A slow journey in the west of India

OUR JOURNEY FROM Bhuj to Baroda (Vadodara), both in Gujarat, began yesterday at 650 am and ended at our hotel just after 8 pm. The distance we travelled was about 265 miles. There are direct trains between Bhuj and Baroda, but these were fully booked on the day we wanted to travel (i.e., 30th November 2023).

The first ‘leg’ of our journey was on a train that carried us from Bhuj to Sabarmati Junction – one of Ahmedabad’s several railway stations. The other passengers in our compartment were 4 young girls and a couple of young men returning to university after their Diwali break. We noted that the girls talked to each other. So, did the boys. But the girls and boys did not converse with each other and showed no interest in each other. The train rattled at high speed through the flat countryside and arrived at Sabarmati only about 8 minutes late. Unlike many Indian trains I have been on, the Bhuj to Sabarmati Superfast had no vendors wandering up and down the train.

It is a few miles between Sabarmati Junction and Ahmedabad’s centrally located main station. We hired an autorickshaw to take us between Sabarmati Jn and the Moti Mahal restaurant near the main station. Our driver tore through the heavy traffic narrowly missing numerous collisions. The eatery proved to be a scruffy but extremely popular place – noisy and lively. We enjoyed a good light lunch before walking to the station.

Although it was only about 200 yards between the restaurant and the station, it was necessary to cross an incredibly busy road with fast moving vehicles. We asked an autorickshaw driver if he would drive us there. He refused, but kindly offered to help us across the road, which resembled a disorderly road race. Using his arms like a traffic policeman he shepherded us across the thoroughfare. Even with his help it was a hair-raising experience.

We had to wait for our next train for about two hours on platform 6. The train we were about to catch was the Porbandar Shalimar Superfast. This train leaves Porbandar in Saurashtra (part of Gujarat) at 850 am on day 1 and arrives at Shalimar (a station in Calcutta) at 3.35 am on day 3 – having travelled a distance of 2544 km. Our journey on this train lasted just under two hours, arriving in Baroda about 20 minutes late.

She sells mats to passengers in the train

Unlike the train from Bhuj, the train to Shalimar was well populated by vendors. The seemingly endless procession of sales people were offering: bottled water; hot tea; snacks including biryani and bhel poori; bags of apples; and mobile phone chargers and cables. One lady in a colourful sari was selling attractive square mats at 10 Rupees each. Every now and then, a deformed invalid literally scuttled along the filthy floor of the corridor. He stopped at each compartment and banged his collecting pot ominously on the ground. Only a few passengers gave him coins.

The sun had set when our train pulled out of Ahmedabad. Through the open window, I saw many small villages, many of them with Hindu temples adorned with coloured lights – many of them flashing decorously. I could also see many brightly lit shops. Within the train, I had an excellent view of the door to one toilet. Even when it was closed it vibrated furiously as the train sped along. Many passengers peered inside the loo, but few dared to enter it.

The train seemed to travel even faster than the one from Bhuj, and it was a relief to disembark in Baroda’s lovely station. After another autorickshaw drive, we arrived at our comfortable hotel. Our reception there was a little reminiscent of an episode from “Fawlty Towers”. Once this was, over, things went smoothly and we enjoyed a good dinner in its dining room.