A Railway Journey Essay Example for Free

A Railway Journey Essay I am a frequent traveller. That’s because I am a small town boy from Rourkela studying in the national capital of India. My batch friends who live nearby take every opportunity to go home be that a one day holiday or a week’s holiday. I on the other hand cannot exploit every holiday because travelling takes me 48 hours to reach home. Unfortunately there is no direct train from Delhi to Rourkela. So I have to switch trains in a preferable stop. I usually prefer Ranchi station. From Ranchi to Rourkela there is just one train in the evening that is the 7 pm train. My usual itinerary is that I travel from Delhi to Ranchi via Rajdhani which reaches there at 4 pm, and then I take the 7 pm train to reach Rourkela at 11 pm. I was so engrossed in my studies and exams that I forgot to book my ticket before time. When the holidays came near I suddenly realized that I hadn’t booked my ticket. I immediately opened IRCTC website from my laptop, and saw that my usual train Rajdhani was completely booked and no more tickets were available. I couldn’t risk booking a waiting list ticket so I booked an alternate train which takes relatively more time but I thought I’ll make it. It was supposed to reach Ranchi at 5:30 pm. I thought that I have a reasonable time gap and I can easily make it. Soon my exams got over and the time came for me to go home. To be frank, I usually get bored at home. But the idea of going home, the packing of my stuff, the travel and the journey is what excites me. I said goodbye to my friends, hugged them, and wished them happy holidays. A friend gave me chocolates for my journey and wished me happy journey. I just love this feeling. Since the exams were over they had nothing else to do, so they came with me to the station to see me off. I bought a bottle of Thums Up. Yes that’s my favourite drink. I went on and sat on my berth. I always prefer the side lower when I am travelling alone. There is a sense of privacy and is comfortable as well. I waved at my friends as the train started to move. I was very happy, but my subconscious was slowly telling me that this train better not be late because otherwise I am screwed. My father will scold me for my irresponsibility. Since it was not Rajdhani, its standard was not that good. Moreover I had to buy food for every meals and the compartment was also not that clean. But I knew I can manage as long as I get a charging socket nearby. I have a laptop and I love games. I can pass my time very easily. For some reason I don’t know why, I like to travel alone. One of the biggest and consistent problems faced by a youngster preferably male travelling alone is that someone always will request him to exchange his berth with someone who needs it more. Be that a senior citizen, or a family whose all tickets are concentrated in one area and only one is far away. Whatever it may be, we boys have to suffer. There is no point in booking tickets early if you don’t get the seat of your choice. And there is no way you can say no to them because they are elder people and they make such horrible requesting faces with puppy eyes that you just can’t deny. A fairly middle aged person requested me to trade my seat for his upper berth in a different coach skipping 3 coaches in the middle. I said let’s see in the beginning but later on I had to give in because I had no other option. He helped me shift my luggage and thanked me a lot later on. Travelling alone is some kind of a self-assessment time for me. I analyze what I have done in the past, I day dream a lot in this time and set personal goals. As soon as we cross Delhi and reach Ghaziabad my telecom service (Reliance) initiates the roaming facility and unfortunately my u nlimited SMS pack becomes void. My parents keep checking on me calling at regular intervals. After some point it becomes very irritating because it costs even to receive phone calls. I look at the scenes outside the window. I feel bad when I see the people living near the railway tracks, the slums and the poverty. I stare at the empty advertisements loaded with spelling and grammar mistakes on the boundary walls of the slums and on houses. Now the Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) came to check the tickets of the passengers. When my turn came I showed him the ticket, he said that my ticket is booked for a different compartment, which has different TTE, so I have to show it to him. I said we have exchanged the seat, but nothing that I said mattered. So I had to go back to the previous compartment and ask that person to show his ticket to the TTE of my compartment. Same thing would have happened to him so he took my ticket. It was an unnecessary exercise and I hated that person for the troubles he gave me. The sounds of children crying and yelling are sometimes intolerable, but there is nothing one can do about it. I try to console myself by saying that I was also like that one day, funny but true. The vendors keep on moving here and there shouting and selling. It’s okay up to a certain limit. After that you just can’t listen to their annoying voices anymore. There is total chaos. So I put on my headphones and listen to music. What a great relief that is! Soon the day came to an end, and I went to sleep early. The next day when I woke up I went out and brushed my teeth. After that I asked the attendant whether the train was running late or not. He said yes, one and a half hour late. I became nervous because then I’ll not make it on time and I’ll miss the connecting train. Hoping that the train will make up for the lost time I went back to my seat and lied down worried. What should I tell my parents if I missed the train? What will I do? Where will I go? Ques tions like these haunted me. I ate my breakfast and read the newspaper that I bought from a vendor. I tried to pass my time but my mind was unconsciously worrying about the consequences. As time passed I noticed the arrival time had crossed, and the train was still running one and a half hour late. My heart started beating faster with every second that passed. Soon the train came to a halt and I reached Ranchi at 6:45 pm. Ranchi has two different stations, one being Ranchi and the other Hatia. I had reservation up to Hatia, but if I had waited for the train to reach Hatia, I would have missed the connecting train. So I took a chance and left the train with my luggage and ran in search of an auto. I found an auto-driver, the first one that approached me. I asked him how much he will take to get me to Hatia station, to which he answered 100 rupees. I said I’ll give him 150 if he takes me there within the next 10 minutes. He being a sport took my luggage and placed it in his auto and I sat and then we rushed to through a different path. I became surprised as to why was he taking me through a different route. He said it is a longer road, but the road is very smooth so we will reach early if he drives very fast. As bad as this nightmare was, it was about to become worse because it started to rain and was becoming very dark. The driver was very instrumental, because he broke all the traffic rules, crossed all the red lights but we reached Hatia at 7 pm. I thought I had missed it. But still I paid him for his bravery and I took my luggage and rushed towards the station. To my surprise I found that my connecting train was still standing on the platform and my previous train had not yet reached Hatia. I took a sigh of relief and then I ran towards my compartment, and took a seat. Just as I sat on my seat, drenched from head to toe, the fellow passenger sitting next to me requested me to trade my seat for his in a different compartment. I was still breathing heavily. But I was so happy that I made it in time that I accepte d. We went to the very next compartment and he got me a lower berth. I was happy that things are turning my way. No one further wanted to exchange my seat. I sat down wiping my face with my handkerchief. Then I called my mother and shared my adventure with her proudly. She was amazed with the story but I could hear my father calling my irresponsible from behind. I could not help but laugh. I would have reached Rourkela by 11 pm. I was thinking of taking a bath and then would sleep. Just when I thought nothing else could go wrong the train stopped at a very small station at 10 pm. Then I saw people coming out of the train. I panicked. I asked my fellow passengers among which a boy of nearly my age. He said that this train has stopped and will restart at morning 6. It is a naxalite-attack prone area. So the train won’t run to prevent accidents in the dark. Suddenly I saw the police patrolling the train. I called my mother and updated her on the situation. This meant I’ll reach at 7 am in the morning. I was literally criticizing my luck. Many people went to the waiting room, but I stayed and so did the boy sitting next to me. We thought of sleeping, but it was unsafe. So we decided to keep up all night. So I took out my laptop and we decided which movie to see from the large movie database I had kept in hard drive. Luckily the socket was running and so was the air conditioner. We stayed up all night watching movies back to back. Slowly the people passing by or the people who heard the noise from my laptop came near our cubicle. They also got interested and sat down. Soon there was a gathering of 8-9 people. The few people who were sleeping nearby started to complain that we should sleep as we are disturbing them. But it was too late to stop now because there were a lot of people who were actually enjoying the movie. So we continued till 6 am in the morning. The train started at sharp 6 am. I reached Rourkela at 7:10 am. I came out and saw my father standing in the platform waiting for me. Finally I reached home. It was a huge relief. Surely it was a journey to remember. The ups and downs and the adventures were memorable. A railway journey surely takes more time and has a lot of problems attached to it, but has a lot of memories attached to it as well. This is one of the main reasons I always prefer to travel in train.

