So, casting aside my doubts, with Pfizer as my shield and my credit card as my sword, I plunged once more into interstate travel, leaving behind the security of my self-isolation at home.
In other words, yes, as previously announced, I traveled by train this past weekend from Seattle to San Francisco. What's train travel like today, while Covid-19 still stalks the land?
Pretty good, actually.
First of all, despite increased travel as the result of increased vaccination, my train was quite uncrowded. While the three sleeper cars seemed to be fairly full, my impression was that the coaches had plenty of room.
The most noticeable difference from pre-pandemic days was the meal service. And I can speak only for those of us in the sleepers, for whom, as always, meals are included in the price of the ticket. Coach passengers were able to purchase food in a Café car (no cash accepted, cards only).
Shortly after departure from Seattle at 9:45 a.m., an attendant came by each room taking orders for lunch. A menu, provided in each room, offered a number of interesting choices. I ordered chicken fettuccini (photo above), with a glass of Chardonnay (the first alcoholic beverage of the trip was free). A green salad, and a roll with butter were included. I chose a vanilla pudding for dessert. I had the option of having the meal brought to my room, or eating in the diner. I ate lunch in my room, but decided it would be more fun for my subsequent meals to eat in the diner.
The lunch was quite good. Because of the pandemic, meals are heated but not prepared in the diner. But these were not frozen meals from a supermarket. I suspect they had been put together in a restaurant -- the ingredients tasted fresh and nicely-cooked, and the meal was served hot.
My order was later taken for dinner. This time, I asked for a 7 p.m. sitting in the diner, which was available. At 7, I walked into the diner, and was told to choose my own table. I found that every other table was closed off, for safe distancing purposes. The tables lacked the linen table cloths and napkins of a traditional train dining car -- in appearance, it was more like being seated at Denny's.
The biggest change from "normal" was that, as a single diner, I was not seated at a table with three other guests. Each party, whether a party of one or a party of four, was seated at a separate table. The meal was waiting for me, and was served promptly. (I had braised beef served in a wine sauce, with polenta and broccoli, and a glass of Cabernet.)
Breakfast the next morning was more casual. I was facing an 8 o'clock arrival in Emeryville (where an Amtrak bus awaited, to carry San Francisco-bound passengers across the Bay), and so I wandered into the dining car at an early hour, and seated myself at an empty table. The diner offered a cheese omelet, but I (like most diners around me) chose something lighter -- orange juice, oatmeal, and a blueberry muffin. And, of course, coffee!
I've always been a bit ambivalent about the traditional dining experience on trains. With one or more fellow travelers, the traditional service is great. But traveling alone, I've usually felt somewhat awkward sitting with three strangers at a table -- especially if the three strangers are traveling together. On the other hand, I generally have had very enjoyable conversations with my table mates, once the initial ice was broken. I conclude that folks who ride trains are pretty likable people -- whether retired or students or any age in between. They have interesting back stories, and are usually curious enough about me to permit good mealtime conversations.
On the other hand, the pandemic is the pandemic, and Amtrak has done the best it could to make the dining experience enjoyable. I understand that Amtrak is experimenting on some shorter routes with eliminating the dining car and serving all sleeping car passengers in their rooms. DON'T DO IT, AMTRAK! There's nothing like sitting at a table, dividing your attention between your table mates and the amazing things flying past you outside the window. I suspect most train passengers have chosen the train neither for its speed nor for its economy -- airlines are both faster and cheaper -- but for the experience. I certainly do.
I was on the train for about 22 hours. I was never bored. I brought books on my Kindle to pass the time. I hardly looked at them. I was staring out the window with fascination -- staring at everything from the scenic, snow-covered beauty of the Cascades, to the farm country of the Sacramento river valley, to the sad colonies of tented homeless people often lining the tracks from Portland to Eugene.
A cross section of today's America. An experience well worth 22 hours of my time. I could happily have extended my ride by another 22 hours.
----------------------P.S. -- The train arrived in Emeryville exactly on schedule!
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