My daughter was a speaker at the Society of Toxicology's 50th annual conference yesterday and I was going come hell or high water. Since she is an independent contractor for the EPA her expenses were not paid. Our kitchen has just been remodeled so, discretionary money was pretty much tapped out making a flight or overnight stay out of the question.
So, it was decided that one of our cars make the 600 mile round trip journey beginning in the early morning and ending very late at night. Gas alone would have been close to $150 plus, there would be the potty stops that more often than not cost $10 a pop. You know.....another Diet Coke and munchy stuff. And, let's not forget the wear and tear on the car and its tires.....Then, my so smart husband came up with a brilliant idea.....take a train. All said and done cheaper and we could read, sleep and play on our laptops.
Enter my first ever trip on AMTRAK and what an experience it was.
First, we all know what an ordeal it has become to take a flight. We have to arrive early to begin the process that angers us and lately strips us of our dignity. We should start wearing all forms of ID on a lanyard around our necks for all the times we have to show it. Your baggage is scanned and rifled through. Strange people touch your undies. Heaven forbid if your shampoo is not in the right container.
When you finally get to your seat (talking coach, here) you are instructed to buckle your seat belts, taught where your floatation devices are and forbidden to use your computer or cell phone until instructed to do. Then, when the flight takes off you wait patiently until the flight attendant gets to you with a thimble full of drink and enough pretzels or nuts to make an empty stomach protest. You are in an uncomfortable seat literally rubbing elbows with the person next to you and if nature calls while the food and beverage cart is rolled down the aisle, you just have to wait. To do all this will be quite expensive. The major plus.....you get to your destination quicker.
When riding AMTRAK amazingly no one seems to care who you are. I can't go to a sporting event or even do jury duty without a full security check. However, to catch a train all I need is a ticket. A bit disturbing in the day and age of "No one trusts me". My bag could have contained a handgun, drugs to be smuggled and I could have brought in a cooler full of enough food and drink to sustain me through anything. This was quite shocking.....plus, when I got to said destination I could have stored it all in a locker for a minimal cost.
A plane to a big city would require me to find transportation (costly) to my final destination. My train to Union Station (DC) took me steps away from the Metro.
A coach seat on AMTRAK reclines to a comfortable position, there is a foot rest and you can fully stretch out. The seat widths are so that a normal sized person can sleep on their side without touching their seat mate. The pull down trays adjust to where you want them to be. There were pillows in the seat for our heads. No one greeted us except to take our ticket, there were no takeoff instructions but, we were told of each town we were approaching. Of course, no one offered us free food but, a short, wobbly walk to the dining car gave us snacks at a reasonable price. The bathrooms were even bigger.
On the AMTRAK there is no such thing as one way. There are stops that take minutes, not hours and there is even a suggestion for smokers to get out then and take a "Smoke Break". A window seat is not a premium as you get beautiful panoramic views from wherever you sit.
Of course, AMTRAK is not for the business traveler or someone who needs to get there in a hurry. If your option is to drive 200 plus miles to get to your destination, the train may be for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment