Around The World In 80 Trains: By Monisha Rajesh

 

'' — trains would always have a charm that could soften even the grumpiest traveller .. ''

Let’s walk down the aisle .. and no, it's not the white dress and black tie kind of an aisle, it's an adventure aisle. An aisle that has the power of taking your mind from the dark to the light.

yes .. THAT aisle, the one that just popped in your head.

As much as we all love to travel, there’s still something missing in that concept. It’s easy to book a flight, the hotel and the activities that will  fill up your schedule for days and weeks to come. But have you ever asked yourself on whether you’re really enjoying the journey or are you or just traveling ?

Wait, let me put it in nicer words in here, not that I’m not nice, but sometimes one needs a bit of a tone and a 5-year old kid’s attitude to get the right point to others. 

Sorry (not sorry). 

Anyways, back to my point.

So basically in the world of language, there’s a huge difference between traveling and experiencing.  Don’t roll your eyes, but what I mean is that sometimes traveling is not  just about exploring and sightseeing. It’s much much more !!

It’s experiencing things the way they are and Living the moment as it really is. And that kind living and experiencing is not something you can get through a direct flight via an airplane and a business class seat.

Wait are you still here ?

Ok good .

What I want to address today is a topic I have been skeptical about in the past, but once I got into this book, my mindset have changed completely . And it’s travel by train. yes you heard me, by train. railways. The old school way.

Around The World in 80 Trains, By Monisha Rajesh is an eye opener of a book. She documented her travels by train in details and specifics that makes one want to hop on one RIGHT NOW !

yes traveling by train is super exhausting and tiring to the core, but the experience one gets is different, and that’s what I came to conclude.

I kid you not, but this is my second time devouring the book, and probably the last if i don’t get a new copy. The pages are ruined with my notes and annotations, that it’s hard to read through the author’s points, sorry Monisha I just loved your book so very much.

Every page is a ride and a world in its own, but what I really loved in this book is the connections that the author and her partner have formed all along their journey from one country to another. And yes, you will definitely form similar connections somewhere … but probably not on an airplane because everyone is just super grumpy or just snoozed in and confirmed a good night's sleep.  The same goes for train travels because humans are humans in the end, BUT with a twist.

In trains, people are aware of the journey and what's to come. They have booked this tiring adventure for a reason, and that reason is basically to know more and experience things by being there in a short distance and not from afar like any other tourist.

And taking the rides to be longer than expected, passengers within the compartments will of course form some kind of a bond with others. Either a love or hate bond, there has to be something that will indicate a connection, forming a community with neighbors living next door or on that side of the block. They might be annoying or friendly, but in the end you have formed a community of people that will eventually  need one another. And believe it or not, all that is happening right now in the trains that have just left their stations, others that will leave and those that have already left in the past and created the community we’re talking about. As the author stated

 “trains provided a ready-made, rolling community where you were free to be as involved or as aloof as you wanted. Conversations and good food were always there within arm’s reach, and even if you didn’t want to be the Centre of attention, the sense of belonging was innate ..”

Although the book documents the author's Journey through the train and her experience in every country, there are still personal aspects concerning the way she thought about things in the past, and the way they came to change and be, now that she’s having that kind of experience with people being very close to the accommodation she’s sleeping and eating in.  And that’s something I really loved the author for including and emphasizing on, because I have always been the person who never left her comfort zone, but after reading the book for the second time I have been pushed from my sanctuary to the rail lines, falling  on my knees and face but ready for what the other side has to offer me.

There are tons of things that you as a reader will come to enjoy. Every page will provide you a new aspect of life and traveling, all through meeting and talking to others. Yes it might be a bit weird for some, but you can never experience the fun of it, if that kind of connection is not formed. Ask the experts and they’ll tell you .. 

speaking of traveling and train experts, let’s get back to the author and study what she had to say, hoping to convince you into living that kind of experience with others.

“A wonderful aspect of traveling by train is the transactional relationship between passengers who feed off one another, picking up tips, offering advice, guarding each other’s belongings, and generating a trust that is unique to railway travel .. “

Just like Aladdin said, it’s a whole new world!, Out there on the railways. You will live, see and experience the true meaning of life. For a moment take a break from the luxurious flights and hotels, book an authentic hostel or even try staying with locals. It’s worth it. But most importantly, try at least for your next trip to avoid getting to your destination by the plane and get yourself into a train !

Yes you will be tired, exhausted and stinky, but the experience you’ll get is and will be more than worth it.

It’s never late, too late or not the right time  to change that flight of yours , I’m just saying ..

I personally had a good time traveling on the railways through Monisha’s words, and I bet you’ll change your mind completely about railway travel, that you will do some alterations in regards to your next trip.

If there’s one thing the book have taught me, it’ll be to enjoy being a human and act like one amongst people. This is the luxury we have all been given the day we were born, so why not make a thing of it, for the goodness of all. 

In the end I will leave you not with my favourite quotes, but the quotes that made me stare at them for the longest of time. Just absorbing the beauty of the narration and wisdom that ventures within.

Enjoy ..

- trains are rolling libraries of information, and all it takes is to reach out to passengers to bind together their tales.

- the train was a sanctuary for loners to find company, children to find play, and daydreamers to reminisce.

- the earth was much smaller than I’d realised, and nothing was that far away.

- No matter how many journeys I took, or how awful the train, each one brought an element of surprise or wonder, usually to be found in the least expected places and people. 

- for the first time in a long while I felt at home. The concept of home was fluid for someone like me.