This weekend was spent traveling to Amritsar.  It was an interesting place, but I have to say I did not enjoy  the train rides.  The trains were hectic, chaos, that were squishy and uncomfortable to say the least.  We took an evening train meaning we got sleepers – which just ends up being these benches that the top and bottom bunks are permanently out and the middle folds out.  Which means the middle and bottom bunks are screwed because they are dependent upon each other and if one person doesn’t want to go to sleep it can be awkward. 

The train was something like 14 hours (leave at 7:30pm and arrive somewhere around 9:30am give or take 2 hours) and I believe I slept maybe 3 hours without interruption.  The remaining time was me laying there with my eyes closed desperately trying to sleep or tossing and turning while I listened to the snoring, coughing, vomiting, pooping, gagging, screaming, chanting of the chi seller and the wailing women who were singing yet not.   The ride to was not as bad as the ride back.  The ride to we were in a section that was us girls and the rest men.  So, the guys would just stair….now the thing about staring is, it is apparently not culturally taboo here.  Everyone stairs at you and the confusing/frustrating thing how do I respond?  Do I ignore it? Do I smile in response? Or do I stare back?  Each time it is difficult to judge how I should react because nothing works consistently.  Smiling does NOT always elicit a smile back – usually just more stares.  If I smile at a man then it could be taken as an invitation which is so very VERY wrong.   Staring back does nothing.  These people would win hands down in a staring contest.  So, I have taken to making funny faces because I just do not know what else to do….OR I confront them verbally – something simple like a “hello how are you?” Or “please stop staring and move along”.  Either way, the result is always a mixed bag.  Sometimes it takes the intervention of an Indian on my behalf to get the stares to quit (particularly with the men).  Indians know how to pack a room.  If you picture a square, 3 of the sides of the square have seats available, one side is the windows.  Two sides  sit 6 people (3 & 3 facing each other and on the 3^rd side there are spots for 2 more that face the 6 people for a total of 8.  

 There is an isle down between the 2 seats and 6 seats) yet, somehow at one point there were 14 of us in the 6 seat compartment.  This is not including the people standing in the main isle, nor the 7 people fitting into the “2-seater” portion.  Those videos and movies that show people literally hanging off the sides of the train or sitting on the roof are typical of every train at some point along its route.  At these times, you do not want to have to go to the bathroom.