“Diplomacy in Diversity”: just 3 words, but brimming with nuances of extreme resonance, an extremely powerful statement that had set the tone for us to be prepared of what is it that we were going to be experiencing in the foreseeable future ever since we received the conference memo that I, Arunava Borah along with my fellow partner Jeet Pathak were selected from Cotton University to participate in the EIMUN. If I remember correctly it was in the month of April that luck had showered upon our little lives and the stars aligned that we were able to witness this amazing moment. Ankita Sarma Bordoloy, a student of the same university soon joined in later as the Chairperson of the UN Women committee. This particular news just made everything truly special and I’m truly grateful for this amazing opportunity that I got to experience with two amazing souls. Truth be told, I wasn’t particularly aware of this conference hence I didn’t have any expectations nor any apprehensions about it. I just know I had to prepare well and had to give my best shot in expressing my opinion and present well articulated speeches in the committee sessions.

As a final year student, this preparation was a little challenging for me as I had to juggle it up with the final exam preparations and dissertation preparations. Few of my professors were aware that I was selected and as they all harboured high expectations from us they were frequently checking up on us if we were preparing our best or not. Now that the conference is over, this all seems to be like a dream. I was nearing the end of my college days hence all that was going through my mind was just enjoying and savouring the last few days that were left and I was sad and gloomy and was making the most of experiencing some of the best days as much as possible. With so much going on, I literally did not spare much thought about what it is that I’ll be doing, how will I go and what are we even going to do once we reach there. We were just happy that we were going on a trip as friends and we’ll have the best time no matter what. And.. we did! This might seem like an exaggeration but I’m not sad about my college life ending as much as I am sad about the conference getting over because EIMUN just might be the best days of my entire life.

Although this blog post cannot capture every detail of our firsthand experiences, I will do my best to share the highlights. It began with our morning flight from Guwahati at around 6:50 am. None of us are morning people and prefer to sleep in, so waking up so early was a challenge. After a couple hours of sleep, we met at the airport. We had a connecting flight to Kolkata, but were too engrossed in conversation to look at our phones, as we had so much to talk about.

Reaching the Kolkata airport marked the start of our journey. As Indians, we enjoy visa-free access to Nepal, so we only needed to carry our Voter ID cards to enter Nepal. It is suggested that a passport is ideal, but a Voter ID is legally acceptable. Unfortunately, one of the three documents had an issue. The recently issued Voter ID did not match the other two IDs, causing a problem. At the immigration stand at the international airport, the officials were not allowing us to board. One official even told one of us to go back home, stating that we lacked proper documentation. Given our age difference, two of us called our parents for help while the other had a panic attack. After much pleading, breakdowns, and confusion, the immigration officials took our records and screenshots of our conference details, allowing us to board the flight. It took a significant effort and convincing, but we eventually managed to enter Nepal.

Upon arrival, our phones lost all service, and despite finding a stall for an international SIM card, we decided not to purchase it due to the high cost. This decision left us relying solely on the hotel’s Wi-Fi, rendering our phones useless outside. However, our experience was overwhelmingly positive. Semmu, our host, warmly welcomed us, and the pre-conference dinner at Hotel Arts was the beginning of a series of connections that helped us break out of our shells. Throughout our stay, the power of these connections enabled us to build meaningful relationships and friendships across borders, dispelling the notion that we should hate each other, which is often perpetuated by the media.

I cannot speak for other committees, but I can definitely say UNESCO was the best of all the committees there ever was. Starting from the dais, the chairperson, co- chair and even the director were extremely warm, respectful and really polite. They helped everyone to gel and become a lot more comfortable and relaxed as they walked us through the proceedings and encouraged us on how we should put forth our points. All the delegates present at the committee were equally friendly and cooperative as well. We had a lot of formal and informal sessions which stretched out beyond midnight and I do not think I have ever enjoyed any MUN as much as I have enjoyed EIMUN. These midnight sessions were the most productive and memorable ones as we were able to do a lot of fun activities and these sessions helped us form more meaningful bonds with each other. The expert sessions too, were extremely helpful and truly insightful to help us delve deep into the agenda and I’m sure these sessions have definitely shaped us into much more confident people as compared to how and what we had entered this MUN. Before joining, I might have felt a bit overwhelmed with the list of so many activities and thought that we might get no rest at all but I’m truly happy that we got to experience so many things and had the absolute privilege of representing our culture, North East India on such an esteemed global platform. Even though we managed to sleep about just 2 hours everyday for a whole week, I don’t recall being tired at all. Because we enjoyed our time that much!

I don’t like how this blog is coming to an end as much as I’m missing the conference and wish that it could have just stretched out a little more as I would do anything to relive those days again. EIMUN has shaped me into a much better person than I was 3 weeks ago. I might have been a little shy, but this conference has made me a lot more confident. I can express myself more fluently, and can articulate my thoughts more professionally. Not just that, I am indebted to the beautiful human connections that I was able to share with so many beautiful people from all around the world. I honestly never thought that I would have such a beautiful experience. I might have not carried any expectations of what to expect at all but this whole experience has to be the best experience of our lives. I am truly grateful for this beautiful opportunity. EIMUN truly has touched so many lives on so many levels that mere words can never be enough to fathom the actual nuances and the essence of the beautiful feeling it has created in our lives. Thank you so much EIMUN and YTS for changing our lives and making it a whole lot better.

Arunava Borah
Guwahati, India
Delegate of Ukraine, UNESCO Committee