Chris Panayiotou, a 36-year-old man from Greece, was here today to spare himself the regret of not been witness to Nabakalebar last year.

After he came to know about the grandeur of the festival from his friends who had visited last year, he did not want to skip it this time around.

“I had been hearing about the rath yatra festival for a very long time. My friends, after attending the festival last year, told me that it was something that one should see at least once in a lifetime. So, I did not want to miss it this year,” said Chris.

Chris, who is a hairdresser by profession, says he has come for a spiritual experience. “I am very satisfied that my efforts have proved fruitful. I could feel devotion all around me with the ringing of bells and blowing of the conchs,” he said.

For Cora Gaebel, a PhD student from the University of Cologne, this was her second visit to the rath yatra. She was here during Nabakalebar as well for to research on her paper, which is on the rath yatra. “Last year, the crowd was bigger than this. There were more policemen and I had met a number of famous Indian people. This time, all these are missing,” said Copa.

However, she admitted that the devotion among the people was no less than last year’s.

Copa stayed in Puri for six months last year and will leave for her hometown after staying for four months this time.

“Mate Puri bahut bhala lage (I love Puri),” said Copa, who has picked up quite a bit of the local language during the course of her stay here.

Nick Klepesch, a tourist from Florida in the US, came to attend the festival after coming to know about the Nabakalebar festival.

“I did not know such a festival existed. I had made a few Indian friends during my travel here two years ago who told me about it. I have been planning the trip for a year and this time, I finally got the chance to be a part of the rath yatra,” said Nick.