Second Day: On Board at Last

Just before noon in Albuquerque we boarded the Southwest Chief, Amtrak's train that runs from Los Angeles to Chicago. We had plenty of time before the train left to get adjusted to our tiny upstairs roomette. Although we had spent time on the Amtrak website looking at all kinds of info and pictures of roomettes, the actual size of little room itself gave us the giggles. I had thought that our suitcases would fit in there with us--wrong. They had to stay downstairs in storage for the first two days of our journey. If I had only realized, I would have brought a change of clothes in my carry-on bag. 

However, we learned a lot about train travel during this first leg of the journey. We quickly arranged our possessions, and staked out our little areas, surrounding ourselves with cell phone, books, and magazines (Beez); and knitting, sudoku, and digital reader (me). We made do with the clothes on our backs for the first two days, pulling clean clothes out for the next leg of the journey when we had our stopover in Chicago. I even figured out how to wash my hair in a tiny pull out sink while the train was moving, using an empty wine bottle to get the rinse water to my soapy head. But that was on the second leg of the journey, when we had changed trains and had an in-room bathroom of sorts. More about that later!

Most important, we learned to do the train-walk-jiggle-dance (Beez's name for it) as we walked the length of the train to get to other cars. The important thing is to keep your hands ready to reach out to steady yourself on the back of a seat, the edge of a table, or a solid wall (when available)--this will help you avoid landing in someone's lap or in the middle of their dining table when the train makes sudden and unexpected movements. Walking on a moving train is a lot like walking on ice--you need to keep your weight right over your feet and be ready for anything!

Apache Canyon, New Mexico

 As residents of the sleeper car, we soon found that we were considered to be first class travelers. It was almost embarrassing and really unlike anything I've ever experienced, as my previous travels have been less than luxurious.  My only train experience was two days in coach class with a three year old, long ago; and a trip cross country with my mother when I was three, myself. For this journey, we were called to our meals in the dining car to be waited on and to dine at white tablecloth-covered tables; to get to the dining car we crossed through several coach cars where folks were either trying to sleep in a variety of uncomfortable-looking positions or making do with snacks either brought from home or purchased at the snack bar.

When the dining car attendant ascertained that we were "sleeper," all we had to do was to sign for our supper, as all meals (excepting alcoholic drinks) were included in our fares. We could choose anything off the menu without any concern for cost, and without being bothered with any pesky payment. Lovely!

Another nice thing about the dining car is that you sit side-by-side with your traveling companion, which means that you are seated across from someone new at each meal. We ate and chatted with people from Australia, New Mexico, Massachusetts, Florida, New York, and from other places, as well. There were a lot of Amish folks traveling by train, but we didn't get to meet any of them, to my disappointment.

On the Amtrak site, you can download a copy of the Southwest Chief's menu, if you wish. The veggie burgers were delicious.

Near Glorieta Pass, New Mexico

When traveling by train you can wander around to the sightseer lounge car or down to the snack bar to bring back a bottle of wine. It was so relaxing, with someone else doing the driving.

Near Pecos, New Mexico

Near Pecos, New Mexico

At first, I was shocked at how close trains were to us when they passed on the next track, but I got used to it

The remains of Fred Harvey's Hotel Castaneda at the Las Vegas, New Mexico train station

Late afternoon in the Sunflower Valley of Colorado

As it got dark, we tried to re-arrange our seats into berths, but needed a little help. The porter chided us for even trying, and set the whole business up in a moment or two. Sleeping in a train berth took some getting used to, and my first night was a bit restless. However, I loved waking up as we passed through little train stations and farmland, and I saw a whole batch of very wide-awake looking people board at 4 AM in Newton, Kansas. Beez, on the other hand, spent his first night in the upper berth worrying that he might fall out as the train swayed and chugged along. We got better at train-sleeping as we went along.

We traveled through much of Colorado and Kansas in the dark, waking to see Kansas City, Missouri
in the early morning light

Crossing the Missouri River

Train shadow on a trestle

The farms in Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois were the tidiest that I had ever seen. This one is near Mendota, Illinois. The sky had a smoggy look at we approached Chicago, and the weather outside was hot and humid. 

Next Monday's post: Chicago, a layover, and a new train to Boston