When I Travelled without ticket !

It was sometimes in my Final Semester (early 2010) when I decided to travel to NIT JSR for a quiz meet.It was supposed to be fun (especially after me and my fellow teammate Prashant Mishra were qualified for the stage event at the Kolkata edition of The Tata Crucibles...) and more of a show off to others.Though the event was a superb fiasco than anything else,I will remember this trip for two things.

Firstly,the worst night I ever had to endure anywhere.More on this some other time....

Secondly,my first (and till date only !) ticketless travel in the venerable Indian Railways.

 
Around 1800 hrs that we (Me,Animax a.k.a. Anweshan Ghosh and Prashant) started from the campus.An hour later, we reached the railway station (Tatanagar Junction) when we got the news that Prashant's Uncle was seriously ill,and so we parted ways then.Around 1930-2000 hrs, we caught a train to Asansol.Chhat puja was just over and all Biharis and Jharkhandis were returning to their places of work.Hence,any train outgoing from the station was choc-a-block full.Needless to say,we didnt quite plan our trip in advance so that we could have a reserved seat to ourselves.Ours was a make-up-as-you-go type of journey where improvisation and street smart wit (and we had grandmaster Prashant in this role !) ruled the roost.So,to cut a long story short,we booked ourselves a couple of tickets which I guess was not admissible even in the General Coach of the train in which we were about to travel ! Well,at that time,frankly,we didnt have a lot of choices and we definitely didnt want to spend one more night at the campus.Hence,we managed to climb aboard the General Coach (Unreserved Coach).In the Indian Railways,a Sleeper Coach can seat 72.In practice,it is usually close to 80 souls traveling in a Sleeper at any given time (especially during peak seasons).A General Coach carries 3-4 times that number in the same given space in off-season.During the peak season well...far more than you would wish to count.Most of them who travel are those who havent got a ticket in the sleeper (like us !) or cant afford the fare.Into this maelstorm of human souls,climbed up two very bright eyed but resolute guys.Animax is XXL and we managed to get into the compartment...somehow.For the next couple of  hours or so as the train meandered through idyllic countryside of the pristine Jharkhand,we were standing near the door,just in front of the toilet breathing in the sickly odour of human sweat,dust and a whole lot of other things.Somehow we managed not to get suffocated in the concentrated Carbon Dioxide Exhalation of so many souls without the benefit of a rebreather.Around 2230-2300,we reached a relatively major station on the Jamshedpur-Asansol Line where the compartment became lighter and freer...somewhat.Now we managed to get a seat on the footboard of the open door.Trying not to think who might have stepped on what before setting foot on the hallowed footboard of the General Coach of this train,we monopolized that door to ourselves.The train slowly chugged out of the station and and picked up a soporific pace.Earlier events in the day left us pretty much exhausted but what the heck,we could not afford to sleep.And so started a Ultra Mega Mythology Quiz (UMMQ) between both of us.It must have been a incongruous sight indeed to have two spectacled backpacked guys wearing trendy clothes,sitting on the footboard in a train full of half asleep sons of soils discussing Venus and Apollo ! After that time chugged by and around 0240 hrs we found ourselves standing on a deserted but fully lighted platform wearing the midnight look of any station.The Signboard read ASANSOL Jn - Platform 1.We had the temerity to ask a nearby TE (Ticket Examiner) about the next train to Durgapur.Imagine our shock,when he pointed out to a train on Platform 5 and said that it was supposed to leave in around a minute.Off we went at a pace that would have put any Insane Bolt to sanity ! When a behemoth of around 100 Kg runs at the speed which would have launched a Harrier jet,no person could mistake the resolve to catch that train.We climbed aboard as the train started.Animax lost his wallet in the sprint of his lifetime.Now this was a new standard even for us.Two guys without ticket,in a General Coach (again obviously !),one without a wallet and another with barely a 100 Rupees in his wallet ! This time,the Coach was comparatively empty and we found ourselves some seat.The train covered the distance pretty fast (was it the proper seat or were we close to dropping dead of sleep,i'll never know!).

