As a student in France, I want
to experience important French events and festivals held in France. One
important day for France is Bastille Day, France’s national holiday. It commemorates the 1790 Fete de la
Federation, a symbol of the uprising of a modern nation and the reconciliation
of all the French within the constitutional monarchy preceding the First
Republic during French Revolution. Since we are doing our project in India, I
thought I could not experience Bastille Day. But hope came when news from other
French interns spread: the chance to celebrate Bastille Day in India! One part
of India was a French colony: Pondicherry. If you watched the recent movie
“Life of Pi”, you can see some parts of Pondicherry in the initial part of the
movie. Because it was a former French colony, Pondicherry had a Bastille Day
celebration on July 14, so most interns coming from French universities planned
to go there together. Amidst the hectic project and complexity of big group
arrangements, approximately 20 interns went to Pondi!
Our adventure starts with a new
experience: Indian AC (air conditioned) sleeper train. I have never been in a
sleeper train before so I was curious how it would be. This is how it turned
out: in one car, the inside was divided into several berths. In each berth
there are three walls on which three “beds” could be installed vertically on
each wall. When it wasn’t yet time to sleep, the lowest and middle part could
be turned into seats. When the person with the middle “bed” wants to sleep then
he just needs to lift what was once the cushion, put the chains that are
connected to the top “bed” hung from the roof and voila! You have another bed
=) We actually found it unique and for a long ride, it’s quite ok instead of
having to be in seated position all the way; on the bed you could lay down and
if you’re tired enough, you’ll fall asleep. As we were beginners in this experience, we
didn’t know that the air conditioning was very cold! We also didn’t know that
once you get in you have to take the bed sheets and blankets from storage (if
you opt for that when purchasing the ticket). We only realized it after some
time when people showed up with sheets and blankets that had the same motifs
and they started to go to bed. We started our hunt for blankets and bed sheets;
unfortunately, our cart had run out of the inventory. With some determination
we went all the way to the end of train, but no luck, we didn’t get enough for
everyone. I was lucky to be given the blanket, so at least I didn’t feel cold
and could sleep. It was a funny experience, trying to sleep in the train. It
was basically comfortable and we even had our own electric socket if we want to
charge our mobile phones or laptop; it’s just the snores of other people that
you have to bear. If you were wondering how long the ride was and why we took
the sleeper train, let me tell you: it was 10 hours! The distance between
Bangalore and Pondicherry is 306.9 Km; but the train speed was slow and it
stopped at many stations.
In between the state of sleeping
and awake, we heard the announcement: we finally arrived the next morning. Our
young adventurous souls were up again and we pushed ourselves to be awake. As
the train approached Pondi, we couldn’t wait for the following: French
pastries, French food, Pondi’s beaches and temples, and just getting to know
the city!
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