The Metropolitan
OBS Chief
Just returned from my longest trip to date, spanning 2 days and several thousand miles, and it was QUITE a good experience!!!
Usually, I embellish my travelogues with scads of photos and details of any and everything I saw, but this time, I just opted to relax, and focus on enjoying the ride.
Returning from a conference, my friend and I flew from Phoenix to Denver in order to board the CZ to the CL to the NEC to make the 2 day trip across the country. Due to the length of the trip, we decided to treat ourselves to a roomette sleeper for both the Zephyr and the Capitol.
We arrived in Denver at about 3:00pm and picked up a quick lunch before getting out to the windy curb in order to catch RTD's "AF" bus into Downtown. This rather expensive transit bus ($8 pp) took an hour's trip along a good bit of highway before entering Downtown Denver, and depositing us at the Market Street Terminal, just 3 blocks from Union Station, at about 5:00pm.
We dropped into Union Station, where they very kindly kept watch over our bags to allow us to roam Denver for a spell before returning to the Station. Since our Zephyr's 7:25 departure was now anticipated at 9:55pm, we knew we had to figure out something for dinner, so we headed back towards the terminal to stop past "Noodles and Company" for meal before strolling through town a bit. Denver's Downtown seemed pretty clean, though a tad spread out. Still a nice place to visit for a few hours.
By 7:00pm, we had returned to the station to rest up for the trip. My friend sprawled out over the bench and took a nap, while I merely took it all in. Alternately, we entertained ourselves for a spell as we tried to let the time pass, as we really wanted to be on our train.
Finally, anticipation mounted as the time approached. The station filled with a very "echo-ey" announcements that nobody clearly understood, but by collaborating with others, and pulling words out contextually, we finally deciphered that we were to check in at the desks with tickets and ID, and then wait for alighting passengers to disembark before waiting for announcements to proceed for boarding. Finally, after another few unintelligible announcements, we finally heard something about boarding, and made our way towards the train.
Our room was #2 on car #0631, which cost $224 for the trip from DEN to CHI. Upon finding our car, we stood in line as our Car Attendant tended to those boarding before us. My friend, still dressed for the heat of the Phoenix Desert, was shivering as she showed our attendant, JC Adams, our "boarding pass." JC started off with jokes from the start, telling her "You're cold cause you don't have anything covering your shoulders!" Pointing us up the stairs to our room, my friend was very pleased to find the beds already made and ready for our slumber. Shortly after getting settled, JC came up and paid us a visit to intoduce himself and run through some ground rules, and finally gave my friend an extra blanket after first jokingly refusing ("Just like my wife!"). JC was a whole lot of fun and treated us quite well the entire time, kind of using an artificial surliness, some dry humor, and a gravelly voice like the late comedian Robin Harris.
Once settled in, my friend made a few phone calls before we both trailed off to sleep shortly after Fort Morgan. Good sleep it was, with the gentle rocking and our center location making for a tranquil setting for dozing. We awoke somewhere in the 7:00 hour, and eventually made our way to Breakfast (yes, unwashed - when my friend says she's hungry, it's best to appease her!) by the time we were near Lincoln. We sat opposite a CSX engineer and his wife returning from Colorado, who had not ridden a train since the 1970's, before my friend was even born. They were heading to Cleveland, but unlike us, would be finishing their journey in coach aboard #48. Breakfast was quiche for me, and a continental for my friend. After breakfast, as we arrived in Omaha, I headed down to wash up in the Amshower, having the good fortune to make most of it while stopped. Then it was back upstairs where my friend had already dozed back off in her upper berth.
Outside, it was a grey day in which we dodged in and out of rainstorms the entire way to Chicago. We alternated between rest and daze, as I eventually pulled out the timetable to figure out where we were, how far we had to go, and how increasingly slim our chances were of making our connection to train #30 at 7:05pm. By Osceola, we were already going to be needing that hour of slack time built into the schedule in order to make the connection. BNSF was moving us along pretty good, but even then, we encountered a few slow spells, though we only stopped a few times for less than 5 minutes at a time. We ate lunch (Burgers for both of us) in Ottumwa, opposite a very nice older lady bound for Naperville (in order to dodge all the hustle and bustle of CUS). Our server was the same from this morning, a very tall gentleman with a lively sense of humor and panache.
