Dragonfly Cross-Country Train Trip

Today Thursday, January 8, I begin a solo 3 week journey to explore the USA by train using the Amtrak USA pass.

The pass allows 10 segments of any length, and each time I change trains it uses 1 segment of my 10. The map below illustrates my proposed journey which should total approximately 9300 miles.

Starting in Philadelphia at 12:32pm, I go to NYC to change trains for Chicago. I will purchase lunch and dinner-to-go at Moynihan Station. The NYC – Chicago leg is 1146 miles and puts me arriving in Chicago around 10:12am Friday Jan 9.

In Chicago I have a 5 hour layover so I can get breakfast, then lunch, and then again dinner-to-go for the Chicago – Portland leg. That one is a beast at 2200 miles and 44 hours aboard.

I have packed several meals that only require hot water which I should be able to provide with my little Goodwill electric kettle. No Leatherman tools allowed on Amtrak so I will have to make do with this goofy toy:

I am doing this entire trip in coach so will not have access to a bed or shower until I get to Colorado Springs in 5 days to visit my Grandma. But I have a good supply of vanlife-style baby wipes and dry shampoo.

I will update this blog as I go. Stay tuned for the inevitable adventures I am bound to experience.

2:30pm Thurs, 1/8

At Penn Station awaiting train to Chicago. Had to get a slice for lunch.

Also picked up a sub and greek salad to eat later for dinner. Discovered I cannot use my sporty little Goodwill kettle because it will blow the circuit breaker and shutdown the train apparently. Too much wattage (600). Will look for an immersion heater in Chicago. Or just get hot water from the cafe car.

3:05pm, Thursday 1/8

Departed NYC for Chicago.

In Albany, NY the train stopped at the station to turn around and continue on. We were there around 45 minutes. Two people got off for I don’t know why and then missed the train departure. They had to hop in a cab to rush to the next station to get back on. Cost them $300. Moral is do not get off the train and wander off.

ChatGPT gave me a detailed breakdown of where I need to sit for the Empire Builder line and what times I can expect the best scenery. Since daylight is still quite short I most likely will miss some of the most impressive scenery because it will be dark when we pass through. But I will catch what I can. GPT gave me specific seat numbers for a lanky solo traveler with a rolling carryon.

Departed Chicago. Scored a bulkhead seat on second level, north side with a clean window. Train is almost empty. Had my choice of any seat I wanted.

4:33pm, Thursday 1/8

4:47pm, Thursday 1/8

En Route to Chicago. Riding along the banks of the Hudson River. Nice sunset but windows are very dirty. My traveling companion is a retired school teacher that taught English in China for 2 years. She then ran a dog grooming business in NYC and travels all around now that she is fully retired. She has done this trip a few times. Train is completely full so glad I got a good seat mate since we will be together for 18 hours.

6:30pm, Thursday 1/8

90 minutes from Chicago in South Bend. Had my breakfast and my seat mate asked why I ate the apple core. Told her I had been doing that my whole life so that by eating the seeds I would develop immunity from cyanide poisoning in case my enemies try to do me in. I ate my granola protein bar and apple and drank a Celsius. Sunrise is still 2 hours away so just relaxing and listening to the train whistle. It seems to be blowing continuously so maybe we are going through several rural crossings.

10:12am Fri 1/9

Arrived Chicago Union Station. Looked into checking my two bags because I have 5 hours but they require $40 ($20 each). Nope I say. I could check my large bag for free but then I would not have access to it for the entire trip. I need it handy so will just carry it on.

Lined up to board Empire Builder and try to secure seat on northern side, second level by bulkhead for max leg room. Gate man told me there were only 8 seats left on the train.

Dinner at seat. Had the turkey club I picked up in Chicago, Mac n cheese and cup-o-soup with hot water courtesy of my new friend Victor the cafe man. Going to watch a downloaded movie and snooze best I can. I have both seats to myself so can spread out a bit.

4:37am, Friday 1/9

Train did stop a few times en route last night due to having to let freight trains go by. They take priority and do not have a set regular schedule thus Amtrak has to give way. This can impact arrival times which are critical to my back-to-back trains. May have to adjust segments if we have too many delays.

Woke up after a fitful sleep and found train is currently between Cleveland and Sandusky. Sunrise is at 7:54 so not much to see now. I will clean up with a baby wipe bath and change clothes and then grab a protein bar and an apple for breakfast.

I sure wish I had my inflatable sleep pillow because it was a tough sleep. My down blanket was great though and I was toasty. Quite stiff but will loosen up I reckon as I move around.

