Warning: This travelogue is 3225 words long!

The taxi driver maintained a slow speed as he drove through the four-laned highway from Angamali to Aluva. The speedometer never went above 60kmph. On questioning, he responded that there were traffic police teams checking speed of vehicles on the highway using radars! He even showed us two such points. He slowly veered off the highway and entered Aluva town. After a small drive inside the town, a dirty white-gray building with an "India Post" logo emblazoned across its wall. I guessed that building to be the railway station, and that turned out to be right! The driver stopped the car near the porch of the station. The driver and I unloaded our baggage from the huge dickey of India 's own car - the majestic Ambassador! My brother continued his journey to Ernakulam in the taxi while we (I and my parents) walked into the station.

The ticketing counters at the station were heavily crowded. There were many ticket checking squads on the platform. Just while we were entering the station, the Hyderabad bound Sabari Express came in and left. We entered the platform at about 1300. Our train was scheduled to arrive only at 1440. We kept our baggage in the waiting room. The room had plastic chairs and a hexagon shaped table. There is a 'pay-and-use' toilet inside the room. The room had a fan which seemed to run just for the sake of it!!! It was hot inside the room, and I decided to roam around in the platform. The Ernakulam bound Mangala Express came in. I couldn't photograph since I had momentarily entered the waiting room when the train entered!

The Television sets on the platform were repeatedly playing advertisements and some odd songs from some recent Malayalam flicks. They were also playing safety related messages. All those messages were accompanied by good videos of a WDM2 of Erode and a WDM7 from Ernakulam. For two messages, they used popular Malayalam star Mohanlal to do the anchoring! While I was listening to one of those messages, the PA system came alive and the arrival of Parasuram express was announced. This train came in with WDM2 #18701 from Erode at 1329. This train had two AC Chair cars and one FC coach. The FC coach had coupes and cabins. One of those "honeymoon" coupes had a real life couple sitting!!! This train had only one coach with the "reserved" marking! A very huge crowd got down, while another comparable crowd got in! Parasuram left some minutes later. Chandigarh bound Kerala Sampark Kranti pulled into the station with an Ernakulam loco just as Parasuram was pulling out. Sometime later, my dad suggested that we go to Platform #3 where our train was expected. The platforms were much airy when compared to the waiting hall.

We crossed the tracks using the Foot over bridge. An OHE Inspection car was occupying the line next to the platform line. We rested on a bench at the platform. The Mumbai bound 1082 Janata Express pulled into the station with WAP4 #22543 from Erode in charge at 1344. The train left minutes later. The station returned to silence just when the PA system came alive and the arrival of Raptisagar Express was announced. The train pulled in with WAP4 #22244 from Erode in charge at 1359. This train had 21 coaches. The train left the station, making the station going back to silence. Just as I rested on a bench, a totally unknown person came to me and asked if I was "Binai"! I said, "Yes". That was Nishant from Chennai (Now in Trivandrum ), a railfan and a member of IRFCA & Southern railway discussion forum. We had a very live discussion about a lot of observations he and I had made in the past few days! Just as we were discussing, the Trivandrum-bound Sabari express pulled in with WAP4 #22287 from Erode. The train left.

The PA system once again came live, and there was an announcement regarding the arrival of Trivandrum bound 6345 Netravati Express. Nishant made a dash to Platform 1. Just as I walked back, I noticed that the announcement of the arrival of 6345 was closely followed by the announcement about the arrival of 6346! Both the trains have the same departure time at Alwaye. We had a mad dash towards the other end of the platform. Our coach was the 19 th from the loco and we were near the marker for the 10 th coach! Just as we crossed the 15 th coach marker, the loco was visible. We increased our speed. The loco probably stopped much before the "Stop" board, because the 16 th coach stopped near the "19" marker! We boarded AS1, and decided to walk through the vestibule to reach AS3. We finally reached our coach. The coach was 05144A manufactured in January 2006. Just 8 months old! The train now has 22 coaches (1 more than its previous composition). The coach position was: Loco-SLR-GS-S1 to S9-PC-S10-S11-EX1-A1-AS1 to AS4-GS-SLR. The AC3T coaches were of 96, 00, 05 and 03-make respectively.

