Day One - Start

The train is chugging on to Coimbatore Railway Station. Already my stomach is grumbling due to hunger. The IRCTC supplier said we would get the food after leaving Coimbatore. Hope he is right.

It is officially 4 hours since my journey has begun. Carrying my trusted Wildcraft backpack and a shoulder grip I caught a bus to Ernakulam Junction, or as we Kochiites say, South Railway station. I thought of going by auto, but why waste good money for this short stretch when even more expenditure is in the offing in the next few days?

Ticket ready, I only had to wait for about 20 minutes when the Indian Railway gave me a rather pleasant surprise, the Kerala Express is 5 minutes early!! I am sure this would be one of those rare documentations of any train in India not only being punctual, but actually arriving early. Glory be to Mamta! Wish it was Mohandas, but alas it is Bannerjee.

It is after an extremely long time that I am undergoing such a long journey in train, that too in AC. As our inimitable Tharoor expressed to his sorrow, I am a patron of the "cattle class" general compartment or ordinary Sleeper compartment. However owing to the long nature of this journey, a 3 day leg from Ernakulam to New Delhi, I judged this to be a requisite luxury.

It has always been my observation that railway stations are vortexes where people from all walks of life can be seen. A train journey is in fact a microcosm of life. I dont know whether I have blogged about this before, but there you have it. You see people from all walks of life, you see so many interesting people, interesting sights and sounds, experience the overwhelming plethora of aroma that truly describes India in all its glory and vitality. However this cornucopia of experiences cannot be experienced from within the cloistered cubicles of AC compartments. Within the filtered and refrigerated air of AC compartments, where the world outside is separated by an insulated darkened piece of glass, there is a distinct separation which imparts a pall of gray upon the journey. No more hawkers, no more rain, no more sun light, no more smells of Chilli Bajji and open sewage, no more shrill cries of "Chaai, Chaai, Uzhunna vadaa, parippu vadaa". In AC compartments I have usually found that people are more stiff, despite the comfortable ambience. You would think that in the coolness of Air Conditioning and the inherent privacy offered by these exclusive compartments, people would become more freer. Unfortunately not as I observed around my fellow travelers.

There is this family, an uncle, aunty and two sons, one of whom is apparently being taken for admission into some college in New Delhi. Then there is this stern "Velma"ish girl who is traveling alone to who knows where and some business man guy, who spends all the time reading some MBA textbooks. I hoped the boys would provide some merriment, but alas, compared to them Vajpayee is a raving party animal. As is customary for all my fantasies regarding meeting cute girls in trains or buses, the stern visage of Ms. Uber Serious put paid to that. Rather unfortunate that even ocular enjoyment could not even be had in this case. As I said to a cousin brother recently, Paapi Chennidam Pathalam (Wherever a Sinner goes, Hell would follow).

Since there is no entertainment to be had from within the compartment, the speeding countryside through the darkened windows had to do. Standing my the compartment window and watching the sunset did offer a respite, but otherwise I had to depend on the laptop I "procured" from my mother to banish the boredom.

Since this trip is going to be rather longish, it would be reckless if I burn up the batteries on the first leg of the travel itself.

And now I hear the sounds of the supplier bringing in the food trays, and thus heralding an activity that takes precedence over any mundane activity such as blogging.

So paying a final tribute to Airtel GPRS which is helping me make this blogpost, I am signing off.

Wish me Bon Appetit. :D