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Trip Reports by our Clients:
OCTOBER 2004 CIRCLE TRIP ON AMTRAK AND VIA RAIL CANADA
Dear Ted and Sylvia:
Before much more time elapses, I want to express my absolute delight in the trip I completed on October 24.
There were many things that made it outstanding in my mind but the most important was the attention you paid to the details in planning the trip to begin with. For those little touches, I am most grateful, such as booking business class on the non-sleeper trains.
I want to mention some other nice touches. First, I appreciated having a compartment on the right side of the northbound Coast Starlight which enabled me to have a wonderful view, when I woke up the first morning, of Mt. Shasta and a double rainbow. The accommodations in Seattle overnight were just right and so necessary as the Coast Starlight was several hours late getting into Seattle. Business class on the Cascades the next morning was a cut above the other trains with business class (even the Acela) because of the monitor in the car which showed our progress in real time. They also showed a movie during the trip which was a Harry Potter film I had not seen; first run. Delightful.
In Vancouver BC, we took in the Science Museum, took a ride on one of their commuter rails and had a meditative walk through a Chinese garden in China Town.
The entertainment in the first-class lounge VIA provided (a keyboardist who sang and played several other instruments) pre-boarding was tops. Having a compartment on the left side of the Canadian enabled me to have wonderful views of the mountains, the countless lakes, the two bears, a moose and several flocks of Canada geese that I saw. Also, I didn't have the sun in my eyes in the afternoon.
I had no problem raising and lowering the bed in the Canadian's single bedroom to use the facilities at night. (I think the arrangement used on the Viewliner Lakeshore Ltd. was more convenient and I wish they had that configuration on the Superliner California Zephyr.) I walked the 1/2 mile long stretch of cars on the Canadian to help keep up my exercise program. I needed to because of the fantastic meals. Knowing they had coffee, tea, fruit, etc. available 24/7 was an added bonus. I also made use of their exchange library. I can't say enough about the staff, sleeping car and dining car. I even picked up a few words of French since all of the announcements were bilingual. Since I really enjoy hearing English, Scottish, Welsh, Australian, etc. accents, the dining companions we had exceeded my expectations. They were also very well-traveled people who enjoyed their trips and enjoyed talking about them. Because I liked the well-prepared and served food so much on the Canadian, I was actually glad the trip was only 4 days and three nights.... I am still trying to lose some of the weight I gained.
Toronto is a lovely city and having the Royal York hotel across the street was so convenient. The underground shopping facilities would certainly come in handy during the winter. It was 72 degrees and sunny. We did some walking and found an open library where I could check my email.
It was nice to get the train for Niagara Falls at the beginning of its run (it starts in Toronto) because we knew it would leave on time. Again business class was a plus. When we checked into the Brock Plaza Hotel we were expecting a city-view room. Much to our surprise, we were given a falls view. If that was your doing, we certainly appreciated it. At night when they did the light show on the falls, we had a front row seat. We did the Maid of the Mist boat. I enjoyed visiting one of the casinos, since I deal blackjack and roulette for charity events. I found their automatic roulette chip sorter a great improvement over doing the sorting by hand.
Just as I was getting used to Canadian currency, we had to leave and we had no trouble changing our currency back to US dollars because the currency exchange place was right across the street from the Brock Plaza.
The train from Niagra Falls to Buffalo was a real treat for me because while we were stopped for an hour at Niagra Falls, NY for customs, I had a wonderful view of the freight yard and watched as they were assembling a freight train. Fascinating.
The Four Points Sheraton in Buffalo was a wonderful hotel. They even had laundry facilities which I definitely needed to use, and a business center so I could check email.
I was glad I called Amtrak the next morning.... the Lakeshore Ltd. was already three hours late into Buffalo due to a problem the previous day at Penn Station in NY City. We were over six hours late all together so you were right on the money booking me into the Shawmut in Boston overnight. I really enjoyed the accommodations on the LakeShore Ltd. Even my roomette had a flip down sink and commode. Through my dinner companions I learned so much about Boston, I wished I were going to be there longer.
The journey across the street from the Shawmut to Boston's North Station to get The DownEaster was a piece of cake. The leaves were starting to show their true colors and the trip was enhanced by a spirited conversation with the cafe car attendant whom I saw again on my way back four days later.
TRAVEL TIP: Regarding Boston and going from/to North-South Stations, I would recommend a taxi, even though the metro does connect the two. Travel to/from these stations should be easier once they finish the underground auto tunnel which has had the surface streets torn up for years.
I took the Worcester commuter train from South Station. Something prompted me to buy my ticket for that train at the North Station where the DownEaster arrived. My taxi left me off just as the Worcester train was about to leaving, and I was one of the last to board. Good timing.
To save my brother having to drive all the way into Boston the following Saturday for the Acela, he suggested we do a nicer drive to Providence, RI to pick it up. The Providence station was quaint and although the Acela was fairly crowded, I had no trouble finding a good seat. We did, indeed, get up to 150 mph on several stretches. The view of the ocean and other bodies of water along the way were delightful.
I really appreciated business class on the Philadelphia to Pittsburgh run. I've done coach class many times on that train and never realized it had business class. Thank you, thank you. We were only a few minutes late. When I had you book this trip last April/May, I didn't realize that my 35th college reunion homecoming was that weekend. Surprise.
The Capitol Ltd. was actually late getting into Toledo, but that made it easier for my Aunt to pick me up in daylight. I was grateful for the roomette on that train as well. The delay also enabled me to get breakfast. Did I mention that up until Pittsburgh, it only rained at night! From Pittsburgh on, it was rainy and overcast.
I enjoyed the reprise of the Capitol Ltd., coach this time, on the way to Chicago. The Hotel Burnham was a real treat. I discovered that Chicago is really a windy city when I decided to take a long walk. I would have liked more time to explore Chicago.
The staff at the Metropolitan Lounge at Union Station was very helpful and when I boarded the CA Zephyr, I was again appreciative of my roomette being on the right side of the train. This enabled me to see the Big Dipper, the almost full moon, the Colorado River, Glenwood Springs, the beautiful rock formations of Grand Junction, the new big dig at Reno, Donner Lake and finally the SF Bay. I was surprised to see that Reno is doing its version of putting rail traffic, both freight and passenger, underground. Would you believe, the Zephyr was a half hour early!!! Fortunately, the person who was picking me up knew to call Amtrak.
Ted and Sylvia, your part in my journey cannot be underestimated. You are tops in what you do. You made my trip very memorable.
May your train signals always be green!
Many, many thanks,
Kendelyn Beck
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