Riding Amtrak, Western style. (Pics are below the intro)
Officially, hooked. Although admittedly, in the days leading up to my most recent rail adventure I began having second thoughts. Was another 4-nights round-trip excursion on Amtrak really a good idea? The prior three train trips, to Washington, D.C., New York City and Miami Beach, had all been fun experiences. But maybe a trip to and from Los Angeles/San Diego would be better served by flying.
The morning of the trip I woke up enthused about the prospect of seeing the country from the coziness of a sleeper car roomette.
One reason I am a train travel aficionado is the unhurried, mellow atmosphere at the train station. Another is that, unlike air travel, which is about getting from point A to point B, the train ride is an integral part of the vacation experience. Amtrak did not disappoint!
Eat and greet
The Amtrak dining experience is unique; you choose a reservation time and then go to the dining car and are seated with strangers. I’ve shared meals with fun, interesting people and the L.A. trip was no exception. Dinner with a couple from Northern Virginia and a pie-maker from Dodge City. Breakfast with a couple from Pittsburgh. Lunch with a man from Palm Springs and a woman from Riverside, California. Dinner with a woman from Wisconsin and her college-age daughter. Pleasurable, interesting conversation and the food was very good. (So was the wine!)
Same thing when the train makes a “fresh air” stop allowing you to step off the train. Chatted up a guy from Poughkeepsie and another couple from Pittsburgh. Talked with grandparents and their 9-year old grandson whose sleeper room was next to mine. They were headed to the Grand Canyon. The young fella even showed me how to make time-lapse videos using my iPhone.
Check out the pics below! (All photos credit The Weekly Opine.)
Midday mellowness abounds in Union Station’s Great Hall in Chicago.
Cozy roomette quarters have a Mercury capsule feel.
Glaciers did a number on Illinois, making it the second flattest state after Florida. Incessant rain has done a number on Illinois farmers. Many bare fields in late-June.
The Mississippi River is more intimidating when swollen from a deluge of rain.
The Harvey Hotel in Dodge City, Kansas.
Storefronts in La Junta, Colorado, seen during a stop for fresh air.
Here we go! First close-up of mountains, north of Trinidad, Colorado.
Room with a view, riding through New Mexico.
Big sky in New Mexico the day before the longest day of the year.
New Mexico’s rugged beauty offers ample photo opportunities.
A cool formation in New Mexico.
A great wall in New Mexico.
Post-train ride, downtown L.A. seen from Griffith Observatory in the Los Feliz neighborhood.
Holy Toledo! The Griffith Park cave that was staged as the bat cave in the 1960s campy TV show “Batman.”
View from hills in San Diego looking toward downtown.
In the land of milk & honey, heading north on Hwy. 5 between San Diego and L.A.
Another room with a view, from my hotel balcony in Century City. Just beyond the foreground is Beverly Hills and hilly Benedict Canyon.
Headed home after a splendid SoCal vacay. Mountains at dusk north of Lytle Creek, California. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)
On the way home New Mexico was still magnificent! (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)
Final sunset of 9-night vacay. Near the Colorado-Kansas border. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)