Train of my dreams

I took another train from Varanasi to Agra. This time it was 2nd class AC. Yes. Air conditioning. After getting fried like an egg in Varanasi it was absolutely dreamy.

I got on around 4:00 in the afternoon and getting on the car from the hot hot heat felt like entering another dimension. Cool, quiet, serene. For the first couple hours I had the compartment all to myself. No dogs barking, no horns honking, no babies crying, nobody staring.

Everything seemed completely luxurious to me: a hook to hang my purse on, a holder for my water bottle, an outlet to charge my cell phone, a little light to read by, the top bunk just for me complete with a wool blanket, small pillow, and a set of TWO fresh cotton sheets folded up in a cute brown paper sack that said Indian Railways. A man came by to drop off a survey on the train's cleanliness so I ventured to the bathroom to check it out. CLEAN! I mean wow. I was impressed.

I curled up in the seat with my book and my journal, looking outside occasionally as the pretty pink sun set. I ate dinner in the train: dal, curried vegetables, rice and chapati (not the best but decent enough) and when the man from the bunk below got on I crawled up to my bed. I slept better on that train in the nice cool air than I had all week in Varanasi. Like I said, it was lovely.