5:37am, Friday 1/9

Approaching Toledo. Feeling good after my baby wipe bath and change of clothes. bathroom is large but awash in water (I hope) on the floor. Kept my shoes on.

Sink is recessed under a mirror so naturally I banged my head when I tried to spit in the sink when brushing my teeth. Ridiculous design and explains why the mirror had several cracks in it. Anyway I was able to clean up and change.

11:00am Fri 1/9

I went to Starbucks to get a cup of hot water to make my ramen lunch. Had to buy a bag of nuts for $4.00 to get the water so I will add those to my snack stash.

Made my ramen and repacked a bit. Will purchase a turkey club for dinner later.

3:15pm, Friday 1/10

Now in the Observation Lounge until sunset. Observation car has a large group of Amish folks, approximately 30. Lots of kids having a grand time. I won’t take picts of them out of respect. Will return to my regular seat after sunset.

I made friends with the cafe server, Victor. Tipped him for my split of cabernet and arranged with him to get my hot water for my meals. He is the attendant all the way to Portland.

4:33am Saturday 1/10

Slept better with more room since I have both seats(not sure if that will continue because we will be picking up more passengers). However, the way the seat reclines makes an uncomfortable gap with a hard bar that is troublesome for tall people. I considered just sleeping on the floor but as I did not have a sleeping bag thought not. However, this guy took my idea:

I should have brought the inflatable REI sleeping mat my son bought me and even if I didn’t choose floor sleeping it would have greatly helped with the seat comfort. Next time.

The bathrooms on this train are mighty small–smaller even than those on an airplane. But I did find something labeled “Lounge”. This is a larger space with double sinks and a stool.

It does not lock however. But I reckoned at 3:45 in the morning it wouldn’t be frequented often so this is where I did my morning ablutions.

Now, the devious Amtrak designers–same guys that made the previous sink unspittable–have designed these sinks to be slightly smaller than a human head. And the faucets are recessed so that it is impossible to put your head under to wash your hair.

But my superior intellect devised a workaround. I used a useful invention known as a plastic cup and was able to soak my head. I didn’t bring shampoo but there was a pump bottle of hand soap so I lathered up with that.

Now this entire time I was topless and the door doesn’t lock but after I rinsed my head I then stripped fully to do my baby wipe cleanse. There was not enough room in the adjacent tiny bathroom stall so I just took my chances that no one would stagger in and be surprised. I used my shirt as my towel and did a quick scrub of all the essentials. No one busted in so I was able to get dressed without being reported to the authorities.

All cleaned up I returned to my seat and packed my laptop bag to head to the observation lounge where I can set up shop before the Amish invasion, however non-violent. Last night they used up all of the booths and I will need a table for my next experiment.

I am hoping to do some watercolor painting of some of the picts I have taken. But I failed to take into account that riding on a train is not the best place to do detailed work. Lots of sporadic bouncing around. This is why they don’t do a lot of circumcisions on Amtrak. In fact I did find it specifically called out in the Travel Tips.

But I am going to give it a shot (painting, not circumcising). Who knows, it may well improve my art. You’ve got your Cubism and Impressionism. Perhaps I will start a new art movement called Amtrakism. Or instead of Realism it would be Railism. Which is really just Realism with a southern accent.

Will post my efforts good or bad.

6:55am

Watercolored for 45 minutes. Behold Railism!

Sunrise in this part of the country is not until 8:24am. This is my view at 7:07am. Looking forward to later this morning as we will approach Glacier Park. But may still be dark as we go through.

8:33am Surrey, ND

Had to stop for fuel and train repairs. I think some knucklehead probably plugged in a Goodwill tea kettle. 1 hour stop and I got off but did not wander far. 14 degrees so only out for 20 minutes or so.

10:20am Sat 1/10

Back on the rails. I am seated in the observation lounge next to a trio of wild and crazy Mennonites. They are from Lancaster and are on their way to Washington to help with a disaster. Nice ladies but somehow my electrical outlets no longer work. Hmmm. Maybe if I move over near the live-streaming tech guys my power will be restored.

11:00am Sat 1/10

Northern North Dakota is flat and I did not know it was such oil country. Interesting to see functional pumping oil wells in the foreground and dozens of windmills in the back not moving at all.

