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Published: June 28th 2017
Once on the express train from Delhi to Kalpa there was at last a chance to relax. The seats were comfortable and the train had really effective air-conditioning. The air temperature in Delhi was about 35 degrees with high humidity so cool air was wonderful. Almost as soon as we sat down we were served chai, Indian tea. Very hot and refreshing. Soon after, food was served, delicious little starter followed by tasty curry and bread and strawberry jam backed up by a piece of very sweet coconut cake. Off to a good start on our trip. More tea then came, a Thermos of hot water, tea bag and cup. Perfect! A very handsome and beautifully turned out Sikh conductor came to collect the tickets and then there was chance to chat and catch a few minutes snooze.
Arriving in Kalka, we had 10 minutes to hop platforms and fight our way onto a very packed 'toy train' to Shimla. It was very tight with very small seats with upright backs. Our luggage was packed in around us and at 12.10pm, off went. Again the heat was pretty intense as we wound our way on the little narrow guage railway around the hills, slowly climbing towards our destination. We soon discovered that hanging out of the door or standing by it was much cooler that sitting down. as we slowly crawled around curve after curve, never travelling more than 20mph and on the tighter curves, nearer 10mph. The railway is a UNESCO heritage protected site due to the remarkable feat of engineering. It was brought into use in 1903 and has over 100 tunnels and 864 bridges. It is 60 miles long and takes over 5 hours to climb the 1500 metres to Shimla. There were many stops at tiny stations on the way where we could hop out and stretch our legs or buy a cup of hot chai and a chapati.
There were many unscheduled stops on the way which seemed to be caused mainly by the coupling between the engine and the 3 carriage train. Lots of passengers jumped out to offer their opinion on how it could be fixed. Once we were stopped for over half an hour. We eventually arrived in Shimla about an hour late, at about 6.30pm. By the time we arrived at our comfortable hotel it was dark and nearly 7.30pm. A beer and tour briefing was follow by dinner and a very welcome chance for a proper sleep after nearly 40 hours travelling.
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michaela
non-member comment
A good nights sleep!
Hey Kevin, lovely to hear about your railway journey.....I can just imagine how wonderful the sight of the hotel bed must have been at the end of the journey......bliss to stretch out and just S T O P for a moment! Mxx