Saturday, November 9, 2013

San Jose Train Trip, Part Two: Back to San Diego

So, I've been back in San Diego since very early Monday morning, so since I already wrote about my trip up to San Jose, I suppose it's about time I discussed the trip back, as well. The trip back paled a bit in comparison to the trip up, for several reasons I'll discuss below. But ultimately, it's hard to compete with the excitement of the beginning of a vacation, especially when the end of the journey marks the return to everyday life, so it was unavoidable things wouldn't be quite as exciting. But still, I did enjoy the train trip, and am still eagerly awaiting my next train voyage (in early December).

My return trip on Coast Starlight train 11 was to begin from San Jose around 10:00. My sister and her family had to leave for church around 8, so I said I could just wait at the train depot. She stopped by a Starbucks for me on the way, and I had my coffee and croissant while I waited. I read a bit, and watched a soldier and his fiance, I'm guessing, pose for photographs of them "reuniting" at the depot.



Amtrak's website kept saying the train was on time, though I couldn't find it on the "track a train" map. As the arrival time neared, an Amtrak representative made the rounds telling us the train was about an hour late. So I settled back in on a bench and waited, until being told it was time to line up for the train. We still had awhile to wait before the train finally arrived. At first, the woman who was monitoring the line said the train arrived on the wrong platform, and people started walking that way, even though I was pretty sure it wasn't the train, far too short, wrong paint job, no sleepers, etc, and sure enough, it was not the Coast Starlight. Our train arrived about five minutes later, well over an hour late. Our tickets were scanned on the platform, and we were assigned cars based on our destination, myself ending up in the final train car with the other people heading to Los Angeles or beyond.







The train was pretty full, much busier than my trip up. Apparently Saturday isn't that popular a travel day, while Sunday is a very popular travel day. I got a window seat again, and my seatmate was quiet and courteous, but didn't seem to speak much English, so we didn't really chat. The problem with all the LA-bound passengers being put in the back car, there was no chance I'd get the row to myself for at least part of the trip. Which isn't a big deal, the guy was nice and at least one of us was away from our seat for a lot of the trip. But it would have been nice to have more room, for at least part of the trip. But if I really didn't want a seatmate, I should have paid for a Roomette (I should have more to say on that option later).

I was again on the ocean side of the train, though it would be awhile before I saw the ocean, and not soon after it would be dark, as we were traveling on the first day of daylight savings time. But I still enjoyed the views of the farmland and hillsides, just as much as I did coming down. I did spend some time in the observation car, enjoying the views, and watching the sun set as we neared Point Conception. Again, I didn't enjoy the views quite as much as I did coming up, partly because I knew my vacation was coming to an end, and partly because of the early darkness. But it's still a very scenic route, and even with the fuller train, I still could sit in the observation car with limited fuss (never on the ocean side, but I was fine with that).


I had lunch in the dining car, and was again impressed with the quality. I had the special, chicken breast with gravy and mashed potatoes. Pretty good, and filling, the sort of meat-and-potatoes meal I would imagine goes over well with the typical Amtrak customer. I liked the gravy, a bit on the sweet side. Three of us at my table had the chicken, while a forth had the bratwurst, which looked pretty good, and though it didn't come with a salad, our waitress bought him one, so he wouldn't feel left out as the rest of us ate iceberg lettuce and one cherry tomato. My tablemates were nice, and like me a bit on the quiet side, but we did chat a bit, and it was obvious all three (two of which had sleepers) were much more experienced with train travel, and I believe all three were connecting to trains East in Los Angeles (I know two were, I forget the third's destination). The dining car was almost full, unlike my dinner experience going North, so I was a bit concerned I wouldn't get a reservation for dinner.


I didn't. For lunch, they started in the back car and went up taking reservations, but for dinner they made their way back (after taking reservations in the sleepers, of course), and never got to my car, before announcing the dining car was booked. They kept saying in the dinner announcement that it would be limited dinner service, I'm not sure if that meant they were out of stuff, or just meant that our arrival in Los Angeles would be before the traditional end of dinner service. In any case, it meant no dinner in the dining car for me. I looked at the cafe car menu, which seems worse on the long-distance trains than on the Surfliner. As it turns out, my only purchase from the cafe in either direction was a cup of coffee early that evening heading home. My sister prepared a snack bag for me with Gracie's rejected Halloween candy, some madeleines and other treats, and as I said my lunch was filling, so I just snacked on what I had, and hoped it would carry me over until dinner in Union Station.