11:38am Sat 1/10

Stopping in Williston, ND. 13 degrees but just a few inches of snow. We are about an hour from the Missouri River crossing near Fort Union which is supposed to be one of the scenic highlights. One of Mennonite group is studying a Rand McNally Atlas. The other two are reading actual books. One has a cover that says Faith Child. But when I peeked over her shoulder walking by it is actually 50 Shades of Gray. Light snow falling here in Williston. Skies are a shade of Gray.

11:57am Sat 1/10

11:20pm (Mountain Time now) Sat 1/10

Finally Mountains! I thought but no, these are the Sweet Grass Hills. They appear to be mountains because everything else is so flat. Will see some real mountains soon ’nuff as we head into the Rockies.

12:30pm Sat 1/10

I asked chatGPT to do a current analysis of upcoming scenery based on my current location and time. Sadly due to our previous delays we will not get to the Rockies and Glacier Park until well after sunset this afternoon so I will not see much. I will take some picts even after sunset because the camera picks up some things I cannot see. I am in Big Sky country and the lounge has windows in the ceiling so I will try tonight to see if I can catch some Milky Way shots. It is cloudy however so might not get much.

Tomorrow I am supposed to switch sides in the observation lounge to the southern view and the highlight is the Columbia River which is supposed to be the best sight on the trip. Should hit that around 9:00am.

I have not seen much wildlife and when I do it is too quick to take a picture. It is quite cold so probably keeping the critters snuggled in their dens. I have seen several pheasants, hares, deer, hawks, and a coyote walking along an adjacent train track.

3:28pm Sat 1/10

It seems somebody tripped the emergency brake. Train came to a pretty quick stop and here we are. Now the air fans just shut off and outlets have stopped working again. Train is dead on the tracks. Here’s my view:

3:34pm Sat 1/10

Train rolling on.

4:10pm Sat 1/10

Fresh air stop in Havre. Have to stay on the platform and no time even to go across the street. Was going to pre-order and pick up bbq but can’t risk it. They say they have Ubereats that will deliver to the platform but no drivers were available. It is .1 miles away so could walk it in two minutes. But I don’t want to be like the Albany Duo. I don’t think there are taxis or Ubers out here to rush me to the next station so I guess I would just have to stay here until the next train. So I will hang here and eat my freeze dried MRE.

4:14pm Sat 1/10

Glad I didn’t try to leave the platform. We were here only 3 minutes when they made the all aboard call. Just a smoke/vape break I guess as they did announce earlier that if you were caught smoking or vaping on the train that you would be kicked off at the next stop. Plus then put you on a list prohibiting you from riding Amtrak. I don’t know how someone would get home from these remote stations. Maybe have to buy a car and drive.

5:08pm Sat 1/10

I won’t hit the Rockies until 7:30pm or so and it will be well-dark. I looked to see if I could change my entire plan and return on the Empire Builder line from Portland – Chicago in hopes of catching the Rockies and Glacier Park but that line leaves at 4:45pm and it will be dark by the time it gets to that area. So no real way to see them at this time of year from either direction. Just means will have to go again in a better season.

Here’s my sunset which would have been even more awesome over a glacier. But grateful to see it. Toast each sundown with wine as Toby Keith sang. Going to heat up my chicken and dumplings with Victor’s hot water.

12:57am Sunday 1/11

Woke up fairly stiff but rested. I gathered up my bag and Railism supplies and headed to the Observation Lounge although there is nothing to observe being dark and all. I am riding through what I am sure must be awesome mountain passes but alas can’t see them. Sunrise is at 7:34am so I will probably start seeing a bit as pre-dawn light grows. According to AI, when dawn breaks I should be able to see the Cascades range and maybe Mount Hood. Big attraction today is the Columbia River which I should hit somewhere between 9:00am – 11:00am. I have sporadic internet connection here so keep losing service and can’t monitor realtime progress.

The lights in the Observation Lounge have been dimmed but I should still be able to slap some paint around and create the second masterwork in the new art movement I have dubbed Railism.

2:16am Sunday 1/11

Just arrived in Spokane. Here the train splits in half and one half goes on to Seattle and the other goes to Portland. I am in the Observation Lounge and they locked the door on the west end so folks don’t accidentally go to Seattle instead of Portland.

I started a Railism painting that is impossible to do on a moving train due to the lettering and straight lines so it is going to be very rough. The source picture is a billboard I shot just before Havre, Montana south of Medicine Hat and near the Fort Belknap Reservation. I will pick up a fineline Sharpie in Portland to finish the lettering and draw in Chief Joseph.

