Riding on the City of New Orleans, Slightly OT Review (Long)

Here is a review of my train ride to New Orleans on Amtrak's City of New
Orleans. I thought it might be helpful to other people who don't like to
fly.

This is a link to the words from the famous song about that train.
http://www.arlo.net/resources/lyrics/new-orleans.shtml


I rode Amtrak to New Orleans, the port of embarkation for a March 2007
cruise on the Grandeur of the Seas. I booked a Superliner Bedroom, the
best accommodations available. I would rather come back from a vacation
thinking, Cheaper accommodations would have been good enough" than, "I
wish I had gotten something better." I was glad I made the choice I did.

All of the Amtrak employees were helpful and treated me courteously.
They were very patient. I never felt I was being herded or hurried. It
was the way airline travel was in the 1960s but with the stiff formality
replaced with a laid back folksiness.

I boarded the train at a little central Illinois station "along the
southbound odyssey," so I missed out on the supposed perks of the Amtrak
first class departure lounge in the Chicago Union Station. I checked my
bags and the desk agent either ignored or did not notice that one of them
was overweight. The bags were locked but there was no sneering TSA agent
giving me grief about that. I never had to empty my pockets or remove my
belt. I kept my shoes and jacket on the entire time I was at the
station. Nobody barked orders at me. There weren't any tedious
Orwellian announcements exhorting me to report suspicious people. The
check in line was short. Most passengers arrived at the station in the
last half hour before the scheduled departure.

The train arrived about twenty minutes late. We walked outside to the
platform (trains don't have anything like a jetway). The conductor
looked at my ticket and directed me to the sleeping car. The sleeping
car attendant asked my name. Upon hearing it, without looking anything
up, she said, "You're in bedroom B. I have the bed made up for you.
I'll come by a little later [after everybody boards] to explain things to
you." True to her word, she came to my room and explained where things
were and how everything worked. She told me that, for sleeping car
passengers, Amtrak provides complementary coffee, juice, and bottled
water and where to go to get it. Meals in the dining car were also
included.

My complaint about the included meals was that since I boarded after the
dining car had closed, I had to pay for my meal in the caf? car. That
food was expensive and tasted liked something that came out of a vending
machine and had been nuked. Since I paid the same fare for my bedroom as
the people who boarded in Chicago, I think Amtrak should have given me a
voucher for food in the caf? car.

My room measured 6'6" x 7'6" and was equipped with a sink, vanity, and
combination lavatory/shower. The lower berth (3'4" x 6'3") was
comfortable and folded up to a couch during the day. Since I was
traveling alone, the upper berth (2'4" x 6'2") was never unfolded. There
was an armchair, fold down table, overhead shelf, small closet with
hangers, rudimentary climate control, reading lights, night-lights for
the room and lavatory, and attendant call button. What was supposed to
be a music system was not functioning; fortunately I brought my MP3
player. I was provided with soap, towels, and washcloths but the
attendant forgot to give me facial tissues and toilet paper. Luckily, I
checked for this before getting myself into an awkward situation.

The door on my room could be latched from the inside but could not be
locked from the outside. Since I knew this would be the case, I didn't
bring any valuables onboard with me. My door had a window with a thick
curtain. During the day, I pulled the curtain back so that I could watch
the scenery go by on both sides of the train.

The "wheels rumblin' 'neath the floor" were accompanied by an ear grating
creaking. Even worse, at times there was a hard jarring like when you
drive on a bumpy road. The jarring, creaking, and incessant blaring of
the train's horn combined into a din that made me glad I brought earplugs
and a good set of headphones. I discovered that the ride was smoother and
quieter the closer you got to the center of the car. Unfortunately, my
room was near the end of the car.

In the morning I went to the dining car. Tables were shared and a dining
car attendant seated passengers. Each table was like a booth, two people
on each side. Surprisingly, they felt fairly roomy. The tablecloths and
plates were disposable but good quality disposable. The napkins were
cloth and the silverware was metal. There were prices on the menu for
the coach passengers. Sleeping car passengers were allowed to order
whatever they wanted at no extra charge. Courses were served one at a
time and coffee cups constantly refilled. The food wasn't bad. It was
at least as good as what the airlines serve to business class passengers
on international flights. Overall, I would give the dining car high
marks.

I returned to my room to find that the attendant had converted it to a
daytime sitting room and had left a newspaper for me. I spent the
morning reading and listening to my music. Johnny Cash, The City of New
Orleans, was one of the songs I had downloaded for the trip. I went to
the dining car for lunch where the experience was similar to breakfast.
After that, I lay down on the couch in my room and took a nap. Later, I
wandered over to the dome car for some people watching. I was starting
to get bored. I went back to my room to freshen up feeling good about
having paid extra for a room with plumbing.

The train arrived in New Orleans less than an hour late. Not bad, I've
had flights arrive later than that. Since the sleeping car had its own
exit, there was no long line to get off the train and no wait for a
jetway to be moved to the door. Amtrak brought the checked bags close to
the train station exit, presumably so that passengers wouldn't have far
to carry them. An Amtrak employee even looked at the claim checks to
make sure you got the right bags.

I wheeled my bags fifty feet to the exit, hailed a taxi, and rode off to
my hotel. I felt fresh, rested, and relaxed. It's been a long time
since I left an airport feeling that way.

My conclusion is that traveling first class on a train is much more
civilized than traveling by plane. The only problems are that it is slow
and expensive. Flying first class would have been faster. It would also
have been even more expensive and I would still have the hassles of
getting through the airport on both ends of the flight. I was glad I
chose to go by rail.


©Copyright 2007 DDG/Odysseus, All Rights Reserved


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