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My wife and I took my son and his son to Chicago from St. Louis for a "mini-vacation" the first of August. Great trip. We rode the TE, STL to CHI. The train was at full capacity. The staff made a real effort to be personable and attentive. Someone came on the intercom frequently and provided information as to progress, slowdowns, etc., and at the end of the ride, thanked everyone for riding the train. I remember in the past there was scant information provided about why the train stopped or anything else. Responses to questions were often monosyllabic and grunt like. That lack of communication appears to have changed for the better.
I know that many won't share my opinon of the scenery across Ilinois but I find it beautiful. I marvel at the richness of the farms punctuated by stand of hard wood forests. The small towns are interesting in that they often give a picture into the past of what rural america looked like. Quite different from inter-state travel. I was surprised at the large numbers of wind generators in central Illinois. There must be dozens of them. We arrived at Union Station on-time.
While in CHI we took my grandson to the Adler Planetatium, Shedd Aqwuarium, Field Museum, Navy Pier, Willis Tower, not to mention double decker Gray line Tour, and had some great dining experiences including Uno's Pizza and Eggsperience (super brekfasts. My highlight was a real Italian beef sandwich at Al's Italina Beef Sandwiches. I have never found anyone that makes them the way they do in Chicago. So much more to do and see so little time. Good reason to go back. And we were blessed with the best weather I have enjoyed anywhere in a long time. The cab rides were exciting as always. The cabbies use accelerator and horn continuosly, brakes rarely. What fun.
We returned on Lincoln Service #303. We rode in Business Class. The cafe car atttendant was unusually personable. My experience with these folks in the past has been disappointing. I stopped tipping due to the lack of effort made to show some appreciation for the patronage. Another improvement in customer relations noted. Again the train was punctual and on-time arriving in STL.
Illinois has benefitted from the govenors Scott (FLA) and Walker (WIS)refusal to accept money for rail projects concerning Madison/Milwaukee and Tampa/Orlando. The track between Chicago and Alton is now all welded rail, concrete sleepers, and new ballast. There may have been some straightening also. The trains were never smoother or faster in my experience. For the first time, in my memory, I noticed we were passing cars on I-55.
My wife went on to Kalamazoo to visit some friends. She retunred yesterday on the TE from Chicago. The train was keeping with its schedule until it was delayed somewhere between Alton and St. Louis. When she arrived an hour late she told me that a couple had apparently consumed some adult beverages excessively and got into a rather serious fight in their sleeper compartment. The police had to be involved and the to "love birds" were taken off the train in hand cuffs. Other than the hour delay she had a great trip.
Posts: 140 | Registered: Nov 2008
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