Bhubaneswar, June 26: For Kamyavan and Vaisnava, a couple from South America, the experience of witnessing the chariot festival was exhilarating.

The couple was all the more excited, as this was their first experience of rath yatra in Puri.

"The feeling was magical. We had never seen something like this before," Kamyavan said. The couple, in their 30s, have been following the festival on the internet. "This was grander than what we had expected. Seeing thousands of people raising their hands to seek blessings of the Lord gave us goose bumps," she said.

The couple came to know about the festival from their friends in Vrindavan. "I love this country because of its vibrant culture. But visiting the country during a festival like this has its own charm," said Vaisnava, who got his name after being a part of Gaudiya Math.

While Kamyavan hails from Chile, her husband is from Colombia.

The only thing that the couple regretted was they could not enter the temple. "We were disappointed that we couldn't enter the temple," Vaisnava said.

For Kamyavan and Vaisnava, the best part of the festival was the unshaken faith among the devotees. "We saw thousands of people had come to the city just to catch a glimpse of the Lord. People from diverse backgrounds and of all age groups had come together to be part of the festival," Kamyavan said.

The couple said they were a bit scared of the crowd. "After the festival was over I realised that making way through the crowd to see the Lord was an art. It was fun through," she said.

The couple will return on June 3 after Bahuda Yatra. Apart from feasting on traditional delicacies of the town, they plan a sightseeing tour.

A number of foreign tourists have come to Puri to be a part of the festival. Visitors from places such Australia, Japan, South Korea, US and Canada were seen.