From Nuclear Reactors to Missed Monopolies: A Hilariously Unpredictable Adventure

     It wasn’t what I expected. 

    What I expected was a boring trip to museums and science centers, with short visits to some park or beach to pacify the students. What I most definitely didn’t expect was a perfectly well-balanced trip with just the right amount of fun and learning, with a lot of time to spend with friends and socialize. 

    The trip turned out to be just that.

    I am talking about the school trip we were taken on in January to the southernmost place one can go to in the Indian mainland, Kanyakumari, followed by the capital of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram. 

After a sleepless night in the bus which did nothing to lift my spirits, we reached Kudankulam, a small town a few kilometers northeast of Kanyakumari. The town was nondescript, with nothing to its credit by the looks of it. But soon, we were to enter India’s largest nuclear power plant- Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP).

We were greeted by a very amiable researcher who gave us a thorough explanation of what nuclear power was all about and made it extremely clear that nuclear power was NOT harmful when used the right way. We were later shown a small-scale model, after which we entered the plant itself. One needs special permission to do that, and the weight of what we were allowed to do settled on me after going through four security checks on the way to the plant.

The expansive grounds were covered with buildings for every department and activity. The staff member giving a running explanation of what we were seeing did a really good job with it, making the plant come to life as each function became clear.

Nothing prepared me for the actual size of the reactors, though.

The reactors, two of them and a lot more under construction, were larger than most tall buildings. None of the diagrams, maps and scaled-down models did any justice to the domes. 

It soon became clear that the measures taken for safety encompassed everything one could ask for. Huge walls of lead and concrete coupled with state-of-the-art alarm and warning systems made it almost impossible for the nuclear fuel and the nuclear waste to escape. There was a lot of other interesting infrastructure, and I could go on for ages. But I won’t, for want of space.

Not to mention all the job opportunities the plant has to offer the guiding member brought to our attention. That was very important for us.

Not dwelling on this for too long, let me move on to the rest of the trip.  The hotel was better than I expected, and don’t get me started on the food- it was the best, period. What more do I have to say?

The morning of the next day is until now a dream for me. I doubt if that morning ever happened or existed in space-time. Things started normally, with a visit to the sunrise viewpoint (beautiful view, though we were not fortunate enough to see the sunrise itself, due to the weather-ironic). 

Here’s where the unreal stuff began. We walked through the narrow streets of Kanyakumari, which was an adventure in itself. The streets were most intriguing, lined with hordes of devotees of shiva going around in robes, hawkers who mercilessly hounded the puzzled tourists, roadside shops that sold all the top brands (Nike, Gucci, Louis Viton, etc. for lower than five hundred rupees- what a bargain!), and dhabas. The crowded road was bustling with activity, with barely any cars and vehicles on it. Sometimes we were surrounded by people shouting in Hindi, so often that I wondered if we had turned around a corner and got teleported to a northern state in the process. 

When we arrived at the boat harbor from where we were to go to the Thiruvalluvar statue (to be honest, it was quite a disappointment- it looked smaller than it does in pictures) and the much older Vivekananda Rock by sea, we learnt that we weren’t allowed to- again due to the weather. That left us with plenty of time on our hands.

We proceeded to walk down a long path that stretched into the sea, which promptly turned into a nerve-wracking series of jumps on a path of jagged rocks. This was very conveniently aided by the howling wind which buffeted us at a zillion miles an hour and threatened to blow us into the sea like matchsticks any moment then. I was one of the first ones to reach the end, and I felt the largest rush of dopamine I’ve ever felt. We were rewarded with a wonderful group picture right there with the ocean, the statue and the rock as the backdrop.

We were then left alone on the streets on our own. 

Yes, you read correctly; since we had so much time left, the teachers gave us an option- come back to the hotel to play Monopoly or shop on the streets. Somehow, I ended up in the second category. 

The four of us- two feeble teenage guys and equally unassuming girls- set out on a trek back to the hotel, with nothing to guide us but my friend’s bearings- which I had zero trust in. Just like I expected, we ended up in the middle of an ocean of humanity half of which spoke in Hindi (a language none of us knew) in one of the most terrifying streets I’ve ever been in (probably plagued by pickpockets), my friend having no idea where we were, or which way to go. I followed my gut instincts, and voila! We successfully reached the hotel in one piece! 

