@Naasatya

5 months ago

Hey Karl, thanks for your videos. They got me well-prepared for my first India trip this year from mid September to mid October, and I think this video also gives one a very good idea about train rides in India (I was travelling alone btw.). I must recommend traveling by train in India. It’s the best way to get an impression of the beautiful countryside, especially if you’re not able (or don’t want) to travel by car. I also made two road trips with my friends from Bhopal (to Vidisha and Pachmarhi), those are even better to get an idea of rural India and the jungle areas, or how Dev calls it, "real India"! But when traveling independently and alone sleeper trains are a must. My favorite seating was the lower side compartment where you sit (and lie) parallel and closest to the window. Since there were only curtains I catched Covid from a family that sat next to me on the other side of the alley, sneezing & snuffling on the 4 ppl compartment. This can happen of course, still I liked this trip the most. Sometimes I spent quite a while in the stations, in Aurangabad 8 hours, and I got approached by a lot of ppl. When heading out of the station for a cigarette (you’re not allowed to smoke on the premise), especially taxi drivers approached me thinking I just arrived. And talking to them I learned that they were pretty well-informed about the train schedule. So they can also help you find your platform if you’re confused about the tables in the stations itself (especially in Delhi). Else the official staff also has been friendly and helpful. And as a foreigner I have to say, in less touristy areas like Aurangabad it’s also nice to have army staff around, that also approached me and wanted to make sure everything is fine (while sitting outside with some ppl), because "since I’m a foreigner we are also responsible for your safety." Back home in Germany I am very sceptical about anything related to army things, so that was an interesting experience getting this other perspective. In Mumbai I was smoking a cigarette outside the main station in an area, where a staff member told me I was allowed to. Some other ppl approached me, then telling me quite vehemently that indeed I wasn’t allowed to smoke there and that I should stop smoking in general. Outside of Delhi station it was totally fine as long as you’re not standing directly in the front where everybody’s leaving and entering the premise. Just remember: Smoking is not allowed in public spaces, on the streets it’s mostly fine, but just don’t do it on the premise. My experience was, that the area where drivers parked their tuk-tuks generally was fine for that quick smoke in between. During my time I took 4 train rides all in different compartments: Vande Bharat Express from Delhi to Bhopal (EC chair car, good for the very first train ride, safe & comfortable), Sachkhand Express from Bhopal to Aurangabad (because of you, Karl! 1AC closed two ppl compartment, luckily alone), Nandigram Express from Aurangabad to Mumbai (1AC closed four ppl compartment) and Rajdhani Express from Mumbai back to Delhi (2AC curtain-"closed" lower side compartment). Looking back it feels like with every train ride I got closer to a more regular way of traveling by train, and I think I wouldn’t take the Vande Bharat again. The train itself is very nice, very high class, the staff and everything else was perfect. Looking back it just didn’t feel very Indian to me, and I think I rather prefer the proper sleeper trains. I will definitely return to India (it’s just beautiful) and the next time around I think I'll also try some of the other classes. Tbh, I met so many ppl and had so many mostly nice encounters I would have missed otherwise. After all, I traveled to India alone to (give my introvert self a push to) get into contact with Indian ppl. And even if this was stressful at times, this was the first thing I messed when I arrived back home. Germany is just soo empty... but that’s a completely different topic :) Keep up the good work, Karl, now I am watching your videos with this particular nostalgic feel and I love it. All the best, námas te!

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