Following Lunch, we retired again to slumber some more. JC was nice enough to keep the beds down, only finally converting the room closer to Burlington. By now, we were getting nervous. Looking at the time, even if nothing else slowed us down, and if we absorbed all the slack in the schedule, we now only had 10-15 minutes of play between our trains, and we were not even in Illinois yet.
Though a tad slow leaving Burlington, we really got rolling for the homestretch, as BNSF made the Zephyr name proud for us. The Illinois stops came quickly enough, (though we sat for a spell following a baggage mixup after Princeton) and finally we entered METRA territory in Aurora. We were biting our nails, as neither of us wanted to be forced onto #48, though we assumed they'd hold #30 for up to 30 minutes if it looked like we could do it. We had recieved some announcments that we'd be making our connection to #30 as long as no unforeseen circumstances occurred. We hoped and prayed for our connection, and by a miracle, we made it. Arrival in to CUS was right about 6:59pm!!!
JC unloaded our bags, and a bunch of us from #6 were off to the races to connect to #30 on track #26. Mary (I remember her clearly from my near disaster trip on #50 in February) from the Chicago Service center was there to herd all of us rushers across a mid-platform plankway over to track #26, where we then darted up towards our sleeper in car #3000. A few employees sort of "warned" us that we were passing the coaches for the sleepers (guess we do look a bit young for them) but we confirmed that we knew where we needed to be, and in just moments, we were digging out our tickets to board our sleeper on #30. On the train, and to our room #5 we went to collapse from the run. Despite being worn, we were ECSTATIC to have made it.
Our Car Attendant for #30 was John, very pleasant and soft spoken, though lacking the comical touch of JC, he was very professional, while even a tad humble. His first order of business was to ask about Dinner. My friend wanted the earliest thing possible, and was delighted when in just 2 minutes, John returned with the question "Want to go to Dinner now?!?" My friend's eyes lit up, and we were on our way. We settled into the first booth, still catching our breath, while our delightful server, Nancy, came to start off our order. Minutes later, the train lurched out of Chicago. It was official now, we had really gotten some miraculous fortune.
Our server for the evening, was extra special, as she really made us feel literally at home, and with good reason. Hearing her calling people "hon'," I'd all but bet my friend that she's from our hometown, but she agrees with me. When she frees up for a moment, we take the time to ask her where she is from, and neither of us are at all suprised to hear "Baltimore" as her response. We're 500 miles away, but yet we're home at the same time!
I had my heart set on the Tri-color Tortellini, but the pasta dish for the night was Ravioli, so we both ordered that. Though not as good as the Tortellini, it was still good, and for once, I actually finished before my friend. Desert for me was the Chocolate cake, and for her the Cheesecake, which Nancy "touched off" with some whipped cream and chocolate and strawberry sauce. It was the perfect touch for a triumphant evening. We wished Nancy a good night, and returned to our rooms. My friend headed down for a shower as I awaited John to convert the room for sleeping.
My friend returned as I was still waiting, but still easily managed to nap again before John arrived, and made the conversion in no time. Now we were ready for sleep. At least she was. She nodded out early, but I was more insomniatic than I was on the Zephyr, staying up to sort through a few things for a while before trying to fight off the noise of a jouncy kingpin under the carbody. The final insult was NS, some of whose engineers seemed to deliberately hit the horn while passing our train, not the greatest of sleep. I finally crashed at Toledo, though waking for a bit on our approach into Cleveland, about 90 minutes late.
In an unusual twist, my friend actually rises before me, and is actually slowed waiting for me to awaken. We've just left Pittsburgh at about 7:30am, and as usual, she's hungry. It takes me some time to shake off the cobwebs, but I literally stumble behind her into the Diner for the morning meal. I'm mostly in need of Coffee, but I take some French Toast as well, while she does her usual - Continental (Frosted Flakes and Strawberry). We're seated alongside two other travelers riding solo in the sleepers, one of which is definitely an avid train buff, an another who also seems to follow them more casually. After finally shaking off my insomnia demons, we have a nice conversation that revolves around both trains, as well as my friend's travels and experiences in life. All in all, it is a good breakfast, as we swap stories, and destinations, finding out that at least one of our co-riders is heading for a trip on the Crescent to Birmingham.
