Railway Stations - Paul Theroux

Shiver me Timbers · Nov 5th, 2007, 22:21

Just looked at 'Great Railway Bazaar' for the first time in ages, and opened it on this page...

Quote:

"To understand the real India, the Indians say, you must go to the villages. But that is not strictly true, because the Indians have carried their villages to the railway stations...At night and in the early morning the station village is complete, a community so preoccupied that the thousands of passengers arriving and departing leave it undisturbed: they detour around it.

The railway dwellers possess the station, but only the new arrival notices this. He feels something is wrong because he has not learned the Indian habit of ignoring the obvious, making a detour to preserve his calm. The newcomer cannot believe he has been plunged into such intimacy so soon. In another country this would all be hidden from him, and not even a trip to a village would reveal with this clarity the pattern of life. The village in rural India tells the visitor very little except that he is required to keep his distance and limit his experience of the place to tea or a meal in a stuffy parlour. The life of the village, its interior, is denied to him.

But the station village is all interior, and the shock of this exposure made me hurry away. I didn't feel I had any right to watch people bathing under a low faucet - naked among the incoming tide of office workers; men sleeping late on their charpoys or tucking up their turbans; women with nose rings and cracked yellow feet cooking stews of begged vegetables over smoky fires, suckling infants, folding bedrolls; children pissing on their toes; little girls, in oversized frocks falling from their shoulders...this village had no walls..."

A wonderful bit of writing, all the better because it still holds true today in many ways (it was written in 1975). That is certainly a great description of the bigger stations, I remember feeling a similar way at all the big ones, Victoria Station in Mumbai, Howrah, Chennai...

the opoponax · Nov 5th, 2007, 22:37

I read The Great Railway Bazaar years ago; in fact it was part of the reason I decided that not only did I need to eventually visit India, I needed to travel India, and preferably via train.

Though I have to say that, reading it back then, I was left with the peculiar feeling that Theroux must be an absolute misanthrope. He never seemed to have anything nice to say about anyone he met along the way, unless maybe they were a fellow American or maybe British. I was left wondering, "OK, so he took a rail journey across Europe and Asia and had nothing good to say about any of the people he came across. Why didn't he just stay home?"

Shiver me Timbers · Nov 5th, 2007, 22:55

It's a common complaint against him...believe me, Great Railway Bazaar isn't the worst for that.

In his defence, I will say that constantly reading about how wonderful everything and everyone is can be quite a boring reading experience.

capt_mahajan · Nov 5th, 2007, 23:15

I did not find the Railway Bazaar that interesting, though I forget why, it was sometime ago.
But I recall the 'misanthropy'.

I would think many (specially solo) travellers would have misanthropic tendencies, or at least darkly ironic ones.

dhans · Nov 6th, 2007, 00:30

Beside William Dalrymple, Paul Theroux is my favourite travel writer. Unlike his Fiction, which I always find a bit boring, I love the way he watches, is involved, but never becomes part of the action (allthough this last remark is disputable, e.g. in "The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific" there is a lot about one man and his canoe).

My personal Top 10 Theroux list:

The Old Patagonian Express: By Train Through the Americas (just walk out your apartment and keep on travelling)
My Secret History (autobiographic and in parts very moving)
The Great Railway Bazaar: By Train Through Asia (a very good reason to go to India)
Riding the Iron Rooster: By Train Through China (a feast if you were there in the 80’s)
The Kingdom by the Sea: A Journey Around the Coast of Great Britain (if only for the B&B descriptions)
The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific
Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Cape Town
The Mosquito Coast (maybe his best fiction)
Fresh-air Fiend: Travel Writings, 1985-2000 (short stories, once again personal and moving)
The Pillars of Hercules: A Grand Tour of the Mediterranean (Paul Theroux goes Michael Palin)

I haven't read his last one yet (The Elephanta Suite), which seems to be travelfiction about India. Will buy it soon.

Hans

Bigzero · May 3rd, 2008, 17:22

Just bought the Great Railway Bazaar a couple of hours back. Let me see how it goes!

tstan · May 3rd, 2008, 17:42

Conor - heard on the grapevine that Paul Theroux is going to write "Great Railway Bazaar 2008" and revisit the lines of 1975. That will be a great read!

Shiver me Timbers · May 3rd, 2008, 19:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstan

Conor - heard on the grapevine that Paul Theroux is going to write "Great Railway Bazaar 2008" and revisit the lines of 1975. That will be a great read!

That's excellent, maybe I'll meet him on the train to Istanbul in a couple of weeks......

unclelach · May 12th, 2008, 07:58

From "The Great Railway Bazaar": "At my lowest point, when things were at their most desperate and uncomfortable, I always found myself in the company of Australians, who were like a reminder that I'd touched bottom."

I've been laughing to myself at Theroux's observation for thirty years. Theroux was my favourite travel writer in the 80's.

