Nights on trains

Have you ever travelled in an AC compartment in a train? Have you ever walked across the aisle from one end of the compartment to the other in the middle of the night? If you have, you will understand what I am talking about. The AC compartment at night is very eerie feel to it if you have an active imagination.

People in an AC compartment tend to fall asleep very early, most probably to enjoy their sleep in that cool environment. Every passenger is supplied with their own set of bedding – two white bedsheets, a blanket, a thin pillow, and a hand towel. Almost everyone makes good use of these. As the hands of the clock cross nine o’clock, one by one the passengers start getting ready for bed. The middle berth is pulled up, people jostle to make way for the person trying to make his or her bed, good Samaritans help others make their bed, some line up near the bathrooms to wash or brush, and one after the other the lights begin to get switched off. Voices die down and the whole compartment is silent and almost dark within two hours.

If you wake up in the middle of the night, all you will hear is the rumble of the train. You will the slight swaying and, for the first time, you will be conscious of the bluish atmosphere inside the compartment. With your eyes attuned to the dark, the faint blue glow from the night bulbs seem all pervading. The bluish hue takes on a deathly feel as its effect is exacerbated by the powerful silence. For a weak hearted person, just registering this atmosphere is sufficient to make the hair at the back of his or her neck stand on end. But it does not end here – the eerie feeling I mean. This is just the backdrop.

With the atmosphere all set for a murder mystery, take a walk from one end of the compartment to the other. The only thing you notice during this walk is bodies covered with white cloth lying around throughout the compartment. These white figures lie motionless, only the ends of the cloth moving with the breeze or with the sway of the train. This, my dear friends, is very scary if you have an active imagination and if you have been brought up on horror stories and murder mysteries. Even today it gives me the gooseflesh to walk across the AC compartment in the middle of the night. But do not get caught up in the moment as you will be scared to the bone when this overpowering silence is broken by a moan or a creak or when a white figure suddenly stirs. One of my friends almost screamed when she heard a moan in the middle of the night.

But if you can neglect this minor discomfort, train travel in an AC compartment is quite pleasant. The climate inside the compartment is much pleasanter than outside and this makes me sleep like a log – and I love to sleep.