I meet Sister Rita at 4 AM to take the train from Howrah Station West Bengal to Rourkela Orissa. The train ride will take approximately 6 hours and cover 300 miles.

 

Sister Rita and I get to the Howrah railroad station on time. Sister hires a coolie to carry my heavy bag to the platform that the train will arrive on. Howrah station is a very large station with 23 active platforms with trains coming and going all over India. Our walk is very long as our train is near the end platform.

To my surprise when we got to the platform our train had already arrived. I have taken the train many times but this time I noticed the train was much different. It was new and looked like a European high speed train. We boarded the train and the coolie put my big bag on the overhead rack.

 

In 20 minutes the train started to move and Sister Rita and I were on our way to Rourkela.

 

The inside of the train was very new and clean with big windows to look out as it moved along the countryside.

 

The name of the train was The Vande Bharat Express.

 

It is a first class train with only 5 stops to Rourkela.

 

The Sisters never travel on trains like this so it was Special for Sister Rita. I too was surprised as I had never been on a train like this before. The Sisters ordered the tickets as special just for me to be comfortable on the journey and have a nice breakfast during the trip.

 

When Sister Rita and I arrived at Rourkela station Sister Anna Mary along with another Sister and the driver, were waiting for us at the platform when we got off the train.

 

Sister Anna Mary handed me a beautiful bouquet of pretty flowers and said to me Welcome to Rourkela.

 

While she was giving me flowers the other Sister and driver took my heavy bag and started walking down the platform to get to the car and Sister Rita carried my backpack.

 

I was only allowed to carry the pretty flowers.

 

What a train ride and what a welcome I received.

 

After a 20 minute ride to my room at the guest house at the Convent I was taken to my room.

 

On a table in the room were more fresh flowers and a card that said welcome.

 

My room was very nice with a private bathroom. It was located right across the hall from the Sisters Chapel.

 

The very first place that I wanted to visit in Rourkela was the Daughters of the Cross Cemetery just down the road.

 

Sister Anna Mary, Sister Sneha and myself took an Atul, a 3 wheel motor car. I brought with me the flowers that Sister Anna Mary gave me and put it on the Sisters graves. It’s always the way I like to start a visit, never forgetting the Sisters who have passed away that have helped me on these trips along with other Sisters who passed away long before I ever started going to Rourkela.

 

Today just happens to be Corpus Christi and it is a very special day for Christians to Celebrate Christ the King.

 

In the mid afternoon all the Sisters and members of the church walk around all the streets saying prayers for two to three hours. After the walk there is a huge church service outside the Sacred Heart Cathedral that is next to where I am staying.

 

Thousands of people attended the service with parishioners sitting in chairs or sitting on newspapers or blankets in the church yard. It was a beautiful church Mass with the Daughters of the Cross Sister Candidates performing Indian dance during the service.

 

After the service I went to the Convent kitchen where every Sister living in the Convent greeted me and said Welcome.

 

I had some soup that I brought with me and Sister Prafula made me some great whipped potatoes for supper.

 

I then went to my room, got washed up and went to bed as it’s been a long day for me.

 

It was nice to be back in Rourkela ..

Ray O