Following breakfast, we head back to gladly see that our room is still in sleep mode, which my friend wastes no time in doing, while I wash up. Following that, I scrounge up all the loose change I have in order to suprise her on her awakening with one of the Cinnamon rolls from the Cafe Car - she's hopelessly addicted to those. While she slumbers, I take the time to gaze out along the Casselman River and write out some thoughts - not an easy thing as our neighbors in room #7 are loud and bitchy, fussing that the train is moving slow and that they won't get to DC at the advertised 1:30pm. "Um, duh, but do you have to KEEP saying it over and over!"
Somewhere in the noon hour, we get the call for lunch, and head back to get our last meal on Amtrak. We are both pleased to find the loud fussy ladies in roomette #7 are seated in the opposite end of the car! Both of us take a chance on the Chicken Ceasar Salad, and are relieved to find it fresh and not frozen (our last trip on the Capitol, the "lunch" salad was frozen over with ice). We are joined by a nice gentleman from Boston hoping to connect to #168, but gradually realizing he'll be catching #66 back. We spend most of the time near Cumberland chatting about trains, travelling, life experiences, and even the Boston accent my Kindergarten teacher initially instilled in me. (Only later on our return would I find out that we were enjoying lunch with Amtrak Unlimited member "J-1 3235"! - SMALL WORLD!)
After lunch, we return to our room where John has made it up in "Day Mode" and we spend the next several hours gazing out the windows, and engaging in chit chat. Later, when our "neighbors" return, my friend hooks up my portable DVD player to play the Angelique Kidjo CD she picked up at a Starbucks in Denver, partly to relax to, and partly to drown out the "neighbors." As we're on the right side of the train, we get to enjoy the view of "the right side of the tracks" in West Virginia, being greeted by small frame houses instead of villages of trailers and vans strewn along the river. Finally, we see the first sign of home in sets of MARC cars lined up in Martinsburg yard, followed by our station stop, in which we are amazed at ALL the discarded beer bottles piled high along the side of an old warehouse, almost all of which are wrapped in paper as if purchased individually.
The ride into DC varies between fast and slow in many ways. We've enjoyed this journey a great deal, and almost regret it ending "so quickly," yet we're glad to be nearing home and familiar places. It is not until nearly Rockville that we get even decent phone service, so my friend takes the time to do a few catch up calls. Silver Spring evades my looks for it, as before long, we are in Washington proper. Though I expected us to get into DC just after 4pm as I compared our times to those scheduled, it turns out we are coming in at 4:29pm, just in time to miss the 4:25pm train. We park on track #15, a slight change from the usual alighting on the Southern bound platforms. We see our Crescent bound friend and wish him a safe trip. Though we've settled into the expecation of catching the 5:20pm train after a visit to the Customer Services office, we are suprised to see we're being directly sent onto train #146, which has been HELD just for us! (well, several of us that is!) We do see "J-1" one more time as my friend wishes him a good dinner as he gears up for the long wait for #66, then scurry onto the next to last car of our new train.
As is typical, the regional is well patronized, so my friend and I take aisle seats in separate parts of the car. Even though the "LD" part of our trip is over, our conversations are not. She chats with a man from Bogota for the ride into Baltimore, while my own seatmate begins to ask me "Are these trains usually this packed?!?" I initially assume she's new to train travel, and chat with her a bit about it, and even tell my tale of close connections encountered on this trip. I find it very odd that for a seeming newbie, she knows the name of every train I was on!
As it turns out, she's an Amtrak Employee from California - on vacation in NYC, and taking a day to explore the corridor. We have a very nice conversation despite both of us being a bit tired. This is her first day riding the NEC, and is interested to see just how utilized it is even on a weekend. She is definitely in to her job, and took the day to ride down on the Acela (which she thought to be a bit more pricey than practical) and back on the Regionals. After touring DC for a few hours, she's on this train to make a quick hop to Philly largely to see the station, and then to hop back to NYP before flying back tomorrow. A very nice ride with some good company - even the NEC can shine for friendliness.
We pull into Baltimore a little before 5:30pm, and are now pleased to be home. Though a good ride that we would gladly do again, we still look forward to getting in and settling down. Monday will be here soon enough!
