Into the clouds -Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Sometimes I wonder why some of us really love a comfortable train journey. In my entire lifetime, I haven’t heard anyone saying they love a bus journey. Whether it is the chaos of the cities, or an unyielding monsoon, train manages to keep a rhythm within itself. It doesn’t try to alter the world for us , except it presents the view from it.
 Nilgiri Mountain railway is one among the UNESCO world heritage list. Train whose major stretch is powered by steam ,starts from Mettupalayam which is near to Coimbatore and ends in Ooty by covering 46 kms in 5 hours. Probably the slowest train on earth, it just moves through the pristine and serene nilgiri forest, cowling numerous bridges and tunnels with gasping steam and spells the vibrant forest into a mythical land. For some still moments with nature, it stops at couple of vantage points apart than stations which offer light refreshments. More or less the train itself was like movie house which presented nature in a widest canvas we can never imagine.
To catch the train, you need to go to Mettupalayam which is 35 kms away from Coimbatore which is well connected by road and rail. Mettupalayam is a modest town with good lodging options. The train starts at 7:10, has only 3 compartments and it is highly recommended to book tickets in advance. Out of 3, one is a general compartment and you have to be there in queue at least 90 min before the departure of train to get a ticket. The “general” compartment is not an option unless you are ready to take a chance. The train is powered by steam but uses diesel instead of coal to boil the water. The steam engine which provides stiffest thrust to move the train through tougher gradient, is changed to a diesel engine when it reaches the finer plains of Coonor.
 If you have an chance , sit on a your left side to enjoy the nature. The return train starts from Ooty at 2pm.
Some Pictures

A phone contact

 I am going to delete a phone number from my mobile. The person whom it belonged to , passed away recently. I was having a tea with a friend today and he told me unexpectedly that this person has passed away. When  I asked him further , he told me he got a call from someone a week back informing the death of this person. Apparently his number was on the last call list. Just before his death it seemed that he called my friend.

This person who died was a bachelor. He suffered a massive heart attack shortly after a meal. It was because of him I made the first travel to himalayas. My friend gave me his contact when I told him casually that I wanted to visit himalayas. When I called him he told me he will pick me from airport which he couldn’t do at the last minute. But it gave me enough confidence to set my plans moving. He gave me an address in haridwar where I could find an accommodation. I stayed there, at  a beautiful ashram much away from hustles and dust of a pilgrimage town.

After my visit I met this person for the first time. He was in a temple near to kerala -tamilnadu border. My friend took me there. He looked young, robust and made a fiery conversation. I looked at his eyes with gratitude for the help he did. After that again I met him for the last time, when he was in my hometown recovering from a surgery. He had an assistant boy who spoke a dialect of the hills. He spoke to me for a while complaining about the pain he was suffering.

For a long time I didnt have any contact with this person. But during my last visit to himalayas, while I was returning from yamunotri , I thought of staying at Dehradun for a night. But I didnt see the modesty and serenity when I reached and made a quick plan to go to Rishikesh. Since Rishikesh was at peak pilgrimage season ,I wasn’t sure where to stay. While speaking to my friend he suggested me to contact this person. When I called him , he remembered me immediately and suggested a place to stay which I did. I guess I didnt meet or call him after that.

When my friend came to know his death , he travelled immediately to pay his last respects. It seems death happened in Coimbatore , where he came down from Delhi on the same day. My friend performed his last rites and he told me he just want to forget him.

After that conversation, I looked at my phone, his number was still on the contact list. While gazing it for a while, it seemed to me that contact has just disappeared away with time .I couldn’t accept that for a while.

It may be easy to delete a contact , but some people form very hard impressions and it never goes away with our time.