posted
Sorry I haven't been able to do a trip report yet but I'm gonna try to do a brief one here. But this was a long complicated trip on 9 trains, so brief will be hard!!
Trains 1&2: I caught an Empire Service down to NYC. It was a little late owing to some frozen switches but because I'd cashed in Guest Rewards I was in business class, which on this train was pretty comfy. I used the ACELA lounge in Penn Station to store my luggage and this being a weekend, it wasn't too busy. I had a little coffee there and then walked over to meet a friend for lunch in the Lower Level at Grand Central (did I ever post about the wonderful tour I took there recently?), which again was much more pleasant on the weekend. I then walked back and caught the Silver Meteor, using a Red Cap to help me board onto my sleeper so he could help me strap my suitcase in (I have stopped having them stow it way up above; I find I can keep the suitcase down here and it just fits on that ledge with the strap; I put my overnight bag on top or on the commode, moving it when I use the facilities.). The staff on this train was simply excellent, not just my fantastic sleeper attendant but also the very friendly and amiable dining crew; what a far cry from some Florida trips I took some years back! I had the beef tips special, pretty good, and somewhat runny mashed potatoes--after that I switched to baked. They had a chococlate peanut butter cake that was quite good. Breakfast was also fine, the French toast, and they had the strawberry topping. For lunch I had the chicken salad sandwich, which was adequate, and the caramel cheesecake, which was superb. I got in to West Palm Beach only about 1/2 hour late, which was great. Taxis were waiting; everything went smoothly.
Trains 3, 4, & 5: After some days in Fla I left on the Silver Star, which was still on the old schedule. I had wanted to take the Meteor, faster and with more time in DC between trains, but Guest Rewards would not put me on it. I don't much love that round robin in Florida (i.e. to Tampa and back) but the train was again fantastically staffed. I had the green salad with chicken for lunch but didn't love it and the pork tenderloin special for dinner, which was quite good; and the cheesecake as always hit the spot. The cheese omelet for breakfast was very good too. Timing was fine, we lost a little on the Tampa junket but left Jacksonville on time. The room was a little chilly but I slept well, using a second blanket the thoughtful car attendant provided without my even asking. We were still on time leaving Richmond but then another train (a Regional!) broke so we lost some time. I enjoyed the nice views around Quantico and arrived in DC maybe an hour late. I left my luggage in the ACELA lounge--DC's is a nice one, isn't it? Deciding I'd been pigging out and didn't need lunch, I had enough time to walk to the Washington Monument and World War II memorial and back, with a stop at the Old Post Office Tower too. We preboarded at 3:30 on the Capital Ltd. I like these double decker trains for many reasons but don't like the dim lighting in the sleepers! So I went into the observation car, as I usually do, until dinner. We reached Harpers Ferry (a beautiful site) before dark, which was nice. The staff on this train was again quite fine. I had the game hen for dinner; it was not as good as the old half chicken used to be, in fact, it was "gamey." And the chocolate cake was bad, more like candy than cake, and a little stale; shoulda had the cheesecake! For breakfast I tried the Greek omelet, which was tasty though a bit too many olives. We were ON TIME to Chicago, which was great. It was cold there, but still in the 30s, not the really bad cold Chicago would have a few weeks later. So I stashed my luggage in the Metropolitan Lounge and went down to Michigan Avenue, where I took an architecture walking tour offered by the Chicago Architecture Center. I then walked back past Union Station to lunch at Rodity in Greektown before returning to the Metro Lounge to catch the SW Chief.
My car attendant on the SW Chief was a bit ditzy but nice; however, the rest of the crew was pretty cranky, so all of you who say the E Coast crews aren't as nice as midwest & western, times have changed! Still, I enjoyed the Chief, esp Raton pass and Apache Canyon; unfortunately it was too dark to see the red rocks west of Albuquerque. I had the Flatiron steak for dinner, but it was tough; French toast again for breakfast; also liked my lunch: veggie burger with cheese. I got in to Flagstaff only about 1/2 hour late. It was quite cold here--real winter--this may be Arizona but the altitude is high! I drank tons of water but still had my little altitutde headache and did not sleep as well in my hotel as I had on the train!