Usually, I embellish my travelogues with scads of photos and details of any and everything I saw, but this time, I just opted to relax, and focus on enjoying the ride.
Returning from a conference, my friend and I flew from Phoenix to Denver in order to board the CZ to the CL to the NEC to make the 2 day trip across the country. Due to the length of the trip, we decided to treat ourselves to a roomette sleeper for both the Zephyr and the Capitol.
We arrived in Denver at about 3:00pm and picked up a quick lunch before getting out to the windy curb in order to catch RTD's "AF" bus into Downtown. This rather expensive transit bus ($8 pp) took an hour's trip along a good bit of highway before entering Downtown Denver, and depositing us at the Market Street Terminal, just 3 blocks from Union Station, at about 5:00pm.
We dropped into Union Station, where they very kindly kept watch over our bags to allow us to roam Denver for a spell before returning to the Station. Since our Zephyr's 7:25 departure was now anticipated at 9:55pm, we knew we had to figure out something for dinner, so we headed back towards the terminal to stop past "Noodles and Company" for meal before strolling through town a bit. Denver's Downtown seemed pretty clean, though a tad spread out. Still a nice place to visit for a few hours.
By 7:00pm, we had returned to the station to rest up for the trip. My friend sprawled out over the bench and took a nap, while I merely took it all in. Alternately, we entertained ourselves for a spell as we tried to let the time pass, as we really wanted to be on our train.
Finally, anticipation mounted as the time approached. The station filled with a very "echo-ey" announcements that nobody clearly understood, but by collaborating with others, and pulling words out contextually, we finally deciphered that we were to check in at the desks with tickets and ID, and then wait for alighting passengers to disembark before waiting for announcements to proceed for boarding. Finally, after another few unintelligible announcements, we finally heard something about boarding, and made our way towards the train.
Our room was #2 on car #0631, which cost $224 for the trip from DEN to CHI. Upon finding our car, we stood in line as our Car Attendant tended to those boarding before us. My friend, still dressed for the heat of the Phoenix Desert, was shivering as she showed our attendant, JC Adams, our "boarding pass." JC started off with jokes from the start, telling her "You're cold cause you don't have anything covering your shoulders!" Pointing us up the stairs to our room, my friend was very pleased to find the beds already made and ready for our slumber. Shortly after getting settled, JC came up and paid us a visit to intoduce himself and run through some ground rules, and finally gave my friend an extra blanket after first jokingly refusing ("Just like my wife!"). JC was a whole lot of fun and treated us quite well the entire time, kind of using an artificial surliness, some dry humor, and a gravelly voice like the late comedian Robin Harris.
Once settled in, my friend made a few phone calls before we both trailed off to sleep shortly after Fort Morgan. Good sleep it was, with the gentle rocking and our center location making for a tranquil setting for dozing. We awoke somewhere in the 7:00 hour, and eventually made our way to Breakfast (yes, unwashed - when my friend says she's hungry, it's best to appease her!) by the time we were near Lincoln. We sat opposite a CSX engineer and his wife returning from Colorado, who had not ridden a train since the 1970's, before my friend was even born. They were heading to Cleveland, but unlike us, would be finishing their journey in coach aboard #48. Breakfast was quiche for me, and a continental for my friend. After breakfast, as we arrived in Omaha, I headed down to wash up in the Amshower, having the good fortune to make most of it while stopped. Then it was back upstairs where my friend had already dozed back off in her upper berth.
Outside, it was a grey day in which we dodged in and out of rainstorms the entire way to Chicago. We alternated between rest and daze, as I eventually pulled out the timetable to figure out where we were, how far we had to go, and how increasingly slim our chances were of making our connection to train #30 at 7:05pm. By Osceola, we were already going to be needing that hour of slack time built into the schedule in order to make the connection. BNSF was moving us along pretty good, but even then, we encountered a few slow spells, though we only stopped a few times for less than 5 minutes at a time. We ate lunch (Burgers for both of us) in Ottumwa, opposite a very nice older lady bound for Naperville (in order to dodge all the hustle and bustle of CUS). Our server was the same from this morning, a very tall gentleman with a lively sense of humor and panache.