Eating in Union Station seemed a good option, as the train was making up time. By Santa Barbara, we were very close to on time, if memory serves, and as we passed into territory I'm a little more familiar with, it was becoming obvious the train would be early to Los Angeles. I still wasn't able to find the train on Track a Train, nor was my mom. When I checked it before leaving my sister's house, it showed the train being near Seattle, which I thought was the next day's train getting ready to depart. I eventually figured out what was going on when I heard other passengers chatting in the observation car, and someone who was on the train since Seattle said that the train hit a tree or something that fell on the tracks, and damaged the locomotive, which was replaced. I believe that Track a Train tracks the locomotive, which was still in Washington, and apparently the system was never updated with info on our new locomotive. So that took some of the fun out of tracking the train for my mom back home, but ultimately just made my early arrival in Los Angeles, by about 45 minutes, a happy surprise.

Union Station was pretty hopping, that evening, both with homeless and travelers. A long line snaked through the waiting room, of passengers getting seat assignments for the east-bound trains. I probably should have had the steamed buns again, or gone to Subway, but I decided on pretzel hot dogs, which were okay, but nothing special. I should have ventured out and eat in the neighborhood, since I had time, but I didn't think of it at the moment. I sat and read for a bit; on the trip down, I'd gotten caught up on my backlog of magazines, and so it was only at this late hour that I actually started reading one of the books I brought with me (a biography of Athanasius Kircher, which I have been enjoying very much). The last time I was in Union Station in the evening, an art event, Station to Station, was happening; this time, the Opera was conducting a site-specific event, Invisible Cities. Patrons of the arts had wireless headphones, while I just had to listen with my ears, and singers walked around and interpretive dancers (groan) invoking the feeling of people trying to catch a train (a bit redundant, it seems). I wasn't super impressed, but I don't know how much the lack of headphones hindered my enjoyment. Charging ticket fees for a show in a public space seems a bit ballsy to me, but as travelers like myself were able to enjoy some of the performance, and tickets to some performances were free, I can't really complain.


Sooner than I expected, the initial boarding announcement was made for my train home. I rushed to board the train, happy thoughts of arriving on time in San Diego dancing through my mind, vindicating my decision to take the train. I found a seat in coach, stunned momentarily by the lack of space; the 24 hours or so total I spent on the Coast Starlight's roomy coach seats had spoiled me. It really did seem like I had less legroom than usual, but after adjusting my seat to my satisfaction, I decided I was wrong. I got settled in and read a bit, in the station, looking forward to being home, when the conductor announced that, although our train was early, the new crew that would take over for the rest of the journey was on a train heading north, running late. Which was a bit frustrating, to be on the train but unable to go anywhere. We ended up leaving Los Angeles a bit over 30 minutes late. Once we got moving, the trip was uneventful; I read a bit, but mostly napped. They tried to make up some time on the way, which seemed to work for awhile, but ultimately we were about 40 minutes late into San Diego. Not the end of the world, but when you're scheduled in at 1 AM, even small delays are frustrating.

A friend was waiting to pick me up, and kindly give me a ride home at this ungodly hour. Around 2 AM, I got home, and realized as I approached the front door, I didn't have my keys. I pounded on the door, awaking the dogs but not my mom, so I called on my cell phone and woke her up, and she got the door. So I got to see my mom and my dogs after a 9 day absence, though the dogs were too tired to be too excited. I dug my pajamas out of my luggage, and left the rest of the unpacking for the morning, after having a nice sleep in my own bed.

Looking back, I'd say my train travel to San Jose went very well. Yes, the train was late coming home, but if Amtrak gets you across California and is late less than an hour, they've done as well as an educated customer can expect (sad that our expectations are so low, but they are). And heading north Amtrak was remarkably punctual. I would definitely take the trip again, and am now only more eager to cover the whole route next time, and go up to Seattle. One thing that did surprise me, I ended this trip seriously wondering if it's worth the extra money for a roomette on a one-day trip. I don't need a place to sleep, but a roomette for this trip would have cost me $108 each way. That's a lot, but on a long train trip you have a lot of time in your seat to get value for what you paid. It also includes your meals, which I would say could be almost half the fare; dinner, in particular, isn't cheap. And by pre-paying for your meals, you are assured a spot in the dining car, or the Pacific Parlor Car, which would have avoided my fate of eating a lousy dinner in Union Station. You also get a wine tasting and other services of the Parlor Car, including Wi-Fi. Now, even with all that, it's still hard for me to swallow paying three figures for 12 hours or so in first class. But after you consider meals and Amtrak Guest Rewards points, you're really only paying about $50-60 for the private room and access to the Pacific Parlor Car, and the free coffee and juice and Wi-Fi that comes with it. And when you consider I'm unlikely to travel this route more than once every couple years or so, is it really worth quibbling over $50 or so? (If I had a companion with me, the calculus is changed significantly, as both of us would get meals for the same cost, making the room practically free, but the roomette is rather uncomfortable for two, with coach actually being quite a bit roomier, so it's a different set of offsets to consider). I'll probably have a more educated opinion after I've actually traveled in a roomette (I will definitely get a roomette if I'm traveling overnight), but I have a feeling I'll splurge for the roomette should I take the train to my sister's again.

