A 'New' year, altogether!

        4 days since I reached UK and moved into my accommodation. I'd attended the orientation held for our course a couple of days ago and now was waiting eagerly for the course to start. This was it! The new beginning I'd wanted. And I was going to make the best of it in each and every way possible. Studies, friends, travel, everything! Before I'd reached Colchester I had met another fellow classmate of mine on facebook. We kept in touch about things and were eager to meet up once the course started. Aiden Matthew Jayanth, my first friend outside India.

        Classes started. First day was as fun as I'd always hoped it would be. The most mention-worthy thing so to speak is about my classmates. We were friends with each other before we became actual students striving to obtain our post-graduation. After the first day of classes, a group of our classmates sat in the University square, talking about ourselves. We all were people who enjoyed traveling. We were giving off accounts of our previous tours and places we'd been to. One thing led to another and Aiden had the best idea, one I'd already been suggested before I left for UK.

        'Guys, whatever we do or don't do, we should go to London for New year's!' Surprisingly enough, everyone knew already that it was an absolute brilliant idea. 'Alright, we're going to London for new year's!' We agreed just like that! I was left wondering, basing my previous plans with other friends; 'We seriously going to hold by this decision? My history of outings, so to speak, is not on my side. Oh well, there's enough time to know anyway.' Indeed, New Year's was 3 months away, but that time passed like it was nothing. During this time, I made a new friend and definitely one of the reasons my one year in UK was awesome. She wasn't from our course but she was definitely one of our classmates. Divya Sukumar, my classmate Jiny Ann Abraham's flatmate was doing English Literature at our university. I was happy to have known such a wonderful person and one of the best cooks ever who's cooking I've had the immense joy to taste! And once we all got to know each other, well, it has been the craziest, wonderful-est and the nicest group of friends I've ever had ever since!

         We all were so hyped to get out to London for new year's! And thus we set out to London, finally. Me, Anisha Nazareth, Divya Sukumar and Jiny Ann Abraham. Aiden was going to meet us halfway through as he stayed at Southend-on-Sea, a place quite far from us. We got to London by train and got down at the Liverpool station. We all had huge backpacks, filled with stuff for the night in the then financial capital of the world. For me that was the second time I'd be in London within a week so I'd already gotten an idea of a few good places to visit and couldn't wait to go there with my friends. 

        We got to Hyde Park and ate at the McDonald's there. We had our fill and rushed out as we were eager to explore the city before it was time to get to the Big Ben area for the big night. There were a lot of rides in the far corner of the park which we wanted to get on but having just eaten, couldn't risk. I must say the fun part, though might come of as a little evil, was watching my friend Divya steer clear off the birds as she was afraid of them. We were walking around Central London all day, without a hint of fatigue or boredom, reveling in the history and grandeur that truly was 'Great' Britain. We walked past the Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus and a lot of other amazing places before we got to the bank of the Thames river from beside the Big Ben.

        The crowd was so huge and so enthusiastic, we didn't even complain about the rush there! People were so hyped up about the coming New Year and seemed to have forgotten about everything else. Luckily, we found a good spot and sat down there. We (Or the girls rather) thought things through and brought a blanket to sit on, food to eat and games to play along with them. We were having a whale of a time! Not just amongst ourselves, but occasionally someone beside us would say something and that would spark up a lively conversation! Everyone was in such good spirits and it seemed as if nothing could dampen them. No, literally. It even rained at one point but no one cared. They were happy rather, that the rain had chosen to take part in the festivities! And then something happened.

        My friend from Undergrad called. Ajay Venkatesh, my thick friend through my days as a B.tech Biotechnology student at VIT was in UK too, doing his Master's at the University of Warwick in Coventry. I knew he was in UK too but hadn't actually planned to meet him for new year's. Apparently he saw me walk into the area with my merry bunch of friends and called me. He too was with his friends there for the celebrations. I was so happy to see him! I introduced him to my friends and we had a nice time catching up on stuff. After he left back to join his friends I couldn't but revel at how happy I was. The most amazing part was that he and I could reach other by phone in that busy time. There was so much aggregation of mobile phones at that one area that we couldn't call our homes to wish our folks.

        And then the clock struck. Not literally though. There was a high rise building on the other side of the river and the countdown was showed on it, through it's windows. Everything seemed so truly brilliant to me! When it was 12'midnight, the crowd went crazy. The fireworks started, and then there were none. Such brilliance in the atmosphere, such happiness and love in the air, such peace and satisfaction in the mind, seldom has anyone else ever experienced, I believe. We were just standing there, so happy to be a part of the wonderful festivities that we forgot to even wish each other! Normally I'd take a moment to appreciate the emotions running through my mind but this once I lived the experience instead of trying to analyze it and understand why I was so completely happy.

         I'd be wrong to do so if I forgot an important part of our new year trip to London. The 'Joey hat' from the TV sitcom 'Friends'. Divya and Anisha got each a hat, and I was trying the whole time, just for the fun of it, to steal Divya's! Needless to say, I didn't succeed. 

 Aiden, Jiny, Divya, Anisha. That's my bunch of merry folks!

         Cliched, though it may sound, my truth in that moment was that I wished that tranquil happiness would last forever. With my friends, it was an absolute possibility! After the festivities, reality hit us. WE WERE SO TIRED! OUR THROATS WERE SO HOARSE FROM ALL THE SHOUTING! And above all, WE WERE HUNGRY! It was about another couple of hours before we got out of Central London and found a place to eat at. On our way back we passed through King's Cross Station. The train station featured in the Harry Potter books, from where the protagonist leave for school. Anisha was a huge fan of the novels and wanted to visit the fictional platform no. 9 3/4, which was commemorated by a luggage trolley halfway through the wall. Such appreciation of the creative genius that was the Harry Potter books really made me happy. But sadly, it was closed and we couldn't visit it.

        We then slowly made our way back to Liverpool station and waited for our train(s) back. Our minds were as energetic as ever but physically we were exhausted!Aiden left earlier as his train was a different one. The rest of us were waiting in the Liverpool station when it hit us. The 'high' we get into when our brain is exhausted, yet forced to stay awake and function. We were giggling and laughing and talking about random stuff. One memorable moment we all took away from this was a friend behaving like 'Mary Poppins'. Once we reached Colchester, it was exactly 24 hrs from the time we'd left the day before. We all crashed into our beds and slept like logs, not having the strength to do anything else. 

         I for one, did not want to sleep, holding back tears of joy that I'd gotten such wonderful friends. The amount of fun we all had in that one year away from home, the amount of support we gave each other, was something like the fireworks we'd all witnessed in London that night of New Year's. In our entire lives, it might be only one year, but it was magnificent and grandiose while it lasted. Such friends and such moments of tranquil happiness are what make life worth moving forward in, for me. I will always treasure you guys!