1,660km to be precise. Chennai to Kolkata. Madras to Calcutta. And what turned out to be 28 hours. Was it hell? Was it a slog? Was I glad to get off the train at the end of that?
Similar to my last early morning train, I didn’t sleep well but there was some stress over whether I would be able to get a seat/berth. My status in an app told me I had been moved to RAC – or Reservation Against Cancellation – but this only meant I could board the train but would have to be assigned a berth by a Travelling Ticket Examiner (the “TTE”). I decided that I valued the extra 12hrs in Kolkata more than arriving at 11pm on the original booked train and losing the price of my original ticket as it was too late to cancel. I’ve read that Indian Railways only recovers 57% of their costs so they can consider this a donation.
I got to Chennai Central in plenty of time and the train was waiting at the platform – apparently having just arrived from Kolkata. Not really sure how much cleaning was going on other than taking all the bed linens off the train and loading up freight.
We pulled out of Chennai bang on time, just after an almighty downpour that rattled the corrugated roofing above the platform – and gave the carriages a bit of a wash. They certainly felt like they’ve done this long haul journey a fair few times. My seat had indeed also been assigned to someone else who sat a little further down with the rest of their family. About an hour in to the journey, after a conversation in limited English between a Bengali, a Tamil and myself, we established that the berth would be mine for the overnight part of the trip. In fact most of the time I had the seat to myself although when it was in the bed position – I was joined by a couple of other people. Again, everyone was friendly and we had some nice but limited conversations – including a video call with my Mum where everyone waved and shouted hello to her that really made her day. I’m not sure she enjoyed the video tour that included the WC!! I’ve been asked by a few people about the experience on a train journey this long and the greatest fear is the toilet.
I’ll be honest – they’re not great. But better than I remember. There was at least soap at the end of all of the journeys I’ve completed but the toilets are mostly squat style which presents challenges on a moving train. They are wet and it feels unhygienic. And yes, they do smell quite bad. But overall, they are not bad. Just be prepared with what you need and be sure to keep those hands super-clean.
Meal service was a bit erratic on this journey. There was a constant parade of chai, coffee and pani (water) and the occasional snacks but meal time was late and also there didn’t seem to be a breakfast served. I opted for veg at lunch and dinner and wish I’d varied it – as both meals were exactly the same. Anyway, it was tasty and at Rs60, hard to complain about.
Again I slept well but again, woke around 4:30. But again I managed to fall back to sleep waking briefly at 6ish then 07:30. The scenery was back to being tropical lush green and a lot of farmland and busy villages – in contrast to most of the journey out of Chennai which was largely quite uninspiring.
By 09:30 it was clear there was no breakfast so at a station, I grabbed the box shown at the top of this post from a platform vendor. Didn’t know what it was until I opened it back on the train. Fortunately, the plastic bag of curry sauce and something tasted much better than it looked and went well with the puri which are known as luchi in Bengal.
Approaching Kolkata there was an increase in the number of commuter trains with many folks clinging on by the open doors, which I did likewise from our 20 carriage long express as it zigzagged across junctions and wound its way to the featureless drab station of Shalimar, an industrial area 20-30 minutes outside of Kolkata. Not a grand ending to such a long journey – it was almost anti-climatic.
So did I want to get off? Well, sure, but not in a desperate sense. The 28 hours had really flown by. They were almost effortless – apart from the visits to the toilet.
The volume of people moving around the railway system is staggering. I’d love to know who is travelling on these routes and why – especially the ones who get off at intermediate stations at places that don’t look particularly large. I did speak to one gentleman in the next, first class, carriage (not much of a difference other than the fact they have doors to the compartments, great if you are travelling as 2 or 4, but perhaps a bit more challenging for a solo traveller, so 2nd, 2 tier A/C, is perfect.
Outside the station was the usual chaos but the hassle was not too bad once my explanation of a car being booked was understood. I had forgotten about the yellow and black Ambassador taxis of Kolkata. Fabulous. My Uber driver arrived after about 15 minutes and it took sometime to reach the magnificent Howrah Bridge and the Oberoi Grand – the grand old dame. The streets were clogged with people, traders, traffic, human pulled rickshaws (I was surprised to see them), bicycle rickshaws (ditto), auto-ricks, clapped out buses, the odd goat, plenty of dogs, more throngs of people, market stalls spilling on to the streets, trams (India’s only tram system…which I surely must ride). Complete bedlam. How fabulous – I knew I was going to really enjoy the next couple of days and my decision to leave Chennai early was the right one.
Walking through the doors of the Oberoi was simply wonderful, Cleansing the dirt, grime and tiredness almost instantly, and certainly after the cold fragrant towel and refreshing welcome mocktail. A stunning pool in a central, palm surrounded, courtyard and lunch beckoned.
