II: Bengaluru to Delhi - Man and the Machine
Days passed by, and excitement started to build up as my travel date got closer and closer. I already had all the tank/ tail bags I intended to carry. Got the other essentials in terms of the ride and protection from cold and rain. Got the Xpulse serviced, switched to fully synthetic engine oil, and got spare clutch cable installed.
It was going to be my first time shipping the bike, and my first individual interaction with the railways. Was a good idea to get some first hand information on how things work here, and I knew just the right person to reach out. Called Saquib, and as expected, got a detailed step by step account of how the whole process would flow. Saquib has done this on multiple occasions on his previous rides, so this was valuable information. Things looked good, I was prepared, I was ready to go!
The day was finally here! The train was scheduled to depart at 8PM, the plan was to reach the parcel office as early as possible in the morning, so that all the formalities to have the Xpulse shipped as luggage could be done with ample time to spare. Loaded my luggage, geared myself up, and I cranked the engine to the start of a brand new adventure!
A 'mirrorfie' and I was on my way!
Immediately on the right of the entry gate is the packaging station. I parked the Xpulse there, and went about looking for the office. Picked up the forms, went back to the packaging station to get the Xpulse ready for shipping. Got all the luggage off, and the packaging process started.
Since petrol is highly inflammable, they take out even the last drop of petrol from the tank, using a pipe. And then they start the bike and keep it running till it dies off. This ensures that the bike is devoid of any fuel whatsoever.
And now the wrapping. Bubble wrap, gunny bags, cardboard, followed by polypropylene sacks.
And repeat with the headlight and handlebar area
In about 45 minutes time, the bike was all packed up and ready to be shipped. I filled up the forms in the mean time.
If possible, I wanted to pack some of my luggage as well, since it would have been tedious tugging all the bags - tailbag, tankbag and the top box, along with the riding gear throughout the day. Got another polypropylene sack from the packaging guys for a few more bucks, and packed in my tailbag and all the riding gear sans helmet. The top box was relatively empty, so managed to lock in the helmet inside the top box, so I was left with 2 bags with me - top box and the tank bag.
Pushed my bike and the additional sack to the office, headed to the weighing station where the additional sack was weighed and some notations were made on the forms related to the sack and the bike. Went to the payment counter, wherein all entries were made in the system, and I was told the total amount. The amount was a bit higher than what I was expecting based on feedback from Saquib and other online articles, so I asked the lady at the counter to re-check. I told her its a 200CC light weight motorcycle, and not a Royal Enfield (since that's the most commonly shipped motorcycle). She said the person at the weighing station has mentioned that its a 350CC motorcycle, and asked me to have it changed. Followed her advise, and I was back at the weighing station. The guy there immediately made the correction, and I got a good ~Rs. 1,000 reduced in my total bill.
Made the payment, got the bill, and pushed the bike and the sack onto the platform. Got the necessary markings done, paid the 'loading fees' and the Xpulse was all set for its maiden train journey!
It was just over 10:00 AM now, so this entire process took just a little over 1.5 hours, which, honestly, was much lower than what I was prepared for. Overall, it had been a very smooth experience so far. The entire railways staff appeared very approachable and co-operative.
With the biggest agenda of the day behind me, I was free until evening. Called up my friend, Chandra, who stays at Vijayanagar, to see if he was free to catch up. Since I did not have to get back to the railway station until the evening, he invited me over to his place instead.
Took an auto until halfway to his place, stopped to take some fruits, and then decided to walk the rest of the way. I was going to be meeting him after over a year, so there was loads to catch up on. After having a hearty, satisfying, delicious home cooked meal, getting some rest and spending some nice time with his lovely family, I took the metro back to the railway station.
Reached the platform, and was glad to see the Xpulse already at the platform, waiting to board the train!
This train journey was going to be after a gap of many years, so I did not know what to expect. Was pleasantly surprised with the cleanliness at the station - things certainly seemed to have come a long way!
The train arrived on time, saw the Xpulse getting loaded, and I got back to my bogie to board.
Settled down with my luggage, caught up with the good folks in my compartment. It was going to be a long, 33 hour journey to Delhi, and the railways had treated me very well so far. My ultra comfortable, upper berth looked like this (apologies for the sloppy bed sheet setup!)
I did not opt for dinner since I was not feeling hungry - went to bed straight away.
After a good nights sleep and the usual morning routine (meditate, brush, freshen up), was ready for breakfast. Went with the vegetarian option, and was super happy to see eco friendly, bio degradable cutlery being used instead of the use and throw plastic.
The menu for all the meals looked pretty good as well:
After every meal, one one person would come to pick up trash, followed by another who would sweep and mop the floor. IRCTC continued to impress me further at every step of the way!
The entire day was spent chatting with the fellow passengers, and updating my itinerary based on updates and discussions over the past few days. My latest itinerary looked like this:
Finally, reached Hazrat Nizamuddin station just about 10 minutes later than the scheduled arrival time. Got off the train and reached the luggage bogie. They had already started taking luggage out.
The Xpulse was offloaded right in front of me. All in one piece!
Got the gate pass, and then I was handed the bike over. Paid the nominal 'unloading charges', got the packaging removed.
Once all the luggage was offloaded, the person in charge there made some notations on my copy of the invoice, and asked me to head to the delivery counter to get the gate pass.
The next critical task was to arrange for petrol. I was told there would be a 'mochi' (the guy who makes/ alters shoes etc) who would sell some petrol. Since it was early in the morning there was nobody around, and the guys there said there is nothing they could do about this. I started walking around and came across a local tea vendor. I approached him and asked him if he could arrange half litre of petrol - unsurprisingly, he said he would arrange for it, of course at a premium. He made a couple of phone calls and the petrol was there in about 15 minutes. Heaving a sign of relief, I walked back to the bike and poured the fuel in. To my dismay, the bike refused to start! I tried the usual tactics, but to no avail. Unable to think of any other option, I decided to head to the tea vendor again for another half litre of petrol. After getting the 2nd batch of petrol, the Xpulse finally started! The place itself had started to really crowd up now, and I could not wait to get going.
In the meanwhile, I had kept my bag with the tailbag and riding gear at a small security cabin - which was empty. Changed my clothes there - on came the riding jacket, pants, boots, helmet and gloves. Mounted all the luggage on the saddle, installed the rear view mirrors. And I was ready! Ready to munch those miles and get the big ride going......
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