Train Travelling

On our recent trips from Bangalore to Mysore, we had the typical Indian crowd experience. First of all, my husband wasn’t very keen about taking the train. He wants comfort compared to the price. He actually wanted to take the AC Volvo bus, which most importantly gives you a seat, then the AC, the reclining seat that lets you sleep comfortably through the 2.5 hours of smooth journey, the calm surrounding with no chattering people, etc. While I thought, why spend so much when we can easily take the train, enjoy the scenic view and the vendors & in general crowd and stuff. By the way, the per head train ticket is 51/- ($1) against the Volvo cost of 250/- ($5). The experience this time was exactly the same as shown on the hit show Outsourced -Training day Episode or more close to the Seinfeld episode where Kramer tries to catch a seat.

Firstly, we were waiting for the train to arrive at the station, arrival time was 2.45pm; it came at 3pmJ (Always late) Indian standard time! Even before the train came, the passengers on the station started to get down & cross the track on the other side; they stood up on the water pipes. And that’s when I was like, “Wooah, they are going to get into the train from the other side! Come on, that’s way too much competition, we are not trained to that extent”.

Eventually when the train arrived, the rush to get in is unbeatable. Really, you just have to CRUSH in; I am totally against contact with unknown people. It totally pisses me off when someone hits a shoulder or hand. I know we are a huge population with endless crowds on the roads, yet I think we can control our walks without hitting into each other. I managed to get into the train and literally, I swear to god, I was like KRAMER!!! Every seat I looked at, a person sat or threw his belongings at. I failed big time!

And this is when you remember your mom’s teaching, to always carry a handkerchief! You may not have cold, but you always have a seat to catch! Drop a kerchief and the seat is booked!

We stood at the doors for more than 1.5 hours talking & chatting & checking the match scores on iphone, whenever we had network. I think I wasn’t too aggressive in the seat-catching event and the guys from the other side were just too much to beat! In the end, my husband wins and now he can always remind me of this incident & make me take the expensive, luxurious Volvo bus!