8 Point Plan: Chug along on a happy rail journey

A long railway journey can be boring or interesting depending on how you approach it. For example, you can use the time to do a wide range of things from making new friends to revisiting your favourite childhood games. The Tripu00a0gives you tips on how to make this journey a comfortable and fun-filled experience.u00a0 So, the next time you plan a holiday, you might end up looking forward to a relaxed start to your holiday.

* Carry a pack of cards or other board games like chess, scrabble, snakes and ladders or ludo. Apart from being great entertainers with family and friends, these don't occupy much space in your luggage.
* Take an interesting book. Reading on a train journey can be a lot of fun.
* Wear slip-ons for footwear. Imagine having to remove your shoes and socks each time you want to catch a nap or stretch your feet.
* Find the time to look out of the window. This is what will really give you a feel of a train journey. Try to spot flora and fauna along the way.
* In our fast-paced lives we barely find time to sit down and be with ourselves. This journey may be ideal to introspect and perhaps, refill the pages of your long-forgotten diary.
* Find out about the people around you without being intrusive or nosy. Interesting conversations don't just happen in coffee shops.
* Experience a gadget-free life for as long as your journey lasts. Switch off your cell phones; do not use your laptops or iPods.
* Get acquainted with new destinations that pass by as the train moves on. If the area around a particular station looks interesting, find out about it. You never know, you might want to come back there some day.