Quote:
Originally Posted by astroron
Thanks Gary, Jeanette,John, and all  I traveled across India in 1977 by Steam Train which was quite an experience,
On one occasion my carriage was full, and most of the other carriages only had a couple of people in them  then I realised they all wanted to speak to me 
I never have felt so popular  |
Hi Ron,
Great stuff!!!
LOL about your popularity as an English speaker.
"Hello. What's your name? Where are you from?" Everyone has to have their go.
What I could never get over was the ordeal of buying a damn ticket at times!
Places like Calcutta you would go to some building on one side of town
and queue for a chit or something which you would then take to another
building on some other side of town where you would stand in another queue to get
exchanged for some other chit which you would then take to another queue to get
your booking. The remarkable thing is you would then arrive at Sealdah railway
station at 9pm, bathed in perspiration, but sure enough there would be your
name typed on the list next to the carriage door. No computers, just hundreds
of bureaucrats, but somehow it would (mostly) work.
I remember in Pakistan you would look out as the train was moving along
and see the shadow of someone walking along the roof. Next moment, the
back door would hurl open, all the dust would come flying in, and there would
be the chai wallah in his white uniform carrying a dirty great big pot of tea
in one hand whilst balancing a large tray with the cups and saucers in the other.
We'll have to swap stories some time.
Best regards
Gary