What can I say, I’m right all the time. Okay, most of the time.

After that absolutely otherworldly experience, we traveled to Thiruvananthapuram, whose distance from Kanyakumari was thankfully not as long as its name- just a three-hour drive. We stopped at an artificial waterfall. It’s fresh water sprayed on my face, rejuvenating me. Many took baths, and they seemed to be having a lot of fun. I later learnt that not choosing not to take a bath was a mistake- my seniors rebuked my unwise decision. I, for one, didn’t care. Roaming around with my buddies was fun enough for me.

I was then baffled by the hotel we were to stay in during our time in Thiruvananthapuram (man, I’m sick of typing this name over and over again).

With amazing interiors and rooms that were cosy and beautiful, the hotel really upped my spirits. I do not know what I was getting hyped about- I have seen far better hotels- but yeah, there you go.

The night was awesome, with a long Monopoly match to make up for the one I missed the previous day (which I went on to lose horribly). The same can’t be said for the next day, though.

We were woken up early in the morning, for the temple trip to Sri Padmanabaswamy temple, which was apparently this big thing among devotees and of particular historical interest with a lot of ancient treasures and sculptures. Now, I wasn’t exactly the religious type (I’ve always considered myself an atheist), but I did go, for the sake of seeing the sculptures (never had a chance to admire art, and I was certain I would like it). Turns out I would have been better off not going. 

First off, the guys weren't allowed to wear shirts- just white cloths to cover our upper body (and my musculature wasn't particularly worth showing off- just skin unattractively enveloping very prominent ribs). Second, we were made to stand in a giant queue snaking through long passageways (why did old temples always have long passageways?), which wasn’t going to move any time soon. Third was the unbearable humidity- even in our airy excuses for clothes, we were sweating profusely. I pitied the girls, who were forced to wear some heavy traditional dresses often made of silk.

After that long wait, we entered the main place- and I have to say, the sculptures were very breathtaking. With the weird lighting conditions which were strangely ominous, the sculptures looming above us gave me a certain degree of fear and admiration at the same time.

Not enough to make up for the tiring wait, though. For people who are really into it, sure, you guys will absolutely adore this place, but this is not for me for sure.

I feel sorry for myself- who will believe that there were two disappointments in a row? 

We visited the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, the big launch site for the biggest programmes of ISRO. I was genuinely excited for this one. This better not be a let-down! 

It was. We entered the grounds and were taken to a church-converted research center-converted museum. We saw scaled-down models of ISRO’s launch vehicles, missions of the past, and plans for the much-awaited Gaganyaan mission. We then watched a short documentary on ISRO’s achievements over the years. ‘Yay, off to a good start!’ I thought. Aerospace engineering was definitely my thing, and I was itching to know more about it. 

After that, the visit to the space center ended-the end.

    I will let you assess just how much dismay I would have felt after that.

What’s better than two events I was looking forward to being taken away from me? Four more! We were to visit Trivandrum Zoo, a church, an art gallery, and a village, but all four were canceled for some reason- the one for the zoo being that there were no animals. How’s that for an explanation?

We were taken to McDonald's for lunch to make it up for us, but like an adamant child, I wasn’t satisfied. 

After that, though, we spent the entire evening on a beach. That immediately erased my sorrow (honestly guys, I just love the ocean). The beautiful sunset with the blue waters calmed my mind, putting the bratty child inside me to sleep. 

That night, we had a lovely dinner in our hotel and finally departed to Coimbatore.

That is the end of the trip.   It may sound like it started out great but ended in a string of disappointments, but hanging out with my friends tipped the scales, and made it an absolute banger of a tour.

Seriously, guys, the trip itself was not very top-notch (but definitely not something I can complain about- the quality was considerably good indeed), but I must say- being with friends made this trip one of the top five best things I've ever done.

It's incredible how being with the right company can transform even the lowest moments into the most cherished memories of all time.