"Ok, ok, ok, please relax and enjoy yourselves."
Repeatedly yesterday afternoon we were met by this phrase when enquiring as to how far away our expected 16:40 train was. In true Indian fashion the trusty Train Station authorities, in this case Mr Vinod Kumar Singh (absolutely no joking, read the name badge!) didn't have the heart to say exactly how delayed the train was so simply asked us to relax and enjoy ourselves (and to continue to check back every 30 mins so that he could repeat the same message).
So, there we were outside a dump of a station sitting on the dusty concrete that did nothing for the personal clothing attire that most of us had cleaned during our time at Hotel Surya. Finally, when the train came it was a wee bit of a rush, but thankfully all 25 of us with new dirt positioned under our finger nails, urine on our shoes and pollution in our lungs managed to jump onboard. However before I conclude of this train story/debacle, the rest of the day went something like this:
Wednesday 18 December
5:30am- A group of undercover commandos depart in the darkness of the early morning smog and burning rubbish piles, returning to the ghats we had all visited the morning before. They were ably led by Colonel R Candy of the 12th battalion and numbered 8 members in total. Their task was to soak up another Ganga experience and that they did with aplomb. Of particular note was the initially promising performance with the bat by Chris Moses during a friendly game on the river banks. Sadly the strong start led onto an overall average cricketing display as he was belted for sixes over the temples and into the Ganges itself, as this change of pace with the ball proved completely ineffective
8:30am- Meanwhile back at base camp, the rest awake and head to breakfast. This morning the Fine Masters and their Council demand an increase in standards with Stewart and Robson both on the receiving end for fronting up to breakfast, in the restaurant, without footwear on! These indiscretions pale into significance though when compared to the inability of Jonty Morreau, the 2013 Head Boy, to recall the words of the school song. In all an extremely disappointing start to the day with the Editor more embarrassed by the group of boys than he is of having to tour with Mr Jordan (which is saying something)
9:30am- Free time is afforded to have one final proper shower, to pack, to blog, to pay laundry bills, etc
12pm- Check Out occurs from our rooms and everyone assembles on the garden lawn for one final feast. Cokes flow, pizzas are devoured and many consume their favourite dish for one last time . . . in most cases this was the Crispy Honey Chilli Potato, or was that the Honey Chilli Crispy Potato, or the Chilli Crispy Honey Potato (not even the waiters knew the bloody name of it)
2:15pm- We depart to the Varanasi Junction Train Station arriving a mere 10-15 mins later
2:30pm- The 'Great Wait' begins. During the course of the next 6 hours while the ever reliable Mr Vinod Kumar Singh continued to report that the train was still coming and that it wasn't far away at all, the group shifted it focussed several times. Firstly, card games of 500 and President attracted at least 50 locals who continued to stare at the activity of white people (no offence Jin, Jung and Jordan) for at least 45 mins. Then Miss Candy became a focus with families asking for their daughters to be photographed in her radiant presence. Ever the team player, Miss Candy actually continued to demand more photos be taken of herself long after the locals had requested to leave. Then Ross and Harman, but especially the manager Mr GC Helsby, are influential in returning with advertising 'mats' so the group can have a thin sheet between their backsides and the filthy ground (the mats had been stolen/recycled by the boys- "when in India"). Finally the ever energetic Reilly Hodson is once again swept off his feet by a local who has quite the crush on him. This time this smooth talking Varanasi local, dressed in a smart black leather jacket, is encouraged by our group to converse with young Reilly. Even the ever diligent Miss Candy (who had transformed herself into being a German tourist called Maria) leaves Reilly to fight off this Indian Casanova all by himself
8:30pm- The train finally departs on the promise that we will make up time overnight. The jury is out on that one. And so, the boys fell off to sleep, some more loudly than others, Hugo Stewart, and the hope of Samosas once again doesn't eventuate onboard the trusty Indian Railways
Clearly we are back into the real India with all the frustrations and vibrancy that its people and structures create. At the time of publication we are still not in Agra yet (it is now 9am Thursday morning) but we hope to be so by 11am, meaning a slightly later bus ride and arrival into Delhi tonight. After all we have the Taj to see today and things of this nature cannot be rushed!!
Ben
MVP- Mr Tripathi. Now I feel this man has received quite a negative rap. It all started years ago when he mentioned that he thought George Harman's brother, Henry (who went on the 2009 Tour), was simply not so smart. Henry is now studying medicine, so go figure. But seriously, this fine upstanding citizen of Varanasi opened his heart and our wallets over the course of the 2.5 days in the process collecting a 6 month income by way of commissions and the 'voluntary' tipping that he told us we must do. In his quest to ensure we understood about good karma, and creating a happy life, he removed all of our doubts about the trustworthiness of Indian Tour Guides. Ultimately, he is a selfless warrior who deserves this award; after all, it must be very difficult for him to keep in touch with the 30,000 people he knows.
Thought- Without Love, Where Would You Be Now. Today the boys spoke over lunch about how Varanasi had been kind but also very difficult for them. With lots of downtime thoughts of family and friends had re-entered their minds. Having such feelings of homesickness bouncing around are natural and very healthy. Each if us are blessed by the amazing families and support structures that we have. The value of these individuals, and the love that they show us, grows into even greater significance when we are so far from our normal everyday realities. So we thank each of you, because without your love, where would we be now?
