October 16

Today we took the train.  We had a very crazy, crazy trip through the train station.  Men in red shirts were the porters and as soon as we pulled in on our bus the looked at us as if we were fresh meat.  They began to carry our bags across 4 lanes of bus/motorbike/car traffic and when you have 24 people and bag for the home too that was bedlum.  We just grabbed what was ours and followed our porter for all we are worth.  When we made it to the platform with our bags in tact we breathed a sigh of relief. We then got on our train for the four hour ride north to Kalka.  I had the pleasure of using a squaty potty on the train. No small feat on a bumping train.  We had Chai and watched the sights slide by.  There was a lot of poverty in the country as we rode by.  So much sadness that these people have to endure.  So sad to watch the villages with their srines and so much dispare.  On the sides of the tracks ever now and then there would be piles of cow patties that you could tell were made the same shape and size and laying out in the sun to dry.  They use these to start fires and so need to make these.  So many different things to see.  One last funny thing, in India it is a compliment to call a woman Fat.  It means she is well taken care of.  And when we were shopping the girl on our team asked the man where the pants were and he said "for you? oh no you need a large, you're big"  We both looked at each other and laughed and she just brushed it off.  But then when we got to the home they said to another girl "oh your getting so fat" and then we got it.  They were trying to compliment them.  So maybe by the time I get home I can be fat too, because of all the Roti and Naan.