Amtrak, People. Amtrak.

Felicia and I are taking our second girls-only trip at the end of the month back to Iowa. In honor of this lovely and anticipated trip, I thought I'd wax poetic a tad about our upcoming means of transportation. We are going to be riding the rails! That's right, ladies and gents, I'm talking about AMTRAK!

In case you are wondering, we are not taking the Coast Starlight as you see mentioned above. The photos above are from the one-year-anniversary trip we took with good friends Mel and Rob, who share the same wedding anniversary. (We also took the trip with new acquaintances, Kim & Kyle, as seen in the first photo.)

Before I tell you about all the wonderful things about our trip with Amtrak, let me tell you about where we went. Our final destination was Los Angeles, CA, with a few big stops along the way. We had to start out by hopping on the Southwest Chief to Chicago. 

"East! I thought you were going to LA!"

With the advent of commercial airlines (faster travel),cars (freedom and often times, but not always, faster), freight travel, and lack of funds, Amtrak does not have as many rail lines to take passengers where they need to go as directly as they would like.

So.

We had to head to a larger hub first (Chicago), where we eventually caught the Empire Builder train north and west. However, when we got to Chicago, we took a break from trainage (it was a seven or eight hour trip) and enjoyed the spring-like temperatures and weather in downtown Chicago. We then hopped a commuter train to a Chicago suburb to stay overnight with James' Aunt Felicia and Uncle Jerry.

We headed out on the first long leg of our journey the next day.  We hopped on the Empire Builder (meeting Kim and Kyle, who hopped on board downtown) in Glenview, IL, which took us (two nights later) to Seattle, WA. We were so excited, can you tell? And yes, those bottles on the table are FREE champagne from Amtrak. As Napoleon Dynamite would say, 'Yessssssssssssssss!'

This trip was long, yes! But man, was it some of the most beautiful scenery I had ever seen. My favorite part of the ride was going through Glacier National Park- taking the train allowed us to see parts of nature that you can't see in a car- no roads, just rails! Man, America really is beautiful:

 Once we got to Seattle, we stayed a few days to enjoy the sights. Even though our train journey was not over yet, Amtrak made it super-easy to get right back on the train when we needed to, since most of its routes are daily! We very much enjoyed checking out the downtown scene in Seattle, as well as Pike's Public Market, the needle, and of course drinking the coffee. I think the main highlight was celebrating our anniversary by taking in a Mariners/Cubs game and the anniversary surprise that came along with it:

 We also enjoyed a dinner date with our "Anniversary Buddies."

The Los Angeles leg of our trip on the Coast Starlight train was great, as well! Prior to the trip, James and I were skeptical about the meals we would get on the train. We are avid cooks and eaters, so we wondered how the fare would compare to how we like to usually eat. We needn't worry- the meals were fantastic! We enjoyed great steaks, short ribs and pastas. The desserts were delicious and presented like a dessert that came from a food stylist. Another foodie plus: Amtrak provided its sleeper car passengers with a wine and cheese tasting (both overnight legs of our route). 

Oh, and of course, the scenery on this route was pretty amazing, too!

However, you don't have to be a sleeper car passenger to enjoy comforts and scenic beauty. If you travel as a regular coach passenger, you can pay for decent snacks in the snack car. On a KC-St. Louis trip, I paid for a wine and cheese plate.  You can also go to the scenic viewing cart with large windows to take in the view. Should you choose to stay in your travel car, the reclining seats there are large and offer plenty of legroom. It was luxurious compared to airplane seating! You can kind of see them in this pic of our travel buddies on our KC-Chicago route: 

I would definitely recommend traveling Amtrak next time you consider taking a trip, especially when you factor in the cost compared to an airplane ticket. However, a few pitfalls:

• As noted before, sometimes you can't just go directly where you want to go. You have to go a bit out of your way sometimes to a hub that will take you where you want to go.  For example, I can leave from KC, no problem- but I can't get to Waterloo, IA. I will take the train to Fort Madison (not many Iowa stations) and my brother-in-law will drive 1.5 hours from the Iowa City area to pick me up.
• Obviously, it takes longer than an airplane ride-BUT it is often cheaper!
• Sometimes you have to wait anywhere from a few minutes to almost an hour (in our experience) to let freight trains pass through as you ride the rails.  
• As on airplanes, teeny restrooms can get stinky and gross. 
• For those who get motion sickness- the ride can be like being in a cradle sometimes with all the rocking back and forth. 

 If you have the time to take the trip and just relax, most of these pitfalls are not a big deal.  Overall, the whole experience was much more enjoyable-and cheaper priced for probably all services-than flying on a plane. (No checked bag fees!!) The food was infinitely better, fellow passengers much less cranky, and you are so much more comfortable. So, next time you are in the mood for a little in-country vacation, check out all the different options on Amtrak!

Mom: Oh, how Grandma Pauline would be proud.