At 7.7 degrees Celsius, winter in Jashore arrives with fog, silence, and a biting cold that reshapes everyday campus life. At Jashore University of Science and Technology (JUST), the season has turned into more than a weather update; it has become a shared student experience marked by adjustment, reflection, and quiet resilience.

Mornings begin under thick layers of fog. Familiar campus roads fade into mist, footsteps slow down, and jackets and shawls become daily companions. For many students, especially those from coastal cities, this winter feels unusually harsh.

The joys of winter

Rifah Nanjiba, who previously lived in Chattogram, feels the difference every morning when she steps out for class.

“In Chattogram, winter was soft and comfortable because of the sea air,” she says. “Here in Jashore, the cold is dry and sharp, the fog is heavy, and the wind feels like it cuts through you.”

Still, she finds a certain calm in the season.

Koroitola Tree, JUST Photo: Courtesy

“There’s a quietness in Jashore’s winter,” Rifah adds. “Even though it’s cold, it slows you down and brings a strange sense of peace.”

Winter also brings its own comforts. Date molasses, steaming pithas like Bhapa and Chitai, and roadside tea stalls add warmth to cold mornings.

“Jashore’s food feels homely,” she says. “Chattogram has spice and seafood, but here the food smells of soil and tradition.”

The challenges 

For Tanni Das, another student from Chattogram, this winter feels heavier. With semester finals scheduled in January, she couldn’t go home during the break and had to stay back on campus.

“Adjusting to 8.8 degrees Celsius is really difficult,” she says. “Waking up feels like a challenge. You want to stay inside the blanket, but classes don’t wait.”

Some days, the sun never shows up. Fog stays from morning to afternoon, making time feel blurred.

Academic Building, JUST Photo: Courtesy

“If I don’t check the clock, I can’t tell whether it’s noon or evening,” Tanni explains. “The day just feels slow.”

Most of her time passes in the dorm room studying, looking outside from the balcony, watching people move like shadows through the fog. Even stepping out to get food feels like a small battle not worth fighting.

“Chattogram and Jashore winters aren’t the same,” she reflects. “It’s not better or worse, just different.”

Winter and the weight of goodbye

While winter tests endurance for many, it carries a deeper emotional weight for final-year students.

Md Taybur Rahman, who is nearing graduation, feels this season differently.

“This is probably my last winter as a student at JUST,” he says. “Every cold morning reminds me that my time here is almost over.”

The campus feels familiar yet fragile each walk across foggy roads carries memories of late-night studies, friendships, and shared struggles.

“The cold isn’t just in the air,” Arif, another final year student, adds quietly. “It’s knowing that soon, I won’t be here as a student anymore.”

Despite the chill, campus life continues. Classes run, exams approach, and routines go on just at a slower pace. Winter at JUST is neither overly busy nor completely still. It is a season of foggy mornings, warm food, quiet halls, and unspoken emotions.

Academic building, JUST Photo: Courtesy

For students from Chattogram and other “not so cold” areas, it is a lesson in adapting to a new environment. For those staying back during exams, it is a test of patience. And for final-year students, it is a gentle reminder that student life, like winter, does not last forever.

In the end, winter at JUST is not just about low temperatures, it’s about learning to move forward, one cold morning at a time.