PARIS TO GENEVA
Gare de Lyon was only a half hour walk from our Airbnb. We had breakfast of croissants and hot chocolate and then boarded our train to Geneva by scanning in our ticket as we went through the gate to the train. It is such a different experience from the New Delhi train station where we crossed through the station with people sitting in groups on the floor and then having our bags checked by running them through a machine that no one seemed to be paying attention to and then rushing along the train through crowds of people to our car. Here everyone moves efficiently and quietly to their car and their reserved seat. The train ride was 409 kilometers or 253 miles and takes three hours. We stopped twice briefly and at some points were flying along at 160 mph except when passing through cities or going uphill. The ride was a smooth as could be. But at $100 it was several times as expensive as an Indian train ride. The only entertainment was a tiny dog who ran free through the car.
There was a higher level snack bar where we could get soup and sandwiches and from which I took some photographs, forgetting to take any of the train itself. Everyone on the train was silent with most people working on their laptops or reading books. As anyone who has traveled by train in Europe knows, there is no comparison between this bullet train and the American Amtrak train such as the round the country train ride I took last summer. Here the train was exactly on time both leaving and arriving while my Amtrak trains were often two or three or more hours late and I don’t think we ever managed 60 miles an hour, while here, with stops, we averaged 85 miles an hour. And unlike an Indian train there was no one coming through selling garam chai or snacks.
As we got closer to Geneva we went along river valleys under craggy mountains and it was quite beautiful until we glided into Geneva.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 