Following Lunch, we retired again to slumber some more. JC was nice enough to keep the beds down, only finally converting the room closer to Burlington. By now, we were getting nervous. Looking at the time, even if nothing else slowed us down, and if we absorbed all the slack in the schedule, we now only had 10-15 minutes of play between our trains, and we were not even in Illinois yet.
Though a tad slow leaving Burlington, we really got rolling for the homestretch, as BNSF made the Zephyr name proud for us. The Illinois stops came quickly enough, (though we sat for a spell following a baggage mixup after Princeton) and finally we entered METRA territory in Aurora. We were biting our nails, as neither of us wanted to be forced onto #48, though we assumed they'd hold #30 for up to 30 minutes if it looked like we could do it. We had recieved some announcments that we'd be making our connection to #30 as long as no unforeseen circumstances occurred. We hoped and prayed for our connection, and by a miracle, we made it. Arrival in to CUS was right about 6:59pm!!!
JC unloaded our bags, and a bunch of us from #6 were off to the races to connect to #30 on track #26. Mary (I remember her clearly from my near disaster trip on #50 in February) from the Chicago Service center was there to herd all of us rushers across a mid-platform plankway over to track #26, where we then darted up towards our sleeper in car #3000. A few employees sort of "warned" us that we were passing the coaches for the sleepers (guess we do look a bit young for them) but we confirmed that we knew where we needed to be, and in just moments, we were digging out our tickets to board our sleeper on #30. On the train, and to our room #5 we went to collapse from the run. Despite being worn, we were ECSTATIC to have made it.
Our Car Attendant for #30 was John, very pleasant and soft spoken, though lacking the comical touch of JC, he was very professional, while even a tad humble. His first order of business was to ask about Dinner. My friend wanted the earliest thing possible, and was delighted when in just 2 minutes, John returned with the question "Want to go to Dinner now?!?" My friend's eyes lit up, and we were on our way. We settled into the first booth, still catching our breath, while our delightful server, Nancy, came to start off our order. Minutes later, the train lurched out of Chicago. It was official now, we had really gotten some miraculous fortune.
Our server for the evening, was extra special, as she really made us feel literally at home, and with good reason. Hearing her calling people "hon'," I'd all but bet my friend that she's from our hometown, but she agrees with me. When she frees up for a moment, we take the time to ask her where she is from, and neither of us are at all suprised to hear "Baltimore" as her response. We're 500 miles away, but yet we're home at the same time!
I had my heart set on the Tri-color Tortellini, but the pasta dish for the night was Ravioli, so we both ordered that. Though not as good as the Tortellini, it was still good, and for once, I actually finished before my friend. Desert for me was the Chocolate cake, and for her the Cheesecake, which Nancy "touched off" with some whipped cream and chocolate and strawberry sauce. It was the perfect touch for a triumphant evening. We wished Nancy a good night, and returned to our rooms. My friend headed down for a shower as I awaited John to convert the room for sleeping.
My friend returned as I was still waiting, but still easily managed to nap again before John arrived, and made the conversion in no time. Now we were ready for sleep. At least she was. She nodded out early, but I was more insomniatic than I was on the Zephyr, staying up to sort through a few things for a while before trying to fight off the noise of a jouncy kingpin under the carbody. The final insult was NS, some of whose engineers seemed to deliberately hit the horn while passing our train, not the greatest of sleep. I finally crashed at Toledo, though waking for a bit on our approach into Cleveland, about 90 minutes late.
In an unusual twist, my friend actually rises before me, and is actually slowed waiting for me to awaken. We've just left Pittsburgh at about 7:30am, and as usual, she's hungry. It takes me some time to shake off the cobwebs, but I literally stumble behind her into the Diner for the morning meal. I'm mostly in need of Coffee, but I take some French Toast as well, while she does her usual - Continental (Frosted Flakes and Strawberry). We're seated alongside two other travelers riding solo in the sleepers, one of which is definitely an avid train buff, an another who also seems to follow them more casually. After finally shaking off my insomnia demons, we have a nice conversation that revolves around both trains, as well as my friend's travels and experiences in life. All in all, it is a good breakfast, as we swap stories, and destinations, finding out that at least one of our co-riders is heading for a trip on the Crescent to Birmingham.