And that's it for my Coast Starlight trip reports. You'll notice I haven't discussed what I did once I arrived at my destination. I'll try to get that up here soon, in one or a series of reports.

Friday, November 1, 2013

San Jose Train Trip, Part One: The Trip From San Diego

Hello from San Jose! I'm at my sister's house, on the eve of Halloween, getting ready for her big Halloween extravaganza. It's been a few days since I took the train up here, last Saturday, and I thought I would try to write the first half of my trip report while I'm up here, and I can summarize the train trip home later.

Going back to last weekend, my trip was to begin at 6:05 AM on Pacific Surfliner train number 763. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I am not a morning person, so I was not exactly excited about this early departure, especially since Amtrak claims you have to arrive 45 minutes early if you wish to check luggage (which I did). So I figured I had to leave the house by 5 AM, which meant getting up at 4 AM. Surprisingly, this proved easier than I anticipated, and by a quarter to 5, I was ready to go. My initial plan had been to get a ride from my mom, but given the need for an early start, her night-blindness made that a rather bad idea. So this seemed like the ideal time to try out Uber, which I'd heard so much about. I fired up the app and summoned a car around 4:45, and was surprised to find there was a car pretty close by in the East County. which picked me up in ten minutes. I was also surprised to find that, even though I ordered the cheapest car, an UberX, I was actually picked up in a roomy SUV. The total fare from my house to the Santa Fe Depot was $28, and I got $10 off that as a new customer (if you would like to sign up for Uber, my referral code is: z8zx3 and both you and I get a $10 credit if you sign up with that code). So for $18, I was whisked away in style, and arrived at the Amtrak station with time to spare. Based on my one experience, I highly recommend Uber.


At the Santa Fe Station that morning, there were already a fair amount of people at the station. Quite a few homeless sleeping on the benches, tuning out the constant stream of safety announcements pouring out of the HDTVs (at one point, it gave pointers for how to take out a terrorist with a thrown piece of luggage, should you find yourself in immediate danger), but also several travelers. I was surprised that, as late as 6:15, the ticket counter was still not open. I had a suspicion the 45-minute rule for checking luggage might not be strictly enforced, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't, if the counter where luggage is checked wasn't even open yet at that time. I can't say for sure, though, as no one checked any luggage after me, when the counter opened a few minutes later.

I walked around the station a bit, finding it very peaceful this time of morning. I eventually wandered over to the line for boarding, took my place at the front of the Business Class line, and waited to board. As I waited, I was very disappointed to spot the single-level Amfleet train, that I was forced to ride on my trip back from Anaheim recently. I did not like the train, but I came to terms with it as I waited to board; it would be a very small portion of my journey today, and I would be in business class, so I could compare it with my experience in coach. About ten minutes before departure, we were given the first call to board, and I walked over to the train, but I couldn't figure out just how to board. The doors to business class were closed, so I thought maybe I had to board from the next car and walk up to business class. The next car had open doors, but the stairs weren't deployed. As I puzzled this over, a redcap or someone came running over, shouting, "Wrong train!" I followed his gestures and realized the train I was boarding was on the next track! I was embarrassed, but relieved to see I was on a standard trainset. Though I was surprised that the seats were slightly different from my last trip, with a smaller footrest and a different style fold-out tray. Neither of these was a big deal, but I was also surprised to find that the seats didn't really recline. When you pushed the button to recline, the seat of the chair just slid out underneath you, but the actual frame of the chair didn't move at all. For an early morning train, this was disappointing. It ultimately didn't matter, because despite my plans to sleep, I was actually wide awake and not remotely tired by the time I boarded, but it was surprising to learn that even the double-decker trains have differences between them, for better or for worse.

