We decided to take a walk on the beach and bid farewell to the ocean. Even though we did not spend the whole day at the beach or in the ocean, our day had proved to be quite adventurous. Nevertheless, it was the frolicking about in the unknown streets of Cox’s Bazar and looking at the other aspects that made this visit such a magical one.
