More than once, we went to the station to check if our TGV from Paris Gare de l’Est to Luxembourg would run. We went first to Bouray, and were told to check at Paris. When we went to Montparnasse, we went to the station there. Our train, we were told, was ‘sure to run’, despite […]
What is travel without adventure?
Would we travel at all if there were no stories to tell? The things that go wrong make stories – and things that almost go wrong make the best stories of all. A train journey to Varanasi did not promise to be exciting. First, our train was from Mumbai at an unearthly hour. The journey […]
Chambery to Torino
From Lyon, I went to Chambéry to meet my correspondent from the French exchange programme and her family. It was a lovely stay, though short. My ‘Maman’ in Chambéry is a boat-driver, and, as I was there in summer, she had long hours of work, so I did not want to impose on them for […]
Double Decker Train
I saw a double-decker train after so long today! I did not even know they still ran! I remember when I went on one as a child. The extreme excitement and anticipation. The dread that we would actually have to sit down. Blue train, blue seats, silver stairs. Running up and down those stairs, careful […]
Impure Veg
‘Pure veg’ is such a uniquely Indian concept. I used to mock it. My grandparents are pure veg. (Somehow that sounds odd. A pure veg restaurant is different from pure veg food, which is different from pure veg people. My grandparents are people, not food or restaurants. Just making things clear.) When they went to […]
Travel Woes
I could write a whole book about things that went wrong while I was travelling. I have a very dear friend who says that my poor guardian angel is always overworked because I make him work overtime keeping me safe through everything. In some AC trains, there’s a little metal box above the berth that […]