On the Train

    And I'm off! I must admit I had my doubts about        getting off the ground. But as I sit back in the solitude of my private "roomette" aboard Amtrak's super liner known as Empire Builder, I breathe a huge sigh of relief. Just now the train has left the small station in the town of Minot, ND. Its another 24 hrs until I get to Seattle and from there I will take a bus to Sedro-Woolley, WA. I'll be staying in Sedro-Woolley for about 2 months where I'll be living in a communal household dubbed the Woolley Mammoth. I'll save the description of the house for when I actually arrive.

The first leg of my trip, from DC to Chicago I rode in coach. This was an 18 hour ride and I spent that time sitting next to an 80 year old man named Marvin. Although Marvin was nothing less than pleasant the entire time, a man needs his space. I switched trains from the Capitol Limited to the Empire Builder in Chicago and it was here that I could finally have some privacy in my sleeper room. I can close myself off from the rest of the passengers and enjoy the countryside in solitude. Just me, my music, my window and 2,000 miles of beautiful landscapes.
I purchased my ticket for this 3 day excursion for only $428, this includes three meals a day while staying in the sleeper car. In coach the meals are not included. Broken down it was about $203 for the ticket from DC to Seattle, and about $225 for the added room from Chicago to Seattle. So if you wanted to rough it and go all the way across the country for $203 you could, but with the privacy of the sleeper room the trip becomes more of a vacation than just a train ride.