1st January 2009.
First day of the year! I wanted to visit Madurantakam. The plan has been on hold since Christmas. I didn’t want to delay this trip any more. I had problems waking up early in the morning. I had the plan of going on December 31st, 2008-that’s my father’s birthday. But I couldn’t get up early.
I got up at 0500hrs. I boarded a bus to Saidapet. As I was at the ticket counter at Saidapet, WDP-4#20038 cruised through Saidapet at 0615hrs. It was an awesome sight. I love watching trains in action since childhood. I have shared my life’s best moments with them. I have shared my miseries with them. What am I going to give in return?
I boarded Tambaram bound EMU and got down at Guindy as my passenger train would halt only here and not in Saidapet. AJJ WAP-4#22696 came cruising with 2632 Nellai Express at 0630hrs. I could make out that all trains in this section were running at least 30 minutes late. Quickly, WDM-2#16787 came with 6102 Boat Mail and zoomed past me at 0650hrs. My passenger came with WAM-4#21232 and was on time. I boarded it and very soon I was passing through the suburbs. I stood at the door to enjoy the speed. WDM-3D#11213 was seen hauling Kanyakumari Express at Pallavaram around 0705hrs. We reached Tambaram on time. It was cold and breezy. I stood in the bay for sometime avoiding the door as I felt it was cold. WDP-3A#15501 was seen hauling 2694 Pearl City Express at 0743hrs.
My train reached Chengalpet on time. The Kolavai Lake appeared scenic in the dull weather. Now came the fun. I was in a dilemma whether to have breakfast in train or at a hotel in Madurantakam. I believed that my train would start soon and eating in train would be uncomfortable. After Chengalpet, there aren’t double tracks. Since all trains were running late, expresses coming from south were given preference and my train being an ordinary passenger wasn’t given preference. The WDM-2’s, WAM-4’s WAP-4’s brought various Egmore bound trains. I could see signs of frustrations amongst the passengers. Few even left the coach with an idea of boarding a bus.
After waiting for more than 40 minutes at Chengalpet, my train was given clearance and my WAM-4 pulled my train out of CGL. WAP-4#22218 was waiting in loop with 2641 Kanyakumari-Nizammuddin Tirukkural Express at a station called Ottivakkam. There was a 20 year old Rajasthan girl who was distributing pamphlets to everyone. I knew that she was collecting money. She was calm and good looking. She was wearing bangles, bracelets and a Rajastani type traditional dress. Generally I don’t encourage such things, but this was a different day. I read the pamphlet. It stated that she has lost her parents and she was struggling to make money in her present job. She was collecting money for her younger sister’s marriage and brother’s education. Generally, I don’t open my purse at public places fearing that I might be overpowered and snatched away. But I thought today I should help her. I think she was married as in the pamphlet it was said that she was fetching money for her younger sister’s marriage. She must be married as it is the elder sister’s right. I gave only Rs.10. But I observed something which I didn’t like. There were two sex maniacs sitting in the corner of the coach. Since she couldn’t understand Tamil, she couldn’t understand the abusive remarks they passed on her body. I was angry at my Lord Vishnu. Why does He punish people hard? Poor people continue to suffer and get discriminated while rich people continue to suppress the under-priveleged. That’s the reason why I have a soft corner for atheist nations like the USSR, even though I am a brahmin. I could only wish that USSR was non-idealistic and it existed. Given the present day scenario with the so called first world countries dominating over small countries, a nation like USSR is very much needed.
My train was doing moderate speed after Chengalpet. The scenery was awesome. I was amazed at the beauty of my land. There is a sharp contrast between cities and villages. These places were so silent that I felt so happy that I almost burst into tears. Awesome and excellent scenario. I know I am privileged and lucky to be born in this country. I am a rich and wealthy person. You know why? My land stretches across thousands of kilometers. I belong to it and it belongs to me. The goods news is that I share it with you. It’s our land!
I got down at Madurantakam and I waited at the station for some time. I knew that 6127 Guruvayur Express would be coming soon and would cross this station. WAP-4#22746came with 6127 and crossed me at 80kph+. After watching the train, I walked through the town for around 10 minutes to reach the Town Center.
I went to Nirmala Bhavan. I had one parotta and one dosai. The kara chutney was excellent. I suggest that it is more hygienic than the present day stuffs of Burgers, Pizza’s. The total bill was Rs.32. Take my word, you will like it. I walked to the temple and I was surprised to see the crowd. It took half an hour for me to see the Lord. As I started my way back to bus stand, I saw the spire of a church nearby it looked majestic and no wonder the holy cross stands tall. I boarded a through bus to CMBT. The ticket cost Rs.22.50.
The G.S.T road was awesome. Small mountain ranges, bridges, rivers added more to the beauty. I reached CMBT at 1430hrs. Then I boarded a Kalpakkam bus and got down at Madhya Kailas. I reached home at 1500hrs. My dog Damien was sleeping beneath my bicyle.
-Krishna Kumar.S
***** END OF TRIP REPORT*****
Since I have already visited Madurantakam twice, I didn't describe the temple nor talk about Madurantakam in this report. Please visit the links below to see more pictures, photos taken during my earlier visits.
First visit to Madurantakam
http://exploringmotherindia.blogspot.com/2008/09/visiting-madurantakam.html
Second visit to Madurantakam
http://exploringmotherindia.blogspot.com/2008/09/first-pic-of-day-wdp-3a15533-hauling.html
No comments:
Post a Comment