This morning I was picked up by Mukesh as usual but this time his mother was in the car. She quickly moved to the back seat and I sat in the front seat. In India it is customary for the owner of the car to sit in the back seat if there is a driver. We get about half way to the office when the traffic jam starts. Mukesh is going to drop me off at work and then take his mother somewhere. Another co-worker pulls up next to Mukesh’s car. They both roll down their windows and start chatting in Hindi. Next thing I know I am getting out of Mukuesh’s car, almost being hit by a motorcycle and getting in the car of the other guy. At least I was not hit and made it to work safely.

I am also prepped for my trip. I have bug spray and all my batteries charged up. The only hard part now is getting up so early and trying to find the train. At least there will be 2 others on the same train. From the names I am guessing a Japanese guy and an Italian lady.

I showed my itinerary to the people at work and they have me worried. When one of the coworkers red the name of the train out loud, Hardiwar, just about everyone in the area perked up and a couple came running over. Then they started warning me. They said they would not even travel on this train. It is not in very good condition and it has too many stops. I will be on the train for about 8 hours for 255 km or about 153 miles. The train has 11 stops between Delhi and then end spot, Hardiwar. The train leaves an hour before the other train and gets to the end destination an hour after the other train. An extra two hours. They told me not to eat or drink anything on the drain. The end destination is a dangerous area and try to find the cab as quickly as possible. They put the scare into me. I called the travel agent and she said it is no different than any other train. I should have asked her to switch seats with me then. Let the weekend adventure begin. I just hope I am not sitting between the goat and the chickens and seeing the real life versions of the kids from Slumdog Millionaire running on top of the train trying to steal my bag.

I will be back on Tuesday, hopefully.