It has been long since I have traveled in sleeper class.The platform near sleeper class is crowded. and the quality of the crowd is really depraved. It also depends on the quality of the train - if it is Rajdhani, everything looks good, but in the rest, most of the things are pathetic. In terms of cleanliness in the compartment too,  Sleeper class comes below everything (not considering the General Compartment here). The coach vibrates a lot compared to an AC one, less no of lights,  no separate lights for reading,  no charging port. I brought a novel thinking that I would read,  but the intense vibrations,  the commotion created by the people,  the rhythmic but loud noise of  the running train,  all of this made it impossible for me do anything other than lying around I couldn't even listen to songs.

I don't know why one would like to travel in a train. I don’t find any valid reason except the fact that you get to see the variety of people over here. Variety in terms of caste, religion, language,  age,  sex,  the so called eccentric personalities (esp. the people who act as loudspeakers) There is one thing though which i like -  those are the children.  they seem to me the funniest beings capable of entertaining everyone around them without realizing it. I am talking about the kids in the age group of 2-10. Kids, if too small, cry a lot,  and they are a nuisance when their parents are unable to make them not cry.  Apart from that,  one thing that I think I like in trains is -   sitting near the window in the daylight gazing at the unending greenery,  shining tracks in parallel,  the occasional sight of dogs or farmers with their animal companions on the field,  small huts in the midst of vast stretches of open fields, etc. But all of these tend to get boring and monotonous after some time.

This time, I had a couple sitting opposite to me,  hand in hand,  watching a movie on a laptop.  the girl seemed to be from Rajkot.  Rajkot people have a unique accent.  One can pick them out easily,  She was extremely talkative, but the rhythmic rajkoti accent of hers made her voice bearable,   Her lover seemed to be doing a pretty nice job of listening.  Also,  they were at the receiving end of eye popping glance of the elderly people sitting at the other end.  People in this country have a difficulty minding their own business.

On a side note, I , sometimes, wonder why so many couples are the followers of public display of affection.  What makes them curl hand in hand,  leading to them being the cynosure of all eyes.  why be the center of attention for no good reason?  Why not control your emotions or hormones or whatever it is, to the point where it actually makes sense to display it.

The worst part, my berth was the end of the coach. And it is winter time. I had two jackets on plus a blanket. The worst part was, the door of the train could not be latched. Due to this, the opened door in the middle of the chilly night on the running train, gave me intense chills. Unfortunately, I brought a thin blanket with me, thinking that having wore two jackets already, I won’t need anything else. The Result - I couldn’t sleep properly as I woke up frequently being on the receiving end the stream of chilly air from the opened door.

Overall, the experience was new and eccentric. I am not sure whether I will try taking the Sleeper class the next time I am travelling by train.