India, Oct. 16 -- I remember the first time I watched Before Sunrise. The idea of a train ride, an elusive meeting with a stranger, and spending 24 hours untethered to an itinerary in a new place-two ships passing in the night for a brief exchange in an unknown country-sparked a decade-long fascination with public transport and making friends along the way.

To be fair, I never learned how to drive, so this was more necessity than wanderlust. But some of my most memorable (and bewildering) experiences have unfolded on buses and trains across countries. Once, on a ride from Kirtipur to Kathmandu, I found myself sitting beside farmers with their day's harvest, a rooster perched precariously above my head, forcing me to confront my childhood...