Sun Kissed

The sun beat down relentlessly, transforming my pale skin into a delicious tan. My feet were snug between layers of sparkling fairy dust, those magical particles we commonly dismiss as “sand”.  And the bipolar ocean roared and murmured special somethings into my ear, making me sigh at every breath I took. I was lost...somewhere where I didn’t want to be found, for a very long time.

Puri, a famous city and headquarters of the charming state of Odisha, India, soaks deep in art and culture, being the land of ancient temples and graceful dancers . For a couple years now, it has been almost a ritual for us to escape after the hustle of the Holi festival, and let ourselves sink along the high and low tides of  Puri’s coast. We weren’t renowned for being the best planners, and baring the weighty title of “The Queen of Procrastination”, I was no motivation to our chill group of seven to be more organised. However, as usual, it worked out for the best (as I always like taking the credit for, even if the majority claim it to be way off my appreciation quota).

We arrived  before sunrise, dragging stuffed bags, and groggy kids. The huge clock struck forcefully announcing we were thirty minutes late (All hail to the Indian Railway system!). We waited , and waited, till the colourful and persistent coolies nodded their heads in pity at our hopeful claim that we had people picking us up.  We did...didn’t we? 

“Lets start walking towards the entrance”, I suggested as cheerily as possible at the God forsaken hour. My lids were fighting to snap shut, and I needed some movement to shake me up ( yes I usually always have an ulterior motive). So off we trudged with our wobbly wheels, as the girls loudly cursed their significant others,who still hadn’t shown up.
“We got lost” they grinned, fifteen minutes after we set up camp along with the sleeping homeless at the station’s entrance. There was some profanities exchanged, and a lot of eye rolling in response to their very sheepish confession, but lets focus on the abundance of love and hugs that followed after that.

Colour crept into the fading sky, streaking it pink, as we zoomed  past rows of closed shutters, in our rather spacey, and comfortable auto rickshaw. Puri was slowly waking up, stretching and yawning to the sound of gushing waves brimming at its gritty shores. Once checked into our friendly hotel, we dumped our belongings in our respective rooms, showering in world record speed, to go out and explore the numerous breakfast options listed out for us. We settled for Krishna Resorts,  a few hay thatched huts that served us steaming plates of ultimate, greasy deliciousness. Bellies full, and the enthusiastic sun now forcing us wide awake, we walked towards the beckoning waters.

It was love at first sight. The playful waves lapped meekly at my feet, as a gentle breeze teased my lose wavy locks into beachy curls. I peeled down my cotton T-shirt, allowing the morning rays to warm up my peeking shoulders.  The vast blue depths shimmered silver, stretching out lazily as the now burning sun reflected in the foam of the crashing tides. The kids had already stripped down to nothing, giggling in delight at the scurrying crabs playing hide and seek in the damp sand. 

Days flew by, and so did we. Shells of every shape, size and colour were collected into massive heaps of stashed treasure. We were hard to lose as we left trails of glittering sand wherever we roamed. Our pallid skin went through an awakening, turning shades we would have never given ourselves credit for before now. We swam, laughed, lazed, ate, and even occasionally almost drowned. We built dams, dug holes, found rivers, had picnics, and always fell asleep to the soothing song of the ocean. Free of nagging thoughts, and to-do lists, we were soaking in the moments so close to perfection. We were free for now, bare footed and golden, ready to plunge into paradise.