The next morning I caught an early shuttle to Phoenix Skytop airport, where I met my friend from Tucson. The shuttle, which left from the Amtrak station in Flagstaff, was a pleasant ride in a minibus with good big windows and no one squeezed in next to me, thank goodness! I enjoyed going from snow to cactus, with much fine scenery until we reached the Phoenix stripmall areas. My friend and I stayed in Scottsdale, which was somewhat disappointing to me--looked like any other wealthy suburb with fine shops, nothing very western in the downtown. But Camelback Mt is nice, and Taliesin West was fascinating. The next day we visited the capital in Phoenix, and I saw a little of downtown Phoenix, which looked nice in a big city way. We then drove to Tucson, where my friend lives, stopping at the interesting Casa Grande ruins along the way.
Trains 6 & 7: After seeing mucho beautiful and interesting stuff in the Tucson area (including the little train museum by the train staiton downtown and car trips to Tombstone and Bisbee, among other places), I caught the Sunset Limited from Tucson station in the middle of the night. It wasn't too busy, but it was safe enough, though I sure was tired yet not inclined to take a nap here. The train was about 2 hours late too! I was delighted to crash in my sleeper (no more Guest Rewards, but this sleeper wasn't too pricey). Food was OK--I think I had an omelet for breakfast again, the meatball on rice lunch special (which was quite tasty), and beef tips special again too. The train made up quite a bit of time esp around El Paso, so we were only about a half hour late into San Antonio in the end.
I spent another day in San Antonio, perhaps the highlight of the trip. What a lovely city, and wow, I sure did a lot in one day--went up to Market Square for delicious Mexican breakfast, passing the old Palace and Cathedral, visited the Alamo, took a tour bus out to San Jose Mission, took the self-guided walk in the gorgeous King William area and ate at the Pioneer Flour restaurant (Guenther House), walked back from there to downtown along River Walk, took River Walk boat ride, took a little tour in the Hotel Menger, historic hotel where I stayed--lovely place and great location, though the beds were not great, even visited the River Mall next door. I then caught the early TX Eagle up to Austin for another day, toured the capitol and walked up past the U TX tower and visited the LBJ Library, walked back Downtown (though it was a little chilly) etc etc.
Trains 8 & 9: I caught the TX Eagle next morning. Unlike all the other trains I took, this one was pretty shabby; in fact, the sleeper car looked like it was falling apart! The food was also not as good--I had the same pork tenderloin special I'd enjoyed on an earlier train but here it was overcooked and kinda tasteless, plus the same peanut butter chocolate cake here was rather stale! The train was also the most delayed of the trip, about 2 hours late into Chicago. It was not too busy, though coaches got much busier in St Louis. In Chicago, which was MUCH colder than before, I still had time to meet a friend for dinner (again in Greektown) before catching the Lakeshore Ltd home. In fact, though it was cold, it wasn't windy (Not Windy City), so we even were able to walk back to Union Station!
After the somewhat grungy TX Eagle, the LSL looked quite nice. I liked the little wine n cheese n grapes for sleeper passengers, though I didn't have much wine, I enjoyed the grapes, and chatting with people. The staff on this train was fine, and in spite of some shakiness, I slept quite well. The menu was much curtailed compared to the other trains I took--diner lite, I suppose--but everything was OK. We were totally on time until the Border Security delayed the train in Erie, PA, I gather from staff they apparently do this ALL THE TIME, checking only coach passengers! Why don't they ride the train instead of making it wait? Anyway, this made the train over an hour late into Buffalo, Rochest, Syracuse, but it picked up time and was only about 1/2 hour late after that.
All in all, everything about this fairly complicated trip went quite smoothly. And using Guest Rewards I'd been hoarding up was quite nice.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Great report Sojourner. It sounds like the type of crew you get is still pretty much 'luck of the draw'.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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Hi Sojourner, very good report. You mention "Border Security delayed the train in Erie, PA," What border did you cross that had to have a security check?
