sleeper train

 

I took a business trip to Da Nang, Vietnam. In the weekend, I decided to visit Hue, the old capital of this country. 

I was on board of the train that takes three-and-a-half-hour to reach there, instead of the two-hour trip by car. It was a sleeper train, even more classic version of the blue train that I used to run from my hometown to Tokyo in the olden days.

I spent a nostalgic time by sitting in a coach pulled by a panting diesel-powered locomotive. Now, in the midst of the smooth and comfortable daily travel, the smell of fuel oil and the sweat of the workers, the aroma of the food sold in the wooden train, and the murmur of the passengers, all of this is being forgotten. Along with this oblivion, we are also forgetting the human’s bonds and connections sticked in the villages and towns, as we have entered the digital age. 

The train arrived safely in Hue at 1:30 pm, albeit a little late.

On the way home, it was late at night, so I had no choice but to drive to Da Nang all at once along the newly constructed highway. It was a day as if I had been dreaming.