(to view week two click here)

Day 8 - LA to Oakland

Folks on the Train
We asked a wonderful lady -- traveling with a group of Red Hatters -- what happened when she was 5 hours late getting into Chicago. Did they have to sleep on the train station floor?

Out the Window

12:15 PM First view of the Pacific! Caught a glimpse of the pier where we first met almost thirty years ago. (Yeah, we stole a kiss as we sped by!)

The old Southern Pacific Railroad originally ran passenger service on this coastal route between Los Angeles and San Francisco as The Coast Daylight. When Amtrak took over in 1971, they expanded the service to San Diego and Seattle and, in a nod to the old name, christened it The Coast Starlight.

Tagging along on the end of our train is the private charter car "Silver Splendor." Built in 1956 for the Zephyrs (our next train) of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, it has been revamped as a combination diner, dome and lounge car available for private excursions on any of Amtrak's routes. Old number 4735 has logged over 4.5 million miles in her 50 plus years of service.

10:50 AM The first hour or so of the trip is within metropolitan LA, no ocean views here, but we did snag seats on the coast view side of the train so scenic vistas await.

10:15 AM Back on track, leaving LA on time on the northbound Coast Starlight bound for the bay area. The Coast Starlight is one of Amtrak's most popular trains because the scenery along the Pacific coastline is simply bloody awesome! The route follows the shore from San Diego up to Morro Bay then moves inland as it rolls up to San Jose and finally, Seattle.

Day 7- Unexpected overnight in Los Angeles

5:00 PM Hollywood, ba-by! We're on a quest to find the "real" Hollywood. The sleep deprivation is manifesting into weirdness, but what a better place to be than Hollywood shooting a video when you're feeling a bit weird?

3:00 PM The Hollywood and Vine station on the Red Line Subway.. More trains, yay! The ceiling is covered with real movie reels. Just out of our midday comas, this is vertigo inducing stuff. Spent the entire fifteen minute underground trip trying not to think about earthquakes.

11:50 AM (4 hrs late) Arriving in LA's Union Station, utterly exhausted. Need sleep that doesn't the involve coupling and recoupling of train cars. Must have a nap before we attack Hollywood with a vengeance. More on LA

7:45 AM Victorville California. On the phone with the helpful and friendly Amtrak reservations agent Cynthia who is helping us change our tickets. Now we have a new plan. Guess we'll spend the day in Los Angeles and then head up the coast tomorrow.

Folks on the Train

Our favorite train attendant so far! Meet Francis -- a whirlwind of fun -- and train attendant extraordinaire! Her infectious smile lights up the coach section and can turn even the grumpiest missed-my-connection morning person into Little Miss Sunshine!

The Middle of the Night, in The Middle of Nowhere: All was going well, we were even a little ahead of schedule, when BOTH of our engines decided to kick the bucket. After three hours waiting a freight engine was deployed to drag us limping into LA. The mood is not quite as sunny as earlier in the trip, folks are a tad testy, many have been aboard for over forty hours now. The mighty Chief is a little ragged but accommodations are being made to get passengers with connecting trains to their destinations. We are going to try to shift our tickets back a day so we can still ride The Coast Starlight and avoid a bus ride across the inland empire of California.

Day 6 - Albuquerque to Los Angeles (or so we thought!)

Out the Window

7:30 PM The remaining clouds make for a spectacular sunset.

6:50 PM Arizona. The desert is surprisingly green, quite a bit of rain lately, in fact we just passed through a shower.

3:00 PM Took in Old Town Albuquerque. The plaza is dominated by San Felipe De Neri, the oldest church in town, founded in 1706. The twin spires really stand out among the rest of the squatty adobe buildings filled with galleries, restaurants and tourist-centric businesses surrounding the square.

1:55 PM Green chile and big, puffy, hollow, pipping-hot sopapillas with honey at La Placita at the Hacienda Casa De Armijo in Old Town. Built in 1706, the courtyard room has a large shade tree that shoots straight through the ceiling and a true old New Mexican air.