We departed San Diego right on time, and were pretty punctual for the entire uneventful journey. I enjoyed the complementary coffee and cinnamon roll and muffin, as usual, and enjoyed the view, this time bathed in early morning fog. I got caught up on some reading on my phone, news and stuff, but mostly just relaxed, something I would be doing a lot of this day and this trip. This is the longest vacation I have had in a very long time, certainly since I started working for my current employer 5 years ago. It's rare that I take more than a long weekend, and taking this trip has made it obvious to me how much I needed it. Long weekends are fun, but not enough. I've said that vacations just leave me more tired than before; that may be true sometimes, but I don't think that'll be the case this trip. Half-way through it, I feel fantastic. And I think the relaxation of train travel is one of the reasons why.

We arrived at Union Station in Los Angeles right on time. The Pacific Surfliner would be continuing north, but I (and my luggage, I hoped) would be transferring to the Coast Starlight for the remainder of my voyage. I entered the station and quickly got my seat assignment, a very simple process that seemed to confound everyone else in line for reasons I couldn't fathom. With time to kill, I first went to the Famima!! convenience store. I had heard about this chain before, but didn't realize there was one in Union Station; I actually was in it briefly on my last trip there, but didn't notice the different food options (I only noticed they were charging $20 for ear buds and quickly left). I bought a couple steamed buns, to eat later on the train for lunch, one chicken teriyaki, one bbq pork, and stuffed them in my backpack. I then went upstairs, to the Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge, which my business class ticket on the Surfliner entitled me to access. Last time I tried to enter the lounge, I was told I needed a business class ticket departing Union Station to enter, which isn't the case according to Amtrak's website, so I was somewhat expecting a fight on this trip. But the lounge attendant was pleasant, and while she was insistent that I should probably just head to the platform since the train was ready to board, she still admitted me to the lounge with barely a glance at my ticket. I used the restroom and grabbed a mocha from the automated espresso machine (it was surprisingly good, given the circumstances), and headed back down to the platform to board.

I walked out on the platform just as Coast Starlight train 14 was pulling into the station. I found car 12, where I would be seated, and waited for the call to board. I found my seat, second row from the front of the car, window seat, ocean side, and took a seat. Coach on the Coast Starlight was impressive. Lots of legroom, a footrest, and a leg support folds up from underneath your seat, like a lay-z-boy. The chair reclines a bit, though not quite as far as I anticipated, given that people travel in these seats overnight. Overall, it was quite comfortable. I don't know that I would sleep well in it, were I traveling overnight, but I could get some rest in it in a pinch (I still think I'll book a roomette, when I take my overnight trip). The aisle seat was soon taken, by a passenger heading to San Luis Obispo after a cross-country trip. He was nice enough, but even better for me, he spent most of the trip in the observation lounge, so I mostly had my row to myself. The train departed right on time, and I settled in and enjoyed the view. I was surprised how rural the landscape was, just a short time after leaving Los Angeles.


I spent the first half of the trip in my seat in coach, mostly, enjoying the view and reading a bit. Considering the 15 hours it takes to get from San Diego to San Jose, I didn't get much done on the train. Most of my time was spent looking out a window. I never turned on my new laptop, which I bought, among other reasons, to use on this long train trip I knew I had coming up. But for the brief spurts of time I spent electronically connected, my phone was more than adequate. I got caught up on some old articles and monitored the news a bit (including the sad news of Marcia Wallace's passing), but mostly just used the train time to decompress. I did eat my steamed buns from Union Station, which were cold, but still not bad. Especially the teriyaki chicken, the BBQ pork wasn't all that great cold. And in the early afternoon, I think my early start time finally hit me, so I napped a bit, or at least rested my eyes, I don't think I ever actually dozed off.


After getting off the train briefly in Santa Barbara to stretch my legs and watch people smoke, I decided to check out the observation car. I expected it to be overrun with people, as I hear it is a popular place on the train and getting a seat can be tricky. But it wasn't too full, this trip. My coach car was full, but I got the impression that the train wasn't at capacity, and that the sleeping cars, in particular, weren't that crowded. The lounge at Union Station wasn't very busy, and when they took reservations for the dining car, there seemed to be plenty of seatings available. So there were quite a few seats in the observation car (though the ocean side was pretty full), and I settled in and enjoyed the views, many of which are not available by any means other than rail. Trails and Rails volunteers provide some context, explaining just what you're looking at, and telling some stories about shipwrecks and other events along this remote stretch of coast. If you're taking the Coast Starlight, this is the time to be in the observation car, because these are the views only the train offers (the highway veers north, while the train continues west until Point Conception--California's corner, as it were), including Hollister Ranch, and Vandenberg Air Force Base.