Here’s the work-in-progress:

3:54am Sunday 1/11

They finished decoupling the train and I am once again on the way to Portland. Scheduled to arrive on time and I will have about a 4 hour layover before my train to Sacramento. I can pick up a couple of things to replenish my kit and take a long walk. Not getting many steps in on the train. Maybe it won’t cost $40 to hold my luggage.

Also waiting to hear from my dear friend Al in San Antonio. If he is around after I spend time with the kids in Dallas I will re-route and go down to SA. Strange that the train from Dallas to San Antonio takes over 10 hours but they must make several stops.

Then I would spend a day there and take the Texas Eagle back to Chicago where I would change to the Cardinal line to get home to Philly. This change just gives my dragonfly a longer tail and extends my journey a few days. I explored going back by way of Houston-New Orleans and the southern route but takes way too many legs and 3 more days on the train. So I will stick with the Chicago plan which works for both Dallas and San Antonio if I decide to add that in.

Before everyone gets up and going I will go cleanup and change. Still have clean clothes to wear but will need to launder in Colorado Springs.

4:54am Sunday 1/11

Used up another of my lives this morning trying to clean up. I shall explain.

I had discovered that in the next car over there was a restroom stall labeled “Nursing”. As the train is so sparsely populated I didn’t think that I would be putting anyone out so I went in with my bag. I found later I needn’t have worried about that because “Nursing” had nothing to do with natural infant feeding. It was referencing the probability that you may require the services of a registered nurse if not a surgeon after using that room.

The room was quite a bit larger than the standard tiny stall so I would have a little more room to clean up. I also believe now that the room is large not for your convenience but so the EMT’s can get the backboard in when you fall.

There are convenient hooks on the door to hang your jacket, or in my case all of my clothes. And the EMT’s could use it for the IV. The sink was the same sadistic design but I was prepared with my many-use Almighty Plastic Cup.

Having undressed, I push the hot water tap. Another cruel design feature is that you have to constantly hold down the lever or the water shuts off immediately. So I held the hot water down. And held it. And held it some more.

I believe that to save space in the seating area the Amtrak folk have mounted their hot water tank on the roof. Which might be useful except we were going through sub-freezing temperatures at 70 miles an hour. The water would not warm at all, and in fact I reflected that I had never seen chunky hot water.

That was ice.

Anyway, resigned to taking an ice plunge, I filled my cup and dumped it on my poor ol’ head. It didn’t know it was coming so made me jump back in shock.

In for a penny, I thought but then remembered they just discontinued that, I pumped out some non-designer hand soap and lathered up my head.

Once again I filled my cup with crushed ice and poured it on. Water would work better, I thought, as it takes quite a bit of ice to rinse soap out of your hair. But I got it done.

Next the other bits where I just dampened my cotton shirt with cold water (which was warmer than the hot water) and scrubbed away.

Now there are several challenges one faces when sink bathing on a moving train. One is the constant swaying but you can get used to that and time your movements. However, I think the conductor left the tracks because the ride became suddenly very bumpy. This happened when I was balanced on one foot trying to scrub my toes on the other. As I had to hold the water tap down with one hand I had to let go of the safety bar so when he hit the cow I fell back and accidentally hit the flush button.

A train flush is louder than an AC/DC concert and it scared the crap out of me. Fortunately when I fell I landed butt-down on the open toilet so that was convenient.

Anyway I recovered and finished up cleaning myself up.

I dressed and went stumbling back to my seat to start packing up so I could be ready to go when we hit Portland. I am back in the Observatory now with still nothing to observe but dawn will be coming soon. As soon as my buddy Victor mans the cafe I will get some hot water (how he gets it is a mystery) and make my morning soup. Then look forward to the Columbia River gap.

7:25am Sun 1/11

Yay sun is coming up! Riding along the banks of the Columbia. Beautiful day. Should be great views this morning.

ChatGPT says this is one of the most important wind farm corridors in the country. They don’t turn when it is below freezing or the wind conditions are not just right.

Have encountered several long freight trains during this trip. Reminds me to go back and re-read Atlas Shrugged, one of my favorites along with Grapes of Wrath. Those two books are seemingly polar opposites but to me both Steinbeck and Rand have the same underlying themes.

The island above in the middle of the Columbia is Memaloose, Chinook for “place of the dead.” It is a sacred island and the public are prohibited.

10:45am Sunday 1/11

Arrived ahead of schedule in Portland.

Nothing much at the station so I asked I could have them store my bags as my train was not until 2:22pm. She said how many and the asked how big they were. She took a look and only charged me for 1 and just threw the laptop bag in gratis. So it was $20 instead of $40 which was nice.

