Indian Railways journey of 2014
I traveled in train after many years. From the last train journey in India till now, I traveled in many other places outside India and I was curious to experience the Indian Railways hospitality. Booking was done in First Class A/C for an overnight journey from Bangalore to Dharwad in Rani Chennamma Express.
After reaching the Railway Station an hour early, I checked the platform I need to be in. The station in first look, looked very crowded. Quickly, I agreed to myself that it must look busy and filled with people as train travel is the most efficient and cheapest mode of transport in India. It was ticking 9pm and train started on the dot. Once I settled in my first class cabin, I looked around to see identify some of the key features/facilities. Noticed the below:
1. Electrical points for charging laptop/phone.
2. Electronic indicator of restroom vacancy status - this was interesting.
3. A cute reading light near the head. Slide it, it switches OFF. Open it, light switches ON.
4. A trash bin - very important to keep the place clean.
After 10 minutes of travel, one housekeeping incharge came in with 3 covers. One had a blanket. Second was a pillow. Third was a bed spread. I asked him, "do they serve dinner?" With the kind of developments and ticket fares, I thought that they might serve dinner to first class passengers. But, I was wrong. Fortunately, my wife had packed dinner for me to keep me on the safer side. This saved me that night. By 11pm, I tried to sleep. Couldn't sleep the whole journey as I felt it noisy with metal screeches in the cabin. Train reached Hubli at 5:15am (halted here for 45 minutes) and then Dharwad by 6:30am. Hubli station is great and very neat. Dharwad station is suitable for some vintage movie because of its current state of maintenance.
On the way back the same night, train was delayed by 30 minutes. The moment I entered my cabin, it was pitch dark as the other 3 passengers were already asleep. I took a while to settle in. By the time I closed my eyes, I heard a loud roar (snore). That person made my first class journey to nth class. But, within minutes, I too fell asleep because of tiredness. Reached Bangalore on schedule at 7am.
Overall experience:
1. Really good. Train service has improved a lot with good facilities like online tracking and paperless tickets. There are iPhone apps that give train details and status. This is similar to flight arrival and departure details! Restrooms are neat and well maintained.
2. Trains could be made much more sound proof. It was a bit noisy with vibrations of metal and other components in the first class cabin.
After reaching the Railway Station an hour early, I checked the platform I need to be in. The station in first look, looked very crowded. Quickly, I agreed to myself that it must look busy and filled with people as train travel is the most efficient and cheapest mode of transport in India. It was ticking 9pm and train started on the dot. Once I settled in my first class cabin, I looked around to see identify some of the key features/facilities. Noticed the below:
1. Electrical points for charging laptop/phone.
2. Electronic indicator of restroom vacancy status - this was interesting.
3. A cute reading light near the head. Slide it, it switches OFF. Open it, light switches ON.
4. A trash bin - very important to keep the place clean.
After 10 minutes of travel, one housekeeping incharge came in with 3 covers. One had a blanket. Second was a pillow. Third was a bed spread. I asked him, "do they serve dinner?" With the kind of developments and ticket fares, I thought that they might serve dinner to first class passengers. But, I was wrong. Fortunately, my wife had packed dinner for me to keep me on the safer side. This saved me that night. By 11pm, I tried to sleep. Couldn't sleep the whole journey as I felt it noisy with metal screeches in the cabin. Train reached Hubli at 5:15am (halted here for 45 minutes) and then Dharwad by 6:30am. Hubli station is great and very neat. Dharwad station is suitable for some vintage movie because of its current state of maintenance.
On the way back the same night, train was delayed by 30 minutes. The moment I entered my cabin, it was pitch dark as the other 3 passengers were already asleep. I took a while to settle in. By the time I closed my eyes, I heard a loud roar (snore). That person made my first class journey to nth class. But, within minutes, I too fell asleep because of tiredness. Reached Bangalore on schedule at 7am.
Overall experience:
1. Really good. Train service has improved a lot with good facilities like online tracking and paperless tickets. There are iPhone apps that give train details and status. This is similar to flight arrival and departure details! Restrooms are neat and well maintained.
2. Trains could be made much more sound proof. It was a bit noisy with vibrations of metal and other components in the first class cabin.
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