Free College Admissions Essays: Most Influential Event in My Life :: College Admissions Essays

College Admissions: Most Influential Event in My Life    26th of January. Republic Day of India.    Bhuj, home to my aunt and the place where I have been spending my holidays for the past 10 years or so. It was 8:55 in the morning. Everyone was ready for breakfast except me. I was always late on the dining table and often made mom angry. But that day mom didn’t get angry. Wondering why ? Bhuj and neighboring places had just witnessed a powerful earthquake that rocked the whole of gujarat. The word earthquake always evoked something-but that something was never akin to terror. On the other hand, it was something right out of a Bollywood potboiler. But......but not this time. I thought the earth had cracked open and was about to swallow me. It was the most horrifying experience of my life. All of us immediately rushed out of the house. I saw all my neighbours running away. We were not just nervous, we were frightened. I saw some three, four persons dead on the way. We could not see a thing because the air was full of dust. Houses were collapsing, and at one time it was so dark, so dark.........My father described it correctly. He said it was like a huge plane landing right on your head. First time in my life I was dragged face to face with reality, ironically the only reality of life that is death ! Isn't it incredible how with a tiny nudge, nature can annihilate a whole town ! A prospering state like Gujrat was ruthlessly kicked and trampled upon by the same affectionate mother nature that only showered bounty so far. Aren't we humans really powerful enough to have complete control on the place we live? Perhaps the answer is NO. When Nature goes beserk we just make way. Mysterious are the ways how nature can Toy with us. Soon enough rumours started to spread about the aftermath of the earthquake. More scary than the tremors were the rumours about them. They told us, the sun will rise tomorrow and the beams will be so strong that everything will burn down. And the tales keep spinning. The suspense, on the quake keeps building like a poltergeist in horror movies...and the people keep waiting when it will finally come and finish everything and they could start re-buil ding again.