I needed to stock up my MREs and get a few things so she directed me to the Safeway. You know you might be in for an adventure when the directions use the homeless encampment as a landmark. Sure enough, just outside the station there are several houseless folks living in tents and what not. But that is the way to get to Safeway so I soldiered through with my hand on my trusty tiny Gerber with the formidable 1” blade.

I had put my driver’s license and 1 credit card in my sock and most of my cash in another pocket. Figured if I was rolled they could steal the wallet with a bit of cash and then take off. But I made it to Safeway without any encounters save a couple of curious glances. Portland at least on a Sunday is vacant. Hardly any cars and very few folks walking around. One lady with a boujie poodle in a skirt (the dog, not the lady) 

Outside the Safeway there was a homeless guy greeting customers. I returned his pleasant greeting and went in. I have in the past bought water and a small meal to give such a guy when I leave the store without them asking. I had just saved $20 on my luggage storage so figured I would pay that forward and buy this guy a few things.

The Safeway had a uniformed guard inside. As I was gathering up stuff to restock my travel pantry I went to the hot bar and made a container meal of General Tso’s chicken with noodles and egg rolls for my station lunch and made another with Orange Chicken, green beans and egg rolls as well for guy in front of the store. I picked up some sausage, cheese and crackers and a couple of energy drinks. I also picked 2 premade packs with two turkey and swiss sliders each and a bottle of water for him. 

To get toothpaste and a brush (not for me, for the homeless guy) I had to go through a special gate with another guard. You have to pay for such things separately at a special counter before you leave that area that is patrolled by another uniformed guard. Also behind locked cabinets were sharpie markers and scotch tape, which I needed to work on my Railism paintings. I guess these are valuable commodities for shoplifters. So I paid for those items and went back to my cart to take the rest up to the self-checkout. There were no registers open.

I had trouble as I always do at self-checkout. I am not trained in the fine art of grocery scanning and it usually takes two store managers and a call to corporate to get me through. Everything scanned fine except the Chinese food which had no barcode and you had to pay by weight. The attendant came over, quickly punched in a secret code and left. But I had two meals so I called her back. She looked exasperated and said just punch in the code. I looked puzzled because there was no sign with any codes so she yelled out 5528 like I was an idiot for not knowing that. I believe that you are expected to have that code memorized so if you ever go to the Safeway in Portland etch that into your long-term memory.

They also charge you per paper bag, .02, which is still better than NJ where you cannot get a paper bag for $1000.   

I rebagged my goods so I could just hand the homeless guy a sack of his own. Also threw in $5 just so he could get more water if needed.

Yep, the guy was still there talking to Security. I held back because I reckoned he was getting in trouble for stalking the door. They soon left and I walked up and asked if I could buy him a meal. He looked puzzled and said “No man, I’m fine but thanks.”

He was not a homeless guy. In fact, I think he was an additional plainclothes security guard. That’s why he was chatting them up.

Chagrined I left carrying my two sacks. I knew there were several people near the station that were at least more obviously homeless so I knew I could give it away. 

Sure enough, as I approached the station there was a guy looking in the trash. I walked up more confidently this time and asked if I could give him a meal. He said Thanks Man. I told him there were a couple of things in there and he said thanks again and asked if he could give some to the couple struggling up the street. One elder was using a walker. He said they were looking for food too. 

Sure I said. They look out for each other.

I went in the station, retrieved my bags repacked my bags with my new larder. That goofy water heater that I daren’t use was taking up too much space so I offered it to a couple in the waiting room. I cautioned them that they should not use it on the train lest it blow the breakers and strand everyone. The wife was thrilled and said she could use it for her tea. I hope she is not on my train. 

I was able to buy a small cup of ice at the station to replenish my insulated mug to keep my meds cool. .85. Nothing is free anymore.   

2:00pm 1/11

Boarded the Starlight Express 11. ChatGPT told me exactly what seat to get but problem was that seat does not exist. It sure seemed confident though. I was able to get a window seat second level with a fairly clean window. My seatmate for the next 16 hours is a young guy from Philly and he was watching the eagles game. He is also going on to Denver tomorrow which is a 32 hour trip on the California Zephyr.

As soon as the conductor came by I sprinted for the Observation Lounge to secure a panoramic seat on the east side to see the sights. This is supposed to be a great scenic journey and at least I have a few hours of daylight although again most of the trip will be after dark and arriving just after dawn. 