The train departed from the station at 1452. Just outside the station, we crossed the Trivandrum bound Netravati express hauled by WDM3A #18555 from Erode smoking furiously. The train picked speed in no time. Nedumbassery ( Cochin ) Airport was clearly visible from the train. There were two aircrafts (One was Indian and the other was Air-India Express) at the tarmac. We crossed the Guruvayur - Ernakulam passenger hauled by WDM2 #18532 from Ernakulam at Angamaly. The train stopped at Divine nagar today. There was a huge crowd getting down at this station. We crossed the Trivandrum bound Venad express (led by WAP4 #22572 from Erode) near Ollur. The train pulled into Thrisur at 1545. The Ernakulam bound express from Patna was waiting on Platform 3 (???). The train had a WAM4 from Arakkonam doing the honours. The train left at around 1555. Most passengers, including me, realized a something very shocking - the coach had no water!!! The Attendant replied that the coach would be watered at Shoranur. The train crossed the Alappuzha bound 3352 Dhanbad express shortly after Thrisur. Our train pulled into Shoranur at 1632 hrs. The Ernakulam bound passenger was readying for a departure from Shoranur. The loco working the passenger was WAP4 #22522 from Erode. The coach was watered from Shoranur, but still the coach did not have water! The attendants zeroed the problem to the pumps located near the tanks. They weren't pumping any water though the tank had it.

The train left after about 15 minutes. The section from Shoranur to Karakad is seeing doubling works at a fast rate. The land had been leveled, bridges are almost ready. Karakad station had been re-designed. This station earlier had two loop lines and one main line running through. Now the loop lines are gone, and instead two main lines would run through. The tracks have been laid from Karakad to Pallipuram. There are some civil works going on at Pattambi station. A new platform is being constructed from the UP line. Double line has been already commissioned between Pallipuram and Tirunavaya. Tirunavaya to Kozhikode was doubled last year itself. The section ahead of Kozhikode was covered in the night, and hence I couldn't notice the progress of works.

Our train pulled into Tirur at 1752. A huge load of parcels were waiting to be loaded, and that prolonged the halt to 10 minutes instead of the usual 5 minutes. The attendants got down to rectify the problem with the pump, but they were unsuccessful. The Ernakulam bound intercity pulled into the station with Ernakulam Jumbo WDM2 #17805 while we were at the station. A huge sea of humans was waiting for the intercity. A Golden rock WDM2 was also waiting at the station. The train rushed through Tanur. Tanur used to be a very important crossing station until about a year back! We reached Parpanangadi at 1811. The station was crowded with people waiting for the Chennai mail. We crossed this train just metres after the station. It was getting dark outside and I decided to have some rest. I stretched my arms on a side-upper berth. I had decided not to sleep, and hence started digging into a novel - "Five point someone" by Chetan Bhagat. The novel was an okay type. I finished almost 75% of the novel in less than an hour. The train stopped at Kozhikode while I was reading.

I got down from the berth for dinner. Finished of my dinner - I had ordered Vegetable Biriyani. The food was OK but a bit spicy. The food that my parents had (also from the pantry) - was much funny. They had ordered Veg. meals. The serving had 3 half-baked chapattis, some accompaniment, some rice, Dal and a horribly sour curd. The train pulled into Kannur at 2106, early by 9 minutes. The Mangalore-Trivandrum Malabar Express was ready to depart on Platform 3. There was a mad scramble as passengers tried to hurry into their coaches. The attendants now got down once again and took help from the C&W staff at the station to repair the pump. After a lot of attempts, they couldn't resolve the issue. The Attendant assured that the problem would be rectified at Kankanadi. The train left Kannur at 2125, delayed by 5 minutes. I went to sleep soon after the train left the station. The sleep was very comfortable. I had set an alarm for 0530.

