Never have I ever… been confined into a small space he size of a bathroom for 43 hours. Well, that is until now. I can now check this off of my to do list as our train ride to our ministry site in Bangalore lasted a grand total of 43 hours. Yes, my friends I was confined to an Indian train for close to two whole days. It was interesting to say the least, but extremely helpful to understand the culture.
Before getting on the train we knew it would be different for us and so we prayed that God would send us his angels to watch over us. Not long afterwards we were sharing our bunks with two young men, one of which who was going to Bangalore to take exams for school. While we were nervous at first, they turned out to be our angels in disguise. They were kind enough to translate for us, shoo away beggars who wouldn’t leave, or just sit and play cards with my team. They even stayed up at night to watch over us and our things with the boys.
The train ride was perhaps the very best way to immerse our team into the culture very quickly. Here is what we experienced while on the train:
-Everything from food to chai to keychains and toys being sold to us
– witnessing Indian families literally bring two days worth of meals
– seeing beggars pass through each car, some playing music while others carried children
– the eunics and their brash approach to begging
– Children collecting bottles and cans on the railroads
– Almost the entire country of India on a train!
– Squatty Potties — on the train— while it’s MOVING. (yeah, that was the challenge portion of the trip)
– Hot and sticky bunks with little airflow (we were in the sleeper no A/C car)
– Eating popcorn for breakfast
– Drinking TONS of water
– Sleeping a lot (at least I did.) I know get why babies fall asleep in moving vehicles. It’s so comforting!!
-Seeing India from the train
I am still in need of $3,500 in order to be fully funded or I risk being sent home. I will not have internet access for the next month and so I wanted to get the word out now. I am in faith that God will provide the remaining funds. If you haven't given towards my trip yet and would like to please check out what I have already done with the support provided and click on the support me link on the left hand side of the page. Thank you all SO much!!
Here is a video my teammate Beka Fritz made of our train journey! Check it out!!