12:50 PM Albuquerque! We didn't make a wrong turn. Tossed our stuff into a locker at the depot and took a walk down Route 66 toward the historical Old Town Plaza. The quirky mixture of the adobe and faux-dobe buildings with retro 66 signs made for a fun, but sun-beating-down-upon us desert stroll.

12:03 AM Passing through the Native American pueblo community of the Kewa tribe. Adobe villages, farms and ranches are nestled into a beautiful valley. We'd love to post a picture, but the residents respectfully ask that photos not be taken, as their land is sacred..

11:20 AM Leaving Santa Fe (on time!) on the New Mexico Rail Runner to rejoin the Southwest Chief to Los Angeles. It adds $7 each to our trip, but well worth it! The train itself is very whimsical with a speedy looking roadrunner emblazoned on its cars in the colors of the sun. Instead of an alarm sounding when the doors close, a fanciful

"beep, beep" is heard. Yes, Santa Fe is where Chuck Jones got the inspiration for the Road Runner cartoons.

Ironically, even though the classic AT&SF railroad was commonly referred to as "The Santa Fe," the mainline never came to the city because the terrain was too forbidding. That's why Amtrak doesn't actually come into Santa Fe and a shuttle or Rail Runner ride is required.

Day 5 - Santa Fe

7:30 PM Dessert! Yeah, we went there. That hunk of chocolate in front? A moussey-like concoction drizzled in olive oil and topped with sea salt. Veronica is channeling Meg Ryan in "When Harry Met Sally." We are hearing a lot of "I'll have what she's having" at nearby tables! More on Cafe Pasqual's

6:00 PM Cafe Pasqual's for dinner at the communal table. Sitting with wonderful folks from Anne Arbor, MI and bonding whilst trying to decipher the unusual murals on the wall! Ordered "Pigs & Figs" (bacon wrapped figs), halibut cerveche, banana leaf wrapped tamales and carne asada on skewers. Good God, we'll be rolling out of here!

1:00 PM Hoofing around The Plaza in Santa Fe. Intrigued by the Native American wares hawked on blankets in front of the Palace of the Governors - the oldest public building in the US, built in 1610. More on Santa Fe

Folks on the Train

We learned very quickly that train travel is a very social experience -- trains have club cars, dining cars and dome lounges, all very conducive to socializing! In our coach seats, we met everyone around us, shared tourist info, train riding tips and tales, even books and snacks. We will interview some of the wonderful folks along the way and share them here.

Day 3, 4 - Santa Fe

Santa Fe is our longest layover -- we will be on the train with just a few overnights after this! What a great town! Jam-packed with galleries, adobe and amazing

southwestern food!

"The Inexplicable Stairs" is a must see in Santa Fe! The staircase has no supporting pole, has three hundred steps and makes two full 360 degree turns stumping architects and engineers to this day. In 1873 a gothic chapel was built for the nuns of the local parish. Beautiful as it was, it was stupidly built without access to the choir loft. The only solution was to either install ladders (not a great choice for the singing nuns!) or tear the chapel down and start from scratch. So the Sisters did what they do best -- they prayed for a miracle. The legend says that a unknown man showed up on a donkey and offered to build a staircase with the only tools he had -- a hammer, a saw and a T-square.

Six months later, the staircase was finished and the man disappeared, never to be heard from again. More on this staircase (with video)

Day 2 Kansas City - Santa Fe

2:20 PM Arrive Lamy, New Mexico--on time! We must have made up the time that we lost in the storm overnight. Catching the shuttle van into Santa Fe.

1:30 PM Veronica sneak attacks a sleeping David to get a video of the coach seating situation. He was an awfully good sport as we had been on the train for 24 hours straight!


We have decided to do coach all the way (if our backs hold out!) as a 15 day rail pass cost $389 and would be significantly more if we add on a sleeping cabin.