Following breakfast, we head back to gladly see that our room is still in sleep mode, which my friend wastes no time in doing, while I wash up. Following that, I scrounge up all the loose change I have in order to suprise her on her awakening with one of the Cinnamon rolls from the Cafe Car - she's hopelessly addicted to those. While she slumbers, I take the time to gaze out along the Casselman River and write out some thoughts - not an easy thing as our neighbors in room #7 are loud and bitchy, fussing that the train is moving slow and that they won't get to DC at the advertised 1:30pm. "Um, duh, but do you have to KEEP saying it over and over!"
Somewhere in the noon hour, we get the call for lunch, and head back to get our last meal on Amtrak. We are both pleased to find the loud fussy ladies in roomette #7 are seated in the opposite end of the car! Both of us take a chance on the Chicken Ceasar Salad, and are relieved to find it fresh and not frozen (our last trip on the Capitol, the "lunch" salad was frozen over with ice). We are joined by a nice gentleman from Boston hoping to connect to #168, but gradually realizing he'll be catching #66 back. We spend most of the time near Cumberland chatting about trains, travelling, life experiences, and even the Boston accent my Kindergarten teacher initially instilled in me. (Only later on our return would I find out that we were enjoying lunch with Amtrak Unlimited member "J-1 3235"! - SMALL WORLD!)
After lunch, we return to our room where John has made it up in "Day Mode" and we spend the next several hours gazing out the windows, and engaging in chit chat. Later, when our "neighbors" return, my friend hooks up my portable DVD player to play the Angelique Kidjo CD she picked up at a Starbucks in Denver, partly to relax to, and partly to drown out the "neighbors." As we're on the right side of the train, we get to enjoy the view of "the right side of the tracks" in West Virginia, being greeted by small frame houses instead of villages of trailers and vans strewn along the river. Finally, we see the first sign of home in sets of MARC cars lined up in Martinsburg yard, followed by our station stop, in which we are amazed at ALL the discarded beer bottles piled high along the side of an old warehouse, almost all of which are wrapped in paper as if purchased individually.
The ride into DC varies between fast and slow in many ways. We've enjoyed this journey a great deal, and almost regret it ending "so quickly," yet we're glad to be nearing home and familiar places. It is not until nearly Rockville that we get even decent phone service, so my friend takes the time to do a few catch up calls. Silver Spring evades my looks for it, as before long, we are in Washington proper. Though I expected us to get into DC just after 4pm as I compared our times to those scheduled, it turns out we are coming in at 4:29pm, just in time to miss the 4:25pm train. We park on track #15, a slight change from the usual alighting on the Southern bound platforms. We see our Crescent bound friend and wish him a safe trip. Though we've settled into the expecation of catching the 5:20pm train after a visit to the Customer Services office, we are suprised to see we're being directly sent onto train #146, which has been HELD just for us! (well, several of us that is!) We do see "J-1" one more time as my friend wishes him a good dinner as he gears up for the long wait for #66, then scurry onto the next to last car of our new train.
As is typical, the regional is well patronized, so my friend and I take aisle seats in separate parts of the car. Even though the "LD" part of our trip is over, our conversations are not. She chats with a man from Bogota for the ride into Baltimore, while my own seatmate begins to ask me "Are these trains usually this packed?!?" I initially assume she's new to train travel, and chat with her a bit about it, and even tell my tale of close connections encountered on this trip. I find it very odd that for a seeming newbie, she knows the name of every train I was on!
As it turns out, she's an Amtrak Employee from California - on vacation in NYC, and taking a day to explore the corridor. We have a very nice conversation despite both of us being a bit tired. This is her first day riding the NEC, and is interested to see just how utilized it is even on a weekend. She is definitely in to her job, and took the day to ride down on the Acela (which she thought to be a bit more pricey than practical) and back on the Regionals. After touring DC for a few hours, she's on this train to make a quick hop to Philly largely to see the station, and then to hop back to NYP before flying back tomorrow. A very nice ride with some good company - even the NEC can shine for friendliness.
We pull into Baltimore a little before 5:30pm, and are now pleased to be home. Though a good ride that we would gladly do again, we still look forward to getting in and settling down. Monday will be here soon enough!
