The Mysore Express
The Madhurai to Bangalore "Mysore express" was supposed to arrive at the platform 2 at 7:40. We got to the Madhurai station, wherein there started the customary "price haggling" with the porters. They thrive on quoting a price, and bargaining. You have to have the stomach for it, or you get "fleeced". Now, to fleece or to be fleeced is a matter of perspective. To think of it, Rs.200 which is what they wanted to charge is roughly $4.50 (depending on the current exhange rate). Would we balk at giving $5 to a porter in the US for similar services? We would probably not even bat an eye-lid if we were charged $15. We give $5 tips to hotel porters who cart our bags on wheeled stands and use elevators to move bags from a hotel lobby to our checked in room. We even gush our Thank-yous effusively. So then why would we want to haggle with porters who, although weak looking, are extremely strong and hand carry our bags and walk the length of a train without batting an eyelid? They manage to push themselves with our bags onto the train while other passengers are milling about also trying to get in to the compartment. They are matter-of-fact about it. This is their livelyhood. I guess we bargain and haggle over the price to go along with the nature of the beast. Something to ponder...
Anyway, back to the Mysore express. It was to arrive at platform 2. The only way to get to platform 2 is to a) climb the stairs and cross over using the bridge (which seems easy until you see the number of stairs!); b) cross the tracks on platforms 1 and 2 and hop on to platform 2 which is what our porter did WITH the bags!; or 3) walk all the way to the end of platform 1 until it gradually levels up with the ground, cross the tracks and walk all the way back on platform 2 (which is what Prakash's group did with Amma as she was in a wheel chair). Of course, the porter is so fast, that he doesn't care if you are following. If you want to keep an eye on your bags, you'd BETTER follow! He nonchalantly jumped off platform 1, crossed the 2 tracks (while carrying our suitcases) and plopped our bags down in the are on platform 2 where our bogey was anticipated (unlike Bangalore, Madhurai platforms don't yet have carraige identification on the platforms and so you are dependant on the porters, or you hightail it to the right bogey after the train arrives) and took off! In the meantime, Srikanth was watching in horror as a good train was slowly approaching track 1, and I was still crossing over on the stairs, and he would lose sight of the bags. Unaware of any spousal turmoil, I sauntered over to platform 2 and slowly made my way up front when I heard my name urgently shouted. Srikanth was frantically pointing to our abandoned bags and wanted me to hightail it so that our bags wouldn't "walk"! So here we were shouting at each other over platforms to make ourselves heard while the goods train finally chugged in and obscured our view of each other.
Of course by now we had a couple of calls from Bangalore on where to stand, what to expect, what to do the next day AM in order to ensure that we get off the train at the right place and time etc. The train was late, and Pandian (the train to Chennai) was on platform 1 already, although it wasn't leaving for an hour after ours. My in-laws had to see us off, go back to the car, settle with our driver, get the bags from the car, and make it onto Pandian. Worrisome indeed. But everything worked out. They reached safe! The next morning, we got woken up early just-in-case we forgot to wake up and move our boxes near the door of the train so that we could get off at Bangalore Cantonment. We disembarked with high speed and efficiency, and had the customary price-haggle with the porter, and finally reached home!
Thank you for reading.
Anyway, back to the Mysore express. It was to arrive at platform 2. The only way to get to platform 2 is to a) climb the stairs and cross over using the bridge (which seems easy until you see the number of stairs!); b) cross the tracks on platforms 1 and 2 and hop on to platform 2 which is what our porter did WITH the bags!; or 3) walk all the way to the end of platform 1 until it gradually levels up with the ground, cross the tracks and walk all the way back on platform 2 (which is what Prakash's group did with Amma as she was in a wheel chair). Of course, the porter is so fast, that he doesn't care if you are following. If you want to keep an eye on your bags, you'd BETTER follow! He nonchalantly jumped off platform 1, crossed the 2 tracks (while carrying our suitcases) and plopped our bags down in the are on platform 2 where our bogey was anticipated (unlike Bangalore, Madhurai platforms don't yet have carraige identification on the platforms and so you are dependant on the porters, or you hightail it to the right bogey after the train arrives) and took off! In the meantime, Srikanth was watching in horror as a good train was slowly approaching track 1, and I was still crossing over on the stairs, and he would lose sight of the bags. Unaware of any spousal turmoil, I sauntered over to platform 2 and slowly made my way up front when I heard my name urgently shouted. Srikanth was frantically pointing to our abandoned bags and wanted me to hightail it so that our bags wouldn't "walk"! So here we were shouting at each other over platforms to make ourselves heard while the goods train finally chugged in and obscured our view of each other.
Of course by now we had a couple of calls from Bangalore on where to stand, what to expect, what to do the next day AM in order to ensure that we get off the train at the right place and time etc. The train was late, and Pandian (the train to Chennai) was on platform 1 already, although it wasn't leaving for an hour after ours. My in-laws had to see us off, go back to the car, settle with our driver, get the bags from the car, and make it onto Pandian. Worrisome indeed. But everything worked out. They reached safe! The next morning, we got woken up early just-in-case we forgot to wake up and move our boxes near the door of the train so that we could get off at Bangalore Cantonment. We disembarked with high speed and efficiency, and had the customary price-haggle with the porter, and finally reached home!
Thank you for reading.
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