Repeatedly yesterday afternoon we were met by this phrase when enquiring as to how far away our expected 16:40 train was. In true Indian fashion the trusty Train Station authorities, in this case Mr Vinod Kumar Singh (absolutely no joking, read the name badge!) didn't have the heart to say exactly how delayed the train was so simply asked us to relax and enjoy ourselves (and to continue to check back every 30 mins so that he could repeat the same message).
So, there we were outside a dump of a station sitting on the dusty concrete that did nothing for the personal clothing attire that most of us had cleaned during our time at Hotel Surya. Finally, when the train came it was a wee bit of a rush, but thankfully all 25 of us with new dirt positioned under our finger nails, urine on our shoes and pollution in our lungs managed to jump onboard. However before I conclude of this train story/debacle, the rest of the day went something like this:
Wednesday 18 December
5:30am- A group of undercover commandos depart in the darkness of the early morning smog and burning rubbish piles, returning to the ghats we had all visited the morning before. They were ably led by Colonel R Candy of the 12th battalion and numbered 8 members in total. Their task was to soak up another Ganga experience and that they did with aplomb. Of particular note was the initially promising performance with the bat by Chris Moses during a friendly game on the river banks. Sadly the strong start led onto an overall average cricketing display as he was belted for sixes over the temples and into the Ganges itself, as this change of pace with the ball proved completely ineffective
8:30am- Meanwhile back at base camp, the rest awake and head to breakfast. This morning the Fine Masters and their Council demand an increase in standards with Stewart and Robson both on the receiving end for fronting up to breakfast, in the restaurant, without footwear on! These indiscretions pale into significance though when compared to the inability of Jonty Morreau, the 2013 Head Boy, to recall the words of the school song. In all an extremely disappointing start to the day with the Editor more embarrassed by the group of boys than he is of having to tour with Mr Jordan (which is saying something)
9:30am- Free time is afforded to have one final proper shower, to pack, to blog, to pay laundry bills, etc
12pm- Check Out occurs from our rooms and everyone assembles on the garden lawn for one final feast. Cokes flow, pizzas are devoured and many consume their favourite dish for one last time . . . in most cases this was the Crispy Honey Chilli Potato, or was that the Honey Chilli Crispy Potato, or the Chilli Crispy Honey Potato (not even the waiters knew the bloody name of it)
2:15pm- We depart to the Varanasi Junction Train Station arriving a mere 10-15 mins later
2:30pm- The 'Great Wait' begins. During the course of the next 6 hours while the ever reliable Mr Vinod Kumar Singh continued to report that the train was still coming and that it wasn't far away at all, the group shifted it focussed several times. Firstly, card games of 500 and President attracted at least 50 locals who continued to stare at the activity of white people (no offence Jin, Jung and Jordan) for at least 45 mins. Then Miss Candy became a focus with families asking for their daughters to be photographed in her radiant presence. Ever the team player, Miss Candy actually continued to demand more photos be taken of herself long after the locals had requested to leave. Then Ross and Harman, but especially the manager Mr GC Helsby, are influential in returning with advertising 'mats' so the group can have a thin sheet between their backsides and the filthy ground (the mats had been stolen/recycled by the boys- "when in India"). Finally the ever energetic Reilly Hodson is once again swept off his feet by a local who has quite the crush on him. This time this smooth talking Varanasi local, dressed in a smart black leather jacket, is encouraged by our group to converse with young Reilly. Even the ever diligent Miss Candy (who had transformed herself into being a German tourist called Maria) leaves Reilly to fight off this Indian Casanova all by himself
8:30pm- The train finally departs on the promise that we will make up time overnight. The jury is out on that one. And so, the boys fell off to sleep, some more loudly than others, Hugo Stewart, and the hope of Samosas once again doesn't eventuate onboard the trusty Indian Railways
Clearly we are back into the real India with all the frustrations and vibrancy that its people and structures create. At the time of publication we are still not in Agra yet (it is now 9am Thursday morning) but we hope to be so by 11am, meaning a slightly later bus ride and arrival into Delhi tonight. After all we have the Taj to see today and things of this nature cannot be rushed!!
Ben
MVP- Mr Tripathi. Now I feel this man has received quite a negative rap. It all started years ago when he mentioned that he thought George Harman's brother, Henry (who went on the 2009 Tour), was simply not so smart. Henry is now studying medicine, so go figure. But seriously, this fine upstanding citizen of Varanasi opened his heart and our wallets over the course of the 2.5 days in the process collecting a 6 month income by way of commissions and the 'voluntary' tipping that he told us we must do. In his quest to ensure we understood about good karma, and creating a happy life, he removed all of our doubts about the trustworthiness of Indian Tour Guides. Ultimately, he is a selfless warrior who deserves this award; after all, it must be very difficult for him to keep in touch with the 30,000 people he knows.
Thought- Without Love, Where Would You Be Now. Today the boys spoke over lunch about how Varanasi had been kind but also very difficult for them. With lots of downtime thoughts of family and friends had re-entered their minds. Having such feelings of homesickness bouncing around are natural and very healthy. Each if us are blessed by the amazing families and support structures that we have. The value of these individuals, and the love that they show us, grows into even greater significance when we are so far from our normal everyday realities. So we thank each of you, because without your love, where would we be now?
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