I got up quite before the alarm went off. I finally got down from the side-upper berth at about 0545. I went to the toilet to find that the water supply had been restored! The toilets were of the new "modular" type. The flush sprays water to everywhere but the place where it is required! I decided to have some cool air, and I occupied the door. The time was around 0555. The surroundings were dark and very cold. Just as the train woke up the entire countryside with its thunders, we ran through a station - Gokarna Road! Madgaon was still 100 kms away!!! The train pulled into Karwar at about 0628, delayed by about an hour and 40 minutes. The train left Karwar at 0632. The Madgaon DMU was allowed ahead of us.

The train rushed through green countryside on a very cold monsoon morning with the loco smoking up furiously and continuously honking! The train finally crashed into Madgaon at about 0740. The 'coach care centre' of Madgaon is quite big. Its size amazed me. The rake of Mandovi Express and the Jan Shatabdhi was parked there. There were quite a lot of spare coaches too. Near the end of the yard was a WDM3A from Krishnarajapuram coupled to the rake of the Mandovi express. The loco was now ready to shunt the rake to the station. While at the station, the Vijayawada bound Amaravati Express pulled in. The loco was Gooty WDM3A #14038. The coaches were filled up once again. The Amaravati Express left the station at 0748. The rake had about 13 coaches to Vijayawada , and 3 slip coaches to Kacheguda. Our train left Madgaon at 0755. The DMU which came in from Karwar was now stabled on the line between Platform 1 & 2. The Rake of Mandovi Express was now waiting behind our train.

The run from Madgaon to Majorda was interesting. There were light showers during the journey. Just as our train left Surawali, the Kulem bound passenger crossed our train with a Gooty WDM3A in-charge. Majorda (written as Majodda in Konkani) station is manned by KRCL staff. Our train slowed down while approaching Majorda shifted to the KRCL line towards Verna and notched up furiously. We crossed Verna in no time. This station interestingly has a very good building. We crossed the Zuari soon after Verna. We pulled into Karmali at about 0828. The train left Karmali after the mentioned 2 minute halt. We pulled into Thivim at 0858. The Ernakulam bound 6337 Okha Express was waiting for us at Thivim. The loco in charge was WDM2 #16295 from Ernakulam. Our train left Thivim at 0900. The train sped through Pernem (written as "Pedhne" in Konkani). The train pulled into Sawantwadi for an unscheduled halt. We halted on the Mainline itself. The train left soon after a 2 minute silence . It started raining heavily by then. The train pulled into Kudal at 0954. Here we crossed a BOXN rake hauled by Erode WDG3A #13223. We also overtook the KR6 Sawantwadi-Diva passenger at this station. The loco working the passenger was a WDG3A "Shakti".

I had a few more pages to read in the novel - "Five point someone". I sat down on my seat and decided to finish it off. In the meanwhile, we crossed the Konkan Kanya Express at Sindhudurg. I couldn't see the loco. Sometime later, after finishing off the novel, I decided to get to the door. I was rewarded almost instantly - We crossed the 0105A CSTM-Madgaon Ganpati special at Vaibhavwadi Road . The loco was WDM2 #18251 from Kalyan. I decided to stay at the door itself. I was once again rewarded for that - At Vilavade, we crossed the 0105 Dadar-Madgaon Ganpati special. The loco for this special was WDG3A #13035 from Pune. Both the specials had thin crowd. The train kept speeding through tunnels, bridges and lush green forests before coming to a halt at Adavli. I held my breath tight as the flag-man at the station told a local vendor that the Ahmedabad-Madgaon special is pulling in! The message was true! Very soon, I saw a loco in DCW livery pulling into the station - and that was WDM3A #18749R from Vatwa! The train had newer coaches (all with WR markings - sans boards). The crowds were too thin to justify the special! We pulled out soon after the crossing.

I stayed at the door itself. After a very long spirited run, our train slowed down while inside a tunnel. The train screeched and screamed as she pulled out of the tunnel, and came to a halt. We were on the main line, and the Madgaon Jan Shatabdhi was waiting for us on the loop line! The loco hauling the king was WDM3A #14139 from Erode. Our train soon started off. She crawled through the length of the station. The Cause: a 10kmph Speed restriction is in force. A section (about 150-250 metres long) of the floor had sunken. The platform came down to earth level. They had temporarily filled the site and services resumed. The train took 26 minutes to cover the 15 kilometres between Nivasar and Ratnagiri. Ratnagiri had a lot of surprises for me - A pair of MUed WDMs from Guntakkal! The locos were WDM3A #18913R (Leading) and WDM2 #16390. There was an ERS WDM2 MUed to a WDG3A also at this station! The ERS loco was WDM2 #17853. We pulled into Ratnagiri at 1240, delayed by an hour and 45 minutes! The train left Ratnagiri at 1245. The train picked speed quickly and very crossed the Goa Sampark Kranti at Bhoke. It was already 1300, and there were no signs of lunch being served.