I will enjoy the view until dark then go prepare my dinner. Will have to make nice with the new Café attendant to get some hot water, although I won’t need it for my Turkey Sliders. I may add some ramen though. The killjoy conductor said guests cannot drink their own alcohol in their coach seat and that we could buy it in the cafe. He did NOT say we couldn’t drink it in the Observation Lounge however. I bought some from Victor on the Empire Builder but this time I bought a split at Safeway where the wine was not locked up but the scotch tape was.

And that’s what my empty Vitamin Water bottles are for methinks. I failed to get a corkscrew but I will find a way to get into the bottle using my deadly Gerber.

I will enjoy a cabernet at sunset per Toby’s direction along with my turkey sliders and cup-o-ramen.

3:58pm Sun 1/11

5:23pm

Stopped for a “fresh air break”. Nope. 30 people rushing to get off and smoke cigs two at a time. No fresh air to be found for hundreds of yards. But had a chance to surreptitiously fill up my Vitamin Water jug with my dinner wine.

We are entering the Cascade mountain range soon and I will lose cell signal for some time. I will attempt some photos but most likely it will be darker than Voldemort’s soul.

3:50am Mon 1/12

Up and ready for the day. My seat mate had found an unoccupied row so spent the night there which was great as it gave me more room to toss and turn. These seats are comfortable but not designed for tall people. He was also a big guy so needed more space too. I dozed off sometime around 11pm so got about 4 1/2 hours of sleep. I am rested but morning sore and will try to limber up.

I finished my morning rituals without incident today and headed up to the Observation Lounge to observe nothing again.

Laura the cafe server doesn’t make her appearance until 6:00am which is just slightly before we are due to arrive in Sacramento so I will not have a bowl of ramen this morning. Will stick with a protein bar, an apple, and an energy drink and of course my 9 daily pills. Then when we arrive in Sacramento I can get a more substantial breakfast. I will need to fuel up well while I can in preparation for the next 32 hour jaunt to Denver. I would like to pick up a travel shampoo and a small towel so I don’t have to rely on whatever is in the hand soap pump and my dirty shirts. An inflatable/compressable sleeping mat would be nice but probably not readily available.

I have a couple of hours so will continue to work on the second Railism masterpiece mentioned in an earlier post. I think I will wait until I get to Frisco and ask my 5YO granddaughter Nora to redo the lettering because her handwriting is better than mine. It looks like a 5YO painted it anyway so would be appropriate. But kindly remember I am trying to paint this on a bucking train. I will edit out the scrawls below and add better text. Plus add some more detail to Chief Joseph.

After traveling now for 4000 miles since leaving Philly on Thursday I can attest that I much prefer train travel to air. While it will take me 36 hours, two trains and a bus to get to Dallas from Denver that is kind of the point. You get to see great scenery (during the day anyway) and are free to roam about without having to obey a pesky Fasten Seatbelt directive. You can readily bring your own vittles but the cafe is fairly well stocked including a variety of salads and prices aren’t out of line. Although there are rules about drinking your own alcohol they don’t seem to be too hard line on that. I expect it is so they have better control over how much people imbibe due to liability concerns.

I have not yet taken advantage of the dining car but may give it a shot on the next long leg. If so, I will go for the reserved dinner seating to get the full experience. That has consistently been offered at $45 and is a three course meal with a glass of wine.

The lounges are comfortable and spacious and while the sleeping is difficult the seats are much more comfortable than on an airline, even when in business class. So if you have the time I recommend it. On this trip the Journey IS the Destination and as I am unfettered with meeting/work obligations if trains are delayed or cancelled it is not an issue.

My superstar spouse Monica is entirely supportive of me absconding away without time limits and the trip will only be improved when she joins me for the next adventure. We will need to get a sleeper car for sure. And a good supply of lidocaine patches.

Readers, in case you were wondering, I have not used AI to review/improve anything written in these posts. It’s all just me, bad sentence structure and word choice and all. I have used AI to consolidate and clarify certain work emails and docs in the past, but do not like what it does to creative writing. Maybe it would improve it, but then what is the point? If I send copy for AI review and it suggests something it thinks is better I would say “Shut up you!” It doesn’t get sarcasm, self-deprecation, irony, subtle or obvious humor and especially what Shakespeare called the lowest form of humor and therefore the base, Puns.

So if you like what is here, many thanks and enjoy. Please drop me a comment and let me know what you like. If you don’t like it, kindly and respectfully Shut up You.