Out the Window

12:10 PM Antelope! It's a meal and a show! They are everywhere! We were starting to wonder if they really did play out here, not hearing many discouraging words, either.

12:00 PM Opted to eat in the dining car. Passengers make reservations a few hours in advance for lunch and dinner. Breakfast is first come, first serve.

Lunch options include a Chipotle Black Bean and Corn Veggie Burger, an Angus Steak Burger, regional sandwich and entree specials and a veggie salad. Beer, wine and cocktails are served and lunch runs between $6 and $9, including coffee, tea or milk. Served on linen, quite civilized!

A cafe car is available throughout the day with the usual downscale microwave cuisine, cereal, chips and drinks.

Out the Window

8:25 AM Rainbow with wind generators as the pot 'o gold in eastern Colorado. Mountains are just coming into view. 7:50 AM Going for the second cup of joe as we cross the Kansas - Colorado state line. What happened to all the trees?

Out the Window

We neglected to mention the name of this train yesterday. We are on Amtrak's train #3, the west bound Southwest Chief. The name dates back to the golden era of train travel when the luxury long haul routes all had groovy names. This route was the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad's Super Chief. I took it a few times as a kid and the main thing that stuck in my brothers and my mind was how cool it was

that you could stick your shoes in this little box outside your sleeper and they would magically be shined in the morning. I'll have to look into whether that still happens.

6:10 AM Get out of Dodge. Woke up looking out the window at Wyatt Earp Street in Dodge City Kansas. Well -- woke up is a nebulous term, we were awake and asleep a lot through the night but we'll get used to it.

Out the Window

Day 1 Chicago - Kansas City 6:45 PM Outside of Fort Madison, Iowa In the dome car for a cocktail and some fabulous vista watching, when BAM!, all hell started breaking loose! The train was halted due to high wind and flash floods... so much for the old timetable.

Just how hard does the wind need to blow to stop a train? Pretty dad-blame hard is the correct answer.

Out the Window



6:00 PM Galesburg, Illinois -- Birthplace of poet Carl Sandburg and the site of the Lincoln-Douglas 1858 debate... but most of all, Railroad Days. Would have loved to stop to take this place in, but alas, only 14 more days to make it to the West Coast and back and so far we are sticking right to the timetable.

5:00 PM Beautiful pastoral scenery. Blue skies, rolling green fields -- Americana at its best.

3:15 PM No Wifi from Amtrak, but we have an at&t laptop connect wireless card and so far it's GREAT (of course we're still basically in Chicago). VERY civilized! 3:10 PM Left Chicago on time! 2:45 PM We snagged the ONLY seat in our train car with a power outlet! Shhhh...don't tell anyone, the conductor just announced that the ONLY outlets were downstairs in the lounge. We don't want to start a riot!

1:45 PM We popped out of the train station and this is what we saw! The Windy City, the one with the broad shoulders, Second City baby. We were right on the Chicago River across from the Sears -- uh, Willis -- Tower. Romped around, pointed, oohed and awed, had lunch and headed back in to catch our overnight train.

1:40 PM They still have lockers at train stations! For three dollars an hour we purchased some peace of mind and were able to walk around downtown Chicago without dragging our luggage behind us. Weird fact: You have to provide your fingerprints to use.

PACKED! Cooler/Day Pack full of delicious snacks Briefcases with essentials. Stuff we carry with us at all times. Canvas tote with neck and regular pillows, blanket, eye masks, ear plugs, playing cards, books -- sleep stuff. Everything attaches to:

Rolling carry-on bags packed with "replaceable items" like clothes, toiletries, etc.

Thanks to all of our Twitter friends' tips and stories. BIG hat tips to: @santafetraveler (for the Lamy, New Mexico info) @tarnishedwings (for suggesting binoculars) @AngieTink (for onboard entertainment ideas) @mchanson714 (for stories and encouragement)

(click here to continue with week two of our live blog)

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com