Sunday, May 9,
Monday, May10, and
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
San Pedro to Klamath Falls
May 9 - San Pedro. The Vision of the Seas, having cruised to her furthest point south, Puerto Vallarta, arrives back in San Pedro on Mother's Day morning at 8am- not early enough to disembark and connect with the 1015am departure of the Coast Starlight #14. So we limo back to the Omni Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza where we are warmly greeted by the doorman, who recognizes us from our stay last week.
With gracious and friendly efficiency, the five-star hotel's staff has us checked into a comfortable suite in no time. Although we haven't scheduled any concerts this trip, the new Walt Disney Concert Hall is up a block and within easy walking distance. The Museum of Modern Art is next door, and the upper station of Angel's Flight funicular is just outside the lobby.
May 10 - Los Angeles. The hotel's limo driver gives us a complimentary lift to Union Station, about a five-minute drive away, and a redcap is waiting outside with a cart. He whisks us and our luggage through the plaza, abloom with hibiscus, beside the Spanish-tiled art-deco station. Soon we are aboard the Family Bedroom on car 1431.
While the trip between L.A and Simi Valley is not usually noted for its scenery, today's clear air reveals the lofty mountain ranges to the east as well as the Hollywood Hills to the south.
Soon the Coast Starlight is skirting the shore of the Pacific. Along a remote stretch of coastal hills north of Santa Barbara , with the only access by winding two-lane road, there are many isolated and very expensive appearing mansions, with new ones under construction. What more could one want - a view of the UP tracks and the Pacific Ocean ?
The train is stopped for no apparent reason at the Vandenburg missile base, and a whale just offshore entertains passengers with great spouts of water as it heads south towards Baja.
After winetasting in the Pacific Parlour Car, another chat on the platform in San Luis Obispo with our friends Merlyn and Eileen who live there, and the wide-open spaces of the Cuesta Grade and its remarkable mountain vistas, it is time for a nap, dinner, a shower, and bed.
TRAVEL TIP: Bring your Amtrak ticket with you when you go to the dining car or Pacific Parlour Car. If you should purchase wine or a cocktail, and are using your credit card, Amtrak now needs to see your ticket before they will accept your card as payment.
May 11, 2004 Although we had left San Luis Obispo ahead of schedule, we are, fortunately, running late this morning. This gives us a chance to look out the window at the always-overwhelmingly majestic Mt. Shasta . Covered with snow and glaciers on the north side (which faces our house) it is an awe-inspiring sight.
Although we have enjoyed the palm trees and eucalyptus of California , upon crossing the border from California into Oregon the familiar sagebrush and Juniper trees are a welcome sight as we return to our high-desert home.
We will catch up with mail and other business details, exchange warm-weather cruise outfits for the already-packed bags with Northwest and Canada clothes, and be ready to head north again tomorrow.
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