Riding The Rails In India

No trip to India is complete without experiencing its robust and busy train system. The process of arriving at a train station, finding your train, and boarding is an experience in itself. During our 2 week journey through India Lindsay and I were lucky enough to take 3 different trains each with its own memorable experiences:

Mumbai – Delhi on the Rajdhani Express
This 15 hour night train starts at the Mumbai Central railway station and ends in Delhi. This train was especially memorable as it was our first experience with an Indian train station. We both just couldn't believe the overall organized chaos that we experienced on arrival. The train is actually one of the fastest in India and the ride itself was very nice. We shared a 4 person cabin with a hilarious business man from Mumbai (actually worked for the train service) who was very chatty. He was telling us all about the country, its people, its trains, etc, etc. They kept bringing by food and it was hilarious, and a little sad, to hear him boss around the servers. Lindsay and I were busting up because he kept saying over and over “and that is the country which is called India” when he really wanted to make a point. In the early morning hours of the train we picked up another passenger which was a young Indian women working in the fashion industry. We really enjoyed chatting with her as she spoke perfect English and we were able to ask her a lot of questions about India. We both slept very well on this train despite Lindsay being cold and our businessman friend snoring. :) Our only compliant about this train is that the windows in our cabin were tinted which made it a little difficult to see the scenery out the window.

Delhi – Agra Round Trip
To get to the amazing Taj Mahal we took the quick and painless round trip train from Delhi to the city of Agra. We splurged for first class tickets and this train was extremely comfortable. We almost missed this train (we were running late) but were so glad that we made it. Heading out of Delhi in the morning was fascinating as we passed numerous “slum” neighborhoods. There were always numerous people going to the bathroom (squatting) on the tracks and it was really a culture shock to see this. Waiting for the train that night at the Agra station was also memorable as we were constantly asked for money by the poor children from the slums. They would walk up to you and stick our their hand and make a gesture towards their mouth (communicating that they were hungry). This was devastating to see but we had read that children begging at a station like this is usually a scam. However, it was extremely hard to think of this when a young teenager girl would come by with a screaming baby on her hip or a young man would come crawling up because his legs didn’t work…it was absolutely gut wrenching.

Delhi – Varanasi by Night Train
This was probably our favorite train for a number of reasons. First of all we had a rare two person cabin that was completely private. Second, our windows were not nearly as tinted as our first train from Mumbai so we could really see the countryside from outside our window. This journey started at the chaotic Delhi station where we waited on the platform with numerous families who were all spread out on the floor (including their little babies). When the train arrived and we realized we had a 2 person cabin I was so excited I started to do a dance. :) It was night when the train left so all we did was eat a little rice and curry (bought for only cents from the train attendant) and then went to sleep. However, when the sun came up we were glued to the window. I remember I had my headphones on and was just watching the countryside go by from the train window…it was a travelers high. We were meet at the platform in Varanasi by a driver form our guesthouse and were rushed through the extremely chaotic Varanasi station to a waiting car.

Again, traveling by train in India is an experience in itself. While you are traveling in the train it is very peaceful and quite and you are simply watching the countryside go by out your window. However, the minute you step off the train the chaos begins and you find yourself working through thousands of other people to get to your destination. India is a fascinating country and experiencing it by train is a must!