My stomach kept reminding me to refill it! Finally at about 1320, the lunch was served! The lunch service looked much better than the dinner served on the previous day. The food this time was okay. There were no chapattis. While I had my dinner, our train crossed some train with "KR SWR" markings. I first took it as the Mandovi, but later found out that it was the Diva - Sawantwadi Passenger. I returned to the door. It was drizzling in between. Soon, our train pulled into Chiplun. Our train was diverted to Platform 1 instead of its usual Platform 2. I sensed some crossing there, and moved to the appropriate door. I was shocked at the sight - That was the Ernakulam bound Mangala express. The loco was WDM2 #18374 from Ernakulam. The attendants from our train got down to meet their pals on board the Mangala! They had a sort of "get together" on the main line. They got separated when it started raining. Our train left Chiplun after the customary 10 minute halt at 1420. The train charged through a quite familiar territory. The train slowed down some time later, and slowly entered the loop line of Khed. The PA system of the station was busy announcing the impending arrival of 0103 Mandovi Express. That meant that the Mandovi was late by close to 3 hours! Soon, a monster was visible at a distance. The roar came closer...The loco was WDP4 #20021 from Krishnarajapuram. The Mandovi got her starter much before our train got it. I clearly heard the whine of the generator of the WDP4 increasing as the loco notched up! That was really melodious!

Our train could barely manage to pick speed while she was once again given a red! This time, we were at the outer of Karanjadi. Soon, the signal turned green and the train inched forward. A long BCNA rake hauled by twin Kalyan WDM2s were waiting at Karanjadi. We ran through the station. The train soon achieved its MPS. We were now rushing through stations. At Veer, the pairing train - Trivandrum bound Netravati - was seen waiting for us. The loco was WDM3A #18558 from Erode. The train maintained a very steady speed as many stations whizzed past. Soon, the train was flagged off by KR. We left KR territory at 1634. The train pulled into Platform 1 of Roha. I saw the guard getting down from his coach. The train was finally permitted to move at 1640. Just as the train pulled out, I saw an Ernakulam Loco (WDM2 #16674) waiting with a long BOXN rake. The train charged through CR territory. The train was once again sidelined - this time at Nagothane. Nagothane station has undergone a sea of changes. The platforms which was once used as a coal dump has now been cleared and instead a well organized goods shed was working there!

At Nagothane, we crossed the Mangalore bound Matsyagandha express, hauled by WDM3A #18536 from Erode. We left Nagothane at 1710. The train reached MPS very soon. There is no monsoon speed restriction for the CR section. Though, I had expected a crossing before Panvel, nothing of that happened. The train stopped at Panvel outer at 1807. I just took a photo of the Karjat line veering of the Main line. Just then I had another surprise - A Pune WDM3A (later identified as 18621R) pulling towards Panvel with a long BLCA/BLCB rake. (I saw this loco at Nahur siding on Tuesday). Our train finally pulled into Panvel's Platform #1 at 1815, now delayed by an hour and 30 minutes. Just as the train was pulling in, I saw a WAG7 (#27290) from Ajni waiting for the signal. I got down on the platform, and had a mad scramble for the Suburban booking office. By the time I reached there, the line for tickets was atleast 100 metres long and resembled "S" shape! I had my mom go in to get the tickets purchased! We finally boarded the 1840 CSTM slow. The coach was 76707, based at Sanpada. There ended another monsoon journey...a journey to Kerala after a very long year. Hopefully, 2006 has some more journeys for me in stock!!!

I am eager to know how you liked this report! Please send in your comments and suggestions (brick-bats also welcome) to binaiks [at] gmail [dot] com