Trip report for the journey undertaken from HWH to TPTY on 4th june, 2022
Initial IRI post for the journey (/blog/post/5366187)
This...
more... is Part 1 of this journey.. Get alongside to read through the travelogue and also add your suggestions/comments/ratings. Posting a travelogue after a long time.
Part I
Covid did turned life upside down or at least shook the world. No one thought of it coming, no one thought of it inflecting so dreaded effect, no one was spared at least in terms of getting stuck where they were. A global blanket shutdown engulfed the entire civilization. But even in those conditions, necessary items were required to survive and it was further more important to get them supplied.
In steps Indian Railways with their Oxygen express (Lockdown 2.0 precursor where Oxygen was so damn valuable). The Indian Railways also kept running the Krishi Express to ferry stranded people from one corner of the country to other. Gradually the world opened up and so did ppl started travelling again. IR kept resuming trains in phases. few trains got their Source or destination changed, few got their timings changed, travelling experience changed post covid & lockdowns.
2022 started with another despair in terms of local lockdowns due to Omicron but at least it fade away quickly and by Feb things were almost normal albeit, the covid norms still there.
Sorry if you are bored with the long prelude in this journey forum but that's how it has been, isn't it
I went home for Diwali in 2021 and stayed there for good 7 months before return back to Bangalore. While Bangalore at that time (April-May) was blessed with thunderstorms and showers, I was literally getting baked in the hot & humid climate of Kolkata. Oh! I forgot, post covid flight tickets are quite a burning sensation in the bank balance. I decided to take train rather than flight.
Initially my ticket was on 20th May, Friday in 12863 HWH YPR Exp but when the chart preparation was complete by 7pm, my ticket status was WL1
Tried Tatkal for the next weekend, failed. Started looking for alternatives coz getting confirm tickets on HWH-YPR trains in short notice is quite a task. I was getting CNF tickets for July end (Searching in may).
Checked alternatives: Coro/Mail, SRS-MAS AC, HWH-MYS, Falaknuma, ECoast; all were running in either RAC or W/L for another 20-25 days or so (starting from 21st may). The YPR Humsafar/AC Weekly Exp were out of question due to their weekday timing.
But then suddenly I chanced to look upon the RSA pairing of the YPR humsafar which was the TPTY Humsafar and close to 120 tickets were available on the 1st weekend of June.
The timings of the TPTY Hms ticked all the boxes. 12:40pm from HWH on Saturday, reach TPTY next day at 1:50Pm. get some connecting train to Blore and voila !!
Booked the ticket in Hms for 4th June Saturday, then got ticket on the TPTY-SBC intercity for 5th June, Sunday. The extended stay from 20th to 3rd seemed much longer.
I am publishing the journey report so late that I forgot which coach number I was in.
It was B11 & a middle berth 61
The J-day arrived and I had to literally rush to HWH station as the consistent Ola/Uber cancellations made me worried. A good soul finally accepted the trip and somehow amidst so much traffic, I reached the station (just outside the Complex) at 12:20. Looking at the display boards, had to make a dash towards the Pf21 where the TPTY Hms was all set. CC is exactly same as mentioned in IRI and the PF display boards did their job in getting to my coach easier.
I expected that since I am late, getting space to put my luggage would be bit tricky since I had 2 mid-sized trolleys. Umm I wasn't that wrong. The coach was already full, so were the under-seat spaces. 1 trolley went under the lower berth, the other trolley was put up on the empty side Upper for the time being. Fortunately, the AC was aptly strong to beat the outside sweltering heat. By the time I adjusted my luggage and sat down to catch a breath, we were on a slow roll. Looked at the watch, it was 12:40pm and sharp was the start. As the train kept moving forward, some gloomy faces, sad faces went passed giving a hint that people are returning to their workplaces after a long time. Few are leaving the city to start their career or for studies. Have seen that from last 12-13 years, have experienced those emotions myself earlier. it's something that will always remain constant when you miss your parents, you miss the city where you have spent a considerable amount of time.
Apologies for being bit stretchy at times !!
Let's focus back to our journey then
I was excited not just to reach Bangalore but also about the journey. Before booking the ticket, I checked the Running history of the TPTY HMS and I was very satisfied with the on-time performance. Post booking the ticket till my journey date, I tracked the running status on the Saturdays and it kept my belief strong. My expectations kept going strong. But as they say "Too much expectation can hurt".