Scandojazzbuff · May 12th, 2008, 09:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by dhans

Beside William Dalrymple, Paul Theroux is my favourite travel writer. Unlike his Fiction, which I always find a bit boring, I love the way he watches, is involved, but never becomes part of the action (allthough this last remark is disputable, e.g. in "The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific" there is a lot about one man and his canoe).

My personal Top 10 Theroux list:

The Old Patagonian Express: By Train Through the Americas (just walk out your apartment and keep on travelling)
My Secret History (autobiographic and in parts very moving)
The Great Railway Bazaar: By Train Through Asia (a very good reason to go to India)
Riding the Iron Rooster: By Train Through China (a feast if you were there in the 80’s)
The Kingdom by the Sea: A Journey Around the Coast of Great Britain (if only for the B&B descriptions)
The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific
Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Cape Town
The Mosquito Coast (maybe his best fiction)
Fresh-air Fiend: Travel Writings, 1985-2000 (short stories, once again personal and moving)
The Pillars of Hercules: A Grand Tour of the Mediterranean (Paul Theroux goes Michael Palin)

I haven't read his last one yet (The Elephanta Suite), which seems to be travelfiction about India. Will buy it soon.

Hans

He was here(in Bangkok) recently, giving a talk. In the paper, he mentioned that he felt somewhat responsible for the ruining of many places he's written about. I'm not making a judgement on this, but, I think few people really consider how a place or region changes drastically after the first wave of tourists come through. Everyone wants to make a buck.

Nov 5th, 2007, 23:15	#4
capt_mahajan (in charge of navel affairs) Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: India Posts: 8,723	I did not find the Railway Bazaar that interesting, though I forget why, it was sometime ago. But I recall the 'misanthropy'. I would think many (specially solo) travellers would have misanthropic tendencies, or at least darkly ironic ones. __________________ . The cynic must remember that he is a spy (Epitectus) Indiamike moderating team ..ich bin ein oneliner

Nov 6th, 2007, 00:30	#5
dhans Uru Buru member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 1,341	Beside William Dalrymple, Paul Theroux is my favourite travel writer. Unlike his Fiction, which I always find a bit boring, I love the way he watches, is involved, but never becomes part of the action (allthough this last remark is disputable, e.g. in "The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific" there is a lot about one man and his canoe). My personal Top 10 Theroux list: The Old Patagonian Express: By Train Through the Americas (just walk out your apartment and keep on travelling) My Secret History (autobiographic and in parts very moving) The Great Railway Bazaar: By Train Through Asia (a very good reason to go to India) Riding the Iron Rooster: By Train Through China (a feast if you were there in the 80’s) The Kingdom by the Sea: A Journey Around the Coast of Great Britain (if only for the B&B descriptions) The Happy Isles of Oceania: Paddling the Pacific Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Cape Town The Mosquito Coast (maybe his best fiction) Fresh-air Fiend: Travel Writings, 1985-2000 (short stories, once again personal and moving) The Pillars of Hercules: A Grand Tour of the Mediterranean (Paul Theroux goes Michael Palin) I haven't read his last one yet (The Elephanta Suite), which seems to be travelfiction about India. Will buy it soon. Hans __________________ Tips for trips to India with (young) children: India with kids Stories about our travels in India: Journal Last edited by dhans : Nov 6th, 2007 at 00:30. Reason: typo

May 3rd, 2008, 17:22	#6
Bigzero back to my old ways Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 1,416	Just bought the Great Railway Bazaar a couple of hours back. Let me see how it goes! __________________ miles to go.... Bigzero's Photo Gallery

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Nov 5th, 2007, 22:37	#2
the opoponax Maha Guru Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Brooklyn, via New Orleans Posts: 1,054	I read The Great Railway Bazaar years ago; in fact it was part of the reason I decided that not only did I need to eventually visit India, I needed to travel India, and preferably via train. Though I have to say that, reading it back then, I was left with the peculiar feeling that Theroux must be an absolute misanthrope. He never seemed to have anything nice to say about anyone he met along the way, unless maybe they were a fellow American or maybe British. I was left wondering, "OK, so he took a rail journey across Europe and Asia and had nothing good to say about any of the people he came across. Why didn't he just stay home?"

Nov 5th, 2007, 22:55	#3
Shiver me Timbers Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Dublin Posts: 1,341	It's a common complaint against him...believe me, Great Railway Bazaar isn't the worst for that. In his defence, I will say that constantly reading about how wonderful everything and everyone is can be quite a boring reading experience.

May 3rd, 2008, 17:42	#7
tstan power brake keep distance Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: sydney Posts: 190	Conor - heard on the grapevine that Paul Theroux is going to write "Great Railway Bazaar 2008" and revisit the lines of 1975. That will be a great read!

May 12th, 2008, 07:58	#9
unclelach Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: melbourne, australia Posts: 172	From "The Great Railway Bazaar": "At my lowest point, when things were at their most desperate and uncomfortable, I always found myself in the company of Australians, who were like a reminder that I'd touched bottom." I've been laughing to myself at Theroux's observation for thirty years. Theroux was my favourite travel writer in the 80's.

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