I have been alive for many decades and
grew up when traveling by airplane was a luxurious adventure. Back in the late
70’s I remember flying a long-distance flight in coach that served a full and
tasty dinner with silverware and even a small bottle of wine. I have watched as
strong competition forced a race to the bottom where air passengers are now
excited when they get pretzels for their ‘meal.’ Ah, for the Good Old Days.
Can we agree that those days are gone and
may never return?
OK.
Then there’s the other part about air
travel I don’t like. I’m tall. Six foot and three inches worth. Additionally,
as I’m now firmly in middle age, I’m a bit wider than the svelte days during my
20’s. I do not book non-stops across the country because I can’t stand to be
cramped in the little stall for five hours in a stretch.
And, getting to the bottom dollar, air
fares are usually very expensive.
I am completing an overdue vacation with
my wife and we decided to take the train. Yep, the old-fashioned steel-wheel on
steel-rail train. Now, let’s set the context. We live in the United States so
saying that we take the train for vacation is an unusual statement here. That
is not so in Europe where one travels on vacation – of course – by train.
The particular trip we took meant an
overnight train both ways. It was sooooo much nicer than the cramped confines
of a modern aircraft. The seats are wider, cushioned, you can walk around, go
to other cars for a meal or just see the scenery go by at ground level. There
is something qualitatively different about seeing the country pass by you in
that way. It is the same phenomena as the road trip. You get a human-scale view
of distance, time, and just how long the distances are. Passing by community,
fields, industry, urban centers, hills, et cetera – things sequentially coming
and going at a sequential space that you can register in a relatable scale (‘Oh,
look at that horse; isn’t that barn interesting? I wonder how many people work
in that factory?) – this gives a raw experience of landscape.
Sure, there are disadvantages to train travel.
It is much slower. But if you see the pace as part of the trip itself (travel
as process, not merely destination), then it is part of the adventure.
Yes, trains are bumpy; but the powers
that be don’t make you stay in your seat when there is turbulence.
Yes, they occasionally run late – as if
there were never any late arriving flights. But, let’s just pull back a bit and
I will suggest that if you are vacationing and your timetable is that tightly
scheduled, you’ve built stress into your rest. You’re doing your vacation
wrong. Train travel for business has advantages but I understand that most
business trips for most of the nation do not fit rail travel, excepting the
eastern seaboard.
Trains are about as expensive as air
travel and about as fast as an automobile, without the stress of either.
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