American Nightmare Essay

Let’s face it, the economy is in a horrible condition and it can be seen all across the nation. Education, employment, and balancing life is an everyday struggle for most Americans during these hard time. Citizens are stuck in their social class and can not move up, instead they might even fall below their current standard of living. Immigrants are still migrating to this once marvelous country, but their chances of success are quite slim. Job availability is steadily decreasing, and people are not making enough income to live a decent life. The truth is, the American dream is dead. The dream everyone of this nation hoped to achieved has ultimately become a nightmare. The main reasons why the dream is dead is because of; the deteriorating economy, no governmental support, and lack of individualism. A dollar today is no longer what it used to be in the early years of America. Everyone needs money, there is no doubt about that. A person without money is a typically seen as worthless and can not afford to live a decent life. The problem is, all the necessities we need in life are becoming expensive. It has become very difficult for many to citizens to earn enough to live their life. On a personal basis, my family was forced to put our house on foreclosure. The cost of maintaining a house has become quite expensive. Thousands of people are losing their homes and forced to move into less costly homes. This is seen on the internet, T. V, and even in our neighborhoods. Another example of the economy breaking down is our nation’s gas prices. Gas prices are steadily rising, and it has become difficult for many Americans to receive that full tank of gas. So it begs the question, where does society get the money to pay these things off? In other words, a majority of the nation can not pay off their dues. There are less jobs available to the public which equals less money around. Most citizens are forced to live their lives on a depressing minimal wage budget. America should not be in a situation in this, the government should help stabilize the economy. The government; which is composed of officials, law makers, and congress who created this once prosperous nation. However, where are they now? The government seems to be worried about their own campaigns are affairs outside of the US. They do not seem to have any interest in fixing this nation’s problems and help citizens achieve their dreams and goals. Most especially in broken down ghetto neighborhoods , where governmental help is needed the most. The nation must be equally supported in all cities, to result in a stable government system. An excerpt from â€Å"When Work Disappears† by William Julius Wilson describes the changed environment of a once great and prosperous city. When I walked down 63rd street when I was younger, everything you wanted was there. But know, coming back as an adult with my child, those resources are just gone, completely†¦ And housing, everybody has moved, there are vacant lots everywhere† (199). If the government took time to reconstruct the foundations of cities like these, the motivation to follow the dream would live on. The government needs to focus on current affairs and problems in the nation, then focus on other tribulations in different countries. Environments like the one describe, demoralizes the citizens making them ultimately give up hope. However, within these depressing times the American dream applies to one person, yourself. The American dream is created by what a person’s belief, goals, and dreams are. But, can a person achieve their dream if they have no sense of freedom or individualism in this nation? There are numerous restrictions on the common man, for us to truly express or goals and aspirations. The people of this nation can not pursue anything, if they are â€Å"chained† down by society. This statement is clearly evident is a quote in an article by an anonymous writer, Corpus Chrsti Caller Times. The first part of the American Dream is a country where any of us is free to think, believe, say and do anything we want (within some limits) without worrying about being arrested and jailed by government agents†(Corpus). The government needs to be more lenient if a person’s free speech and ideals. If the government always stops us from reaching our goals, we will never be able to. There must be a sense of balance between the control and freedom on each individual in this nation. The American dream once thought to be attainable during the early years of American’s foundation, is no longer or very difficult to attain in these day and age. These problems are Due to the fact of the poor economy, unsupported government, and lack of individuality. All these problems, and much more within the system of the United States destroy the very ideals of the American Dream. The reality of attaining the so called â€Å"American Dream† has become difficult. To most Americans the will to live life anymore has turned into a nightmare. The constant struggles and tribulations thousands of Americans face in this current era. America can relive the dream, only if the heart of American changes.

Mass Percent of the Elements Practice Questions