North of San Luis Obispo, the train continued on its journey. As we moved further into Northern California, the most noticeable thing was just how spread out everything is. The stops get further apart north of Santa Barbara, with two hours or more between stops, because there isn't really anything in between, just farmland or rolling hillside. While people seem to rave about the Coast Starlight's ocean views, I was more impressed by this, a side of California I hadn't seen in awhile. Now to be fair, this is a view you also get from driving, but the last time I drove, I found the endless farmland stultifying (though I did also find certain stretches of road to offer stunning vistas). But from the train, I had the perspective and the patience to sit back and enjoy it.

With the beautiful landscapes all around me, I pretty much stuck to the observation car, and didn't spend much time in my actual seat. Which was fortunate, because both times I headed back to my seat, someone else was sitting it in. The first time, the guy was all apologetic, said he was just enjoying the window view and that he would move, but I told him not to worry about it, I was just getting a snack out of my bag, and would be heading back to the observation car. So that was fine. But when I headed back later that evening, after dinner, there was again someone in my seat, charging some electronic items in the outlet. I asked him to move, and he ignored me at first, then slid over to the aisle seat, leaving his items charging in the pouch on the chair in front of me, using both outlets so I couldn't charge my phone. Since I was getting off the train in less than an hour, I didn't make a big deal out of it, but it was rude. And there wasn't a seat marker above the aisle seat, so I don't even think he was assigned that seat, which made me wonder if he just jumped into my seat to make the conductor think he'd already scanned his ticket. But that was the only rude person I encountered on my trip, and I was glad I didn't have much more time of the train, so I didn't really have to deal with him much.

 Besides seatmates, my other main interaction with other guests was in the dining car. I ate lunch in my seat, but did make an early reservation for dinner that evening. I understand sometimes it can be tricky to get a dinner reservation in coach, but like I said before, I get the impression the sleepers were not terribly crowded, so there was plenty of room at the tables for us hoi polloi. I had a 5:30 reservation, the first seating of the night, and was put at an empty table, to soon be joined by a train enthusiast (I believe the term is "foamer") and two friends heading to Davis to reunite with an old friend. The two women seemed put out that they had to sit with us, but I was already aware they are quite strict about such things; it does seem odd, though, when all the other tables are empty. But we had a nice chat with each other, and enjoyed the view, though the setting sun did interfere a bit. I did enjoy the experience of eating my salad as I watched lettuce being grown.


After the mediocre salad, the main course arrived, which for most of the table was the steak. My train dining experiences only extend as far as the cafe cars, so I did not have very high expectations. And while low expectations may have helped, I must say it was a very good steak. Nothing earth-shattering, and certainly overpriced, but it was flavorful and reasonably tender, and cooked to order, though the gentleman sitting next to me found his overly rare, but the waitress happily took it back and had it cooked a bit longer. I also liked the mushroom sauce that was served on the side. Even the baked potato and veggies (a corn succotash) was pretty good. 



For dessert, I had a blood orange sorbet, which was good, but tiny, but not terribly expensive, if memory serves. The service was good (my iced tea was refilled promptly), and the accommodations reasonably luxurious, for a train (no paper plates here). Again, it did seem overpriced, but I'm fine with that, as a captive audience and all. In these sorts of settings, I'm fine paying a reasonably inflated price, as long as I at least get a quality product (it's the difference between the good expensive food at Disneyland, for instance, to the crap they charge a ton for at the San Diego Zoo). All in all, my first experience with an Amtrak dining car was a very pleasant one, and on my return trip, I'm going to try to have both lunch and dinner in the dining car.

And with that, I think I have covered all the main aspects about my trip on the Coast Starlight. We arrived promptly on time, perhaps a minute or two late by the time I was actually able to detrain (that is the proper term, I'm told). I was able to retrieve my checked luggage after just a few minutes (ignoring the homeless man screaming obscenities, who was apparently upset that his bench was dirty), and was ready to go before my sister even arrived to pick me up. Overall, it was a very relaxing, pleasant, well-run trip, and I highly recommend it, if you have the right mindset. There was a man in the observation car bitching and moaning about how long the trip was taking, and he just couldn't stand it. If you can't take the inefficiencies of the train versus, say, flying (or even driving), then the train is not for you. I certainly wouldn't take it if I needed to be somewhere promptly, though so far Amtrak has proved quite reliable on my handful of journeys. But I think a lot of us need to be forced to slow down from time to time, and if you're willing to accept the pace of train travel, it is an environmentally-conscious, historically-resonant, peaceful and dignified way to travel, decompress from the pressures of daily life, meet new and interesting people, and reacquaint yourself with the world around you. As my vacation here in San Jose is nearing an end, I eagerly await my return voyage.

I think I'll leave it here, my experiences in San Jose, Santa Cruz and San Francisco can be saved for another post, probably after I get back.