Posts: 39 | From: Saint Croix Falls | Registered: Aug 2005
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Sorry, I probably should have said Immigration/ Homeland Security. We did not cross a border--which is why I found the whole episode so irritating. But Erie is near the Canadian border, and they apparently often go to that station and hold up the train (Lakeshore Ltd), checking ID's--and only of coach passengers. At least, that is what the personnel on the train told me. They said it also happens at Rochester station. What I cannot figure out is why they have to hold up the whole train, putting it off schedule. Why not board in Erie, check ID's as train travels, and get off in Buffalo DePew, with Immigration personnel meeting them there to drive them back if they cannot catch a train back conveniently? Instead they inconvenience the whole train!
Several people told me that in Europe, checking like this is generally done when the train is moving--that seems much more sensible to me. Esp as we are not talking about crossing any border--I can see why there might be a holdup at the border then. In fact, I'm told there are very long delays on the Maple Leaf--longer than on the Adirondack (where I've crossed going to Montreal several times).
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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The only time I've ever been subjected to a border check was back in the 1980s when my train from Rome to Geneva through the Simplon Tunnel stopped at Brig on the Swiss border. The train remained stopped while polite but firm Swiss border guards examined our passports and tickets carefully and asked polite but firm questions of every passenger. I guess that is one reason nobody has invaded Switzerland in centuries.
My guess is that trains across the European Economic Community don't need to stop for border checks. But anyone with more recent experience, please clue us in.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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What I don't understand about stopping the train at a non-border point, is what kind of authority allows this? Since the train is not crossing a border, couldn't Amtrak say, "No you may not delay the train" and just leave with these inspectors on board? Of course since Sept. 11th perhaps Homeland Security can get away with that kind of thing. I have been on that route many times, and so far have never seen these border agents since I am always in the sleepers. You would think if someone was up to no good, he would travel first-class to avoid suspicion. Some security.
I recall, Mr. Kisor, boarding the Orient Express in Paris in about 1982 and I simply gave my passport to the sleeping car attendant for the overnight trip through Switzerland and into Italy. I never saw either a Swiss or Italian border guard. My passport was simply returned to me by my sleeping car attendant the next morning somewhere in Italy.
Regarding the flatiron steak, Mr. Sojourner, I too had a tough one on the Coast Starlight last December. Others on this board have commented that their steak was tender, so perhaps our cows were not of the contented variety.
Posts: 524 | From: Toronto Ont. Canada | Registered: Mar 2001
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Same experience as Mr. Royal's was had by me during 1990 W Berlin to Aachen. The DDR still existed, even if only on paper.
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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Re the flatiron steaks....I use them all the time and have discovered the secret to a very tender one. From one store they are fairly thick about 1/2 in. Those are like shoe leather. The other store makes them thin and they are so tender you can cut them with a fork. Therefore my conclusion is if the Amtrak steaks are thick watch out!!~
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Gilbert B Norman: Same experience as Mr. Royal's was had by me during 1990 W Berlin to Aachen. The DDR still existed, even if only on paper.
Truthfully, it was easier to deal with the DDR or other authorities east of the former "Iron Curtain" than our current TSA.
Traveling in eastern Europe in the 70's and 80's, any sticky official entanglements at checkpoints encountered by this tourist were easily solved with a little patience, a smile and a well-placed pack of American cigarettes, preferably Marlboro.
Just "sign zee papers" and you were on your way.
-------------------- Ham Radio Orange County, California Posts: 46 | From: Orange County, CA | Registered: Dec 2007
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Great report, Sojourner!! (as always) -- glad you had a good trip.
The only "non-border border patrol" I have ever experienced on AMTRAK was at Havre, MT, on the EB a few years ago -- apparently there were some illegals on the train who were detained -- I don't know where they were from, however -- maybe they were "terrorists" from Canada? (hah-hah -- just kidding!!)
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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"border checks" on trains: A low-risk / no-risk method of looking like you are doing something when you really have no idea what to do.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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