Southern India - 16 February 2012 (3)

Trains and Tuk Tuks

Clock Tower, Mysore

Markets, Mysore

After the palace, we went back to the hotel, where we packed our luggage to go on the bus.  My clean washing arrived just in time.  Luckily, I already had my money out, ready to pay him.  When he asked for a much higher amount, I was sufficiently alert to query it.  Besides it was only two t-shirts.  Some of the others did not detect the overcharge until it was too late because they had quite a bit of washing done.  Our room was one of the three kept on for us to all have showers and get changed later.  I just squashed my stuff on the bedside table and went out.

Bananas for Sale, Mysore Market

Henna Dyes for Sale, Mysore Market

Mike was also interested in going to Mysore railway museum, so we met down in the lobby.  First we went to the market because he needed to buy something.  Lukose said that two roads led to the market: one with expensive shops and one with cheap shops.  So we picked the route with the cheaper shops and eventually reached a clock tower and found the markets.  It was all fruit and veg with some flowers, brightly coloured henna, soap and the odd bangle, plus household utensils.

NWR NG tank loco no: 119 E

Soap for Sale, Mysore Market

Mike found his stuff and, when we had circumnavigated the market, we set off to find a restaurant recommended by Lukose.  We searched high and low, being redirected hither and thither.  In the end we gave up and, for Rs30, we got a tuk tuk back to the Park Lane Restaurant.  There we had some of the “tidbits” – cashew nut fry, veggie bhaji and mushroom pakora in my case.

Steam Pump, Mysore Railway Museum

Southern Railway MG Tank Loco TS 37338

Then we got another tuk tuk to the railway museum.  I surprised myself by identifying the wheel configurations of all the steam engines correctly.  Mike said he was impressed too.  I liked how the information on the engines was written.  It was done as if the engines were writing the story themselves, starting with where and when they were “born”, what type of engine they were, the work they did and where they did it.

Me About to be Hit by a Train

Steam Engine, Mysore Railway Museum

Most of the museum was in the open air, but there was a small octagonal building, full of photos, and a long shed-like building.  An elderly man beckoned us inside and proudly showed off what was in there.  To the left were various railway artefacts, ranging from insignia from the front of trains, to signalling and communications equipment.  On the right were two carriages from the Maharajah’s train.

Maharajah's Train, Mysore Railway Museum

Railway Equipment, Mysore Rly Museum

The man switched on the interior light and, standing on tip-toe, I could see the furnishings of his carriage.  These included his cot, card table and dressing table.  We could also see into his toilet: a western style one.  Behind that was the sparse servants’ quarters, comprising bare benches and a squat loo.  The second carriage had the cooks’ area, with small compartments for cooking.  At the end was a bathroom.  We saw no signs of a bath, but there was a hot water boiler.

YP 2511, Mysore Railway Museum

MG Travelling Steam Crane no: 033993

Then we were shown the rail accessories.  Our guide wound up two phone units, which were some way apart, and got Mike and I to talk to each other.  That was fun.  Then he took photos of us climbing on board the Maharajah’s train, but mine was completely out of focus.

We went outside again and headed deeper into the museum.  We found the track for the toy train.  Alas, the engine had met with an accident and was no longer able to pull the carriages, which were decorated with elephants.  Without this attraction, children won’t come into the museum, which is very sad.  I do hope that Indian ingenuity is able to repair it.

Toy Train, Sadly Derailed, Mysore Rly Museum

 

Nearby, was an Austin Morris, which had been given train wheels and had been used by inspectors to travel round the network in comfort.  That must have been fun.  There was also a crane to lift carriages.

While we were looking at the toy train, Mike could see over the fence into the railway station.  He said that our overnight train was already in and waiting.

Austin Rail Motor Car, Mysore Rly Museum

The museum had a mock-up of its own platform.  This was our last stop.  Mike spotted someone waiting for a train.  It was a young sparrowhawk, perched under the roof.  This magnificent bird allowed me to take two photos before flying off in search of peace and quiet.

Sparrowhawk, Mysore Railway Museum

Our tuk tuk driver had said that he would wait for us, but there wasn’t any sign of him when we left the museum.  Perhaps he hadn’t taken us for big fans of trains, but with Mike working for London Underground and me having worked for Grand Central, he underestimated us.  I was feeling very enervated with the heat and really didn’t want to walk far.  Fortunately, Mike managed to hail a tuk tuk quite quickly.  He quoted Rs50, but I said we would pay no more than Rs30.  So he said Rs40 and I held firm, so Rs30 it was.  We were amused when he had to ask for directions, as he didn’t know where the hotel was anyway.  As we tried to turn right at some lights, our lights went to green, but a stream of traffic continued to come across from the right.  It was a long time before the flow stopped and we were able to go.