       
        We were suddenly standing bleary-dry eyed on Platform -3 of Durgapur Station.And there,right across couple of platforms was a person wearing Black and White Robe with a Black Headgear with a faded golden nameplate on his chest which I guess in normal times said TE.Bleary eyed?Sleep deprived?No way ! At that moment,the infusion of adrenaline into our systems was such that we were never more alive.Thank god,we knew the layout as well as any employee of that station.Using a small detour,we ended up in the Auto Stand.And the getting the driver ready to drop us for 80 rupees at that unearthly hour of 0400 hrs should be counted as a feat of our persuasion (or most likely,the driver must have taken pity on us). I am still searching my brain for the details after that,but I do know,I woke up around 1500 hrs still wearing my shoes and my backpack on floor !

Now, it is more than a year since that night has come to pass.But now,I can definitely cross one item off my bucket list.

Year of The Snake

The Chinese Zodiac follows yearly variations instead of the usual monthly Zodiac.I was born in the year of the Snake. The following is an interesting description of a 'snake' person courtesy The Mandarin restaurant.



Philosopher,theologian,Political wizard,wily financier - the snake person is the deepest thinker and enigma of the Chinese cycle.He is endowed with an inborn wisdom of his very own right. Graceful and soft spoken, he loves books,food,music,theatre,he will gravitate towards all the finer things in life. Elegant in speech,dress and manners,the snake person does not like indulging in useless talk or frivolities.He can be quite generous with money,but is known to be ruthless when he wants to attain an important objective.

AGATTI ISLAND (AGX) LAKSHWADWEEP

“This is Kingfisher flight 2453 descending to Agatti. Please keep your seats upright and your seatbelts on...”, and so the ATR 72-500 tilted its wings gently and landed with a flourish on the partially recarpeted Agatti runway. The flight was pretty much uneventful with no turbulence and as usual horrible food. In my seat, I was clicking away madly the picture sequence of the landing. Again, as usual, the breathtaking bright green lagoon and the deep blue ocean around it took my breath away. It was like coming to a second home which it was.

Agatti is one of the largest islands in the Union territory of Lakshwadweep. And, it has the only airport in the entire territory, with only Kingfisher flights on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. But unlike the connectivity with the mainland, it has superb connectivity with the rest of the islands courtesy Pawan Hans Helicopters (Two choppers permanently dedicated for inter-island air taxi), and various types of speed boats. Agatti is shaped like an enlarged exclamation mark with a dot like sub-islet at the southern tip of the island known as Kalpitti, which is inhabited by a lot of coconut trees and large crabs. The entire runway makes up the southern part of the island. Over to the north, around five minutes of chopper flying time, lies the picturesque island of Bangaram, reputedly among the top ten getaways in the world. The entire group of island known as Lakshwadweep are coral islands. Hence these are picturesquely fragile because of the fragility of corals. It is said that corals are best indicators of climate change because they die because of even slight change in the climate. In the islands, it is a crime to break even a part of coral for it takes decades to regenerate. The sand here is milky white because it is just fine porous remains of dead corals which had turned to fine calcium like rocks. The temperature varies from a cool 28 degree to a max of 35 degree Celsius. In short, the perfect paradise for me.

Now then, after clearing all formalities, my dad, took us to his quarters which we immediately set out to make it even more suitable for our habitation. That is, we (me and my brother) spread out all the electronic gear (Laptops, iPods, cameras and so on...) and just picked the place apart. In the evening, with the sun at a low point in the horizon, I finally came out of the cool house to bask in the setting sun’s rays. There are two beaches accessible from the quarters-Eastern side and the Western side. They are probably separated by about 200 metres-300 metres of land between them. The lagoon on the western side is huge while on the eastern side is just a sliver running along the length of the island. I just walked for around 30 seconds to reach the western side beach and saw a huge Olive Ridley turtle. And then another, and another and so it continued. The skies are very clear because of no pollution (I guess the entire island must have around 10-15 four wheelers). The horizon is just a distance which appears deceptively within reach. The visibility during best of times is around 20 miles. The evening usually starts around 1900 hrs. Later, that night we (Dad, Mom, me and my brother) went to an open air party with delectable local dishes (including an unusual sweet dish) and a very soothing ambience. Though my day (or night depending on the interpretation!) ended on a sweet note, the following days (undetermined as of now) promises to be more adventurous for me.

Test post.