The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Chittagong

If everything goes well in line with a UN sponsored scheme, it will no more remain a dream for a traveler who can visit London from Dhaka by train having glimpses of many historic cities and places of tourist attraction across Asia and Europe.

According to a report of the online edition of the Sunday's The Sunday Times, the 7,000-mile Trans-Asian railway will follow the traces of the historic Silk Road through Istanbul, Tehran, Lahore, Delhi and its final destination Dhaka.

Dean Nelson of The Sunday Times in his report datelined New Delhi said, "Rail enthusiastic with a sense of adventure and 23 days to spare will be able to travel by train from London to Dhaka, the Bangladeshi capital, when a new link opens later this year."

The recent re-launching of Bangladesh-India rail link has created the opportunity to expand the train route much longer than the 5,772 miles Trans-Siberian railway.

As per The Sunday Times report, the rail link between two neighbouring countries has been reopened after "more than 43 years after it was blocked during the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965."

Being termed as the world's greatest railway journey by some train buffs, the UN officials said the link would open up new trade routes within Asia and give the former Soviet republics rail access to Iran's strategic sea port Bandar Abbas.

Although the report has not mentioned the total budget and approximate fare per person, an online reader of the Times named Mohammad in London in his instant comment observed, "this sounds like once in a life time adventure.'

"The sad news, however, will be the price of tickets. I bet, ordinary people like me will need to take out a mortgage. It could also be ideal for a movie setting. Agatha Christie would have been pleased."

Under the UN-sponsored scheme, Pakistan and Iran will link up their railway lines in the coming months to join the sub- continents track to that of Europe for the first time.

Last week, senior Indian officials held meeting with their Iranian counterparts in Tehran to discuss the progress.

India has already earmarked 90 million pound sterling to expand its vast rail network towards its border with Myanmar. However, around 218 miles have been lost between India and Myanmar from the track of an overland rail journey from London to Singapore.

China, a big supporter of the project, is spending billions on extending railway tracks to its Myanmar border.

The Trans-Asian railway sources said the only barrier to eventually connect London with a province of Myanmar and Singapore was Yangoon's military regime, whose poor human rights record means that no foreign funding is available to rebuild its railways.

An intrepid traveler will soon be able to leave London for Brussels, Cologne, Vienna, Bucharest, Istanbul, Tehran, Quetta, Lahore, Amritsar, Delhi and Kolkata before reaching the end of the line in Dhaka.

The prospect of establishing Trans-Asia rail line has caused excitement among Britain's rail enthusiasts. Mark Smith, whose website Seat61.com promotes rail adventures around the world, was planning his first London to Dhaka itinerary.

His trip incorporates the Eurostar to Brussels, breakfast in Vienna and onward trains to Istanbul, where travelers must take the ferry across the Bosporus linking Europe with Asia. The ferry will eventually be replaced by an underground tunnel, but for now passengers will be able to enjoy views of the Aya Sofya and Topkapi Palace.

Smith's journey continues with a Turkish express train to Lake Van, close to the border of Iraq and Iran, where passengers will switch to another ferry to get to the Tehran-bound express, which is described as surprisingly modern.

Iranian engineers have extended their network through Kerman to the Pakistan border, where travelers will switch to a Pakistani train before continuing their journey to Quetta. Smith, who always books seat 61, said the journey offers a return to romantic overland adventure, despite some security concerns on the Iran-Pakistan border.

If you have the time, a taste for adventure and can arrange the necessary tickets and visas, this promises to be a truly epic overland journey, Smith says seemingly in a gesture of real adventurer.