Read through the report and see how the saying become true.. AGAIN
I had a late and heavy brunch at home before starting hence wasn't too interested in lunch, so were most of the other passengers as we started settling down and getting comfortable with passengers. The train was on a roll. I couldn't resist myself, came out of the coach and stood at the door enjoying just the pace and sound. The doors were closed coz at that speed of around 125kmph, the hot air is like a blast. Didn't wanna face that hot air in such speeds. But the sound of the rattling tracks and the sight of stations flyby was a treat. We were in the outers of KGP at 2:00pm that’s freaking 20mins before. Meanwhile vendors selling bedsheets, air pillows had a good time as passengers purchased a lot of stuffs since bedding wasn't available. I was aware that bedding isn't given so I had that part sorted. We pulled in to KGP at the right time. There were few students who boarded our coach and that's that. We rolled out of KGP, bid adieu to the TATA route & curved towards Hijili.
One thing that impressed me was the availability of charging points, it was a proper humsafar coach with the all the facilities & features. all the berths had separate reading lights, individual charging socket, mirror, bottle holder. I didn't even think of using my power-bank to top up my ph battery. Another area where I was impressed again was the availability of Food items. The Pantry car is like Cafe/Restaurant on Wheels. I haven't seen so many food items being served.
The snacks menu was insane starting from sandwich (V/NV), Egg/Paneer/Onion/Chicken pakodas, Noodles, Pasta, Samosa, Bonda, Cakes, biscuits, chips etc & some regional snack items of Odisha (sorry I don't remember the name now) and tea/coffee/buttermilk/badam milk/lassi etc. This was apart from the regular meals (Lunch, Dinner) and breakfast.
I couldn't resist but tried the chicken cheese sandwich and chicken pakoda and a tea (Rs. 80 for all 3). Good for the money and tasted well.
We were running without any interruptions and overtook a late running East Coast Exp (Led by SRC P7) at Jaleswar around 3:20pm. This train has lesser stops in Odisha compared to some other trains and that assured we were on a good run smashing past stations, bridges. We crossed Balasore at 3:50Pm running some 20 mins before time. I took a cup of tea & stood at the door to enjoy the sceneries flashing past and also the dazzling run we were on.
Enjoying the sunset eventually & getting greeted by the MAS-HWH Mail (VSKP P4) just before Dhamandal
We skipped Dhamandal and then crossed VSG-SHM(SRC P4). There were crossings back to back. After VSG-SHM, a couple of freight trains and just before entering CTC, TPJ-HWH Exp zoomed past us.
We arrived CTC, 10mins ahead of schedule. Got out on the PF, took a short stroll to ease back. it was still hot outside. lots of pax getting down and the associated chaos. The Bangriposi Intercity pulled in with a surprise lead ASN P4. A distant signal post gave us the starter and we were good to go. By the time we left CTC, darkness descended and I decided to be inside.
BBS being the next stop was much quicker in terms of reaching there but we were much delayed while starting from BBS. At BBS, both the Lower berths were vacated and no one boarded for those 2.
I checked with the TTE if my Middle berth can be swapped with one of the LB's. One of the co-passenger also requested for the same. the TTE gave us go ahead and informed till next day morning both the LB's are empty as per the Reservation chart. Happy with the swap, at least to be able to sit as long as I want & sleep properly for the night. We started from BBS around 7:45, a very extended stop indeed. Since the next stop was at VZM that too midnight, most of us settled down to complete our early dinner. Most of the passengers, post dinner, decided to make their beds as their destination was either VSKP or BZA. Door-plating didn't look too convincing given that it was pitch dark outside & we were flying through Odisha.
I decided to call it a night after we crossed Palasa at 10:30Pm making up some lost time due to delayed stop at BBS. I was woken up by the boarding passengers from VZM, looked at the watch and we were bang on time. pretty impressive so far. didn't even bother swaying away from the seat, went back to sleep and an hour later we pulled into VSKP. Again boarding and alighting passenger chaos was the reason to be awake. Since only rake reversal and loco change was to happen, wasn't too keen getting out of the bed. Went back to sleep.
AND that’s the end of the impressive journey and why I say it's end of the impressive journey even though I am supposed to get down at TPTY.. wait for Part II
Pics & Videos to be uploaded post the complete report.
The next/final part will also include the observations from my journey
