One minute travel guide to enigmatic pluralism - 4
DAY 4 : INDIAN RAILWAYSThe indigenously engineered air-conditioned anubhuti ( means sensation in many Indian languages ) coaches of shatabdi ( available at present ) and rajdhani ( soon to be introduced ) trains are cheaper than domestic air travel. They are fitted with ergonomic cushy seats and lcd screens for non-stop entertainment ( image provided below ). In-cabin wifi and charging receptacles are also provided. The european-style washrooms are designed on the lines of jets, and you can even take a hot shower to relax, only to be greeted with freshly cooked sumptuous meals. If you want just the AC, and not the tv and other goodies, then you could simply opt for the first class. And if you are in a mood to splurge a little more, then you must try any one of the six luxury trains ( the second one of the following two images ), it will be a life-changing experience. And don't forget to ride the double-decker trains and also the toy train in darjeeling ( less than an hour from kolkata by air ). The darjeeling himalayan railways was declared an world heritage site by UNESCO in 1999, only the second railway in the whole world to have this honor bestowed upon it. And if you are interested in buddhism, then you could ride the mahaparinirvan express, which takes you to various historical places of buddhism. These days it is quite common to witness green brakes ( regenerative ) in action in Indian locomotives. The average and maximum speed limits of rajdhani, shatabdi, and duronto expresses of Indian railways are at par with those of near-high speed passenger trains in usa ( ie not including the acela express ). And don't forget to collect your Indrail pass which has a plethora of benefits. The Indian railways is, incidentally, world's ninth largest commercial employer.
indianrail dot gov dot in
irctc dot co dot in
railtourismindia dot com
mahaparinirvanexpress dot com ( the buddhist circuit train )
themaharajatrain dot com ( the five luxury trains : palace on wheels, golden chariot - voted by vanity fair of uk as top seven luxury train journeys in the world, royal rajasthan on wheels, maharaja express - voted as world's leading luxury train at the world travel awards 2012, deccan odyssey )
fairyqueen dot co dot in ( the sixth luxury train that holds a guinness world record )
See you all soon in India!
( All images belong to their respective owners. )
Comments (18)
It may be best to show us more good food. :)
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St_Elmo Johannesburg, Johannesburg South Africa
Hi there mr Elmo...this pic i happen to see
in south Africa....kissy kissy,....
i find your post and comments very interesting to read.
well, this series is just a reflection of "how rome is developing".
and instead of dividing into east and west, i always ignore the xenophobic people, be it in real life or in web.
this is also in south africa....
hi too much monkeys in south africa...
Hello there miss....you are welcome
to my country...if you visit mumbai
please let me know,i can pick you up
at the airport...
@south africa....
HI Baby.....namaste....
It is merely that as an incentive to visit, visually appealing food is more likely to attract than reminding me of the last newsreel footage of an overcrowded train. :)
Alternatively, we in the US do not expect folks to come here just because we got new cars on our Amtrak trains. Hardly anyone comes to the US just to see our new railroad cars (especially since only a few small parts are made in the US these days and our imported rail cars look almost exactly like the imported rail cars found in other countries that buy them from the same rail car manufacturer).
I would not mind traveling in one of these, they look pretty comfortable
Thanks for sharing the photos
you're most welcome.
@ken
sure - i will be covering different types of indian cuisines in the coming days.
and well, the post does not tell people to visit india just because indian railways got anubhuti coaches.
it simply says to the potential traveller - hey! now there's something better than first class ac.
that's it.
some trains are indeed overcrowded ( though i'm yet to see one in that photo ) - but that's pretty irrelevant as those trains are mainly for short distance / intra-city / suburbs. as a traveller you'll be always travelling in long distance express trains ( the three i mentioned in the post ) which are just not like that.
@daniel
thanks and hope to see you here soon.