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Published: April 21st 2017
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It’s 3 AM and I have been bounced around in my tin can for the last 6 hours. Every time the train smooths out, I fall asleep. Then the train goes over a rough spot and I’m all over the place like a pin ball being swatted back and forth.
Kirsten…. we are not in Arizona anymore.
I wake up to the sound of the door of our roomette opening, it’s Kirsten sneaking out, I must go and pee. Yeah, me too… I but I didn’t want to wake you up getting down from my cocoon.
So, it’s 5:30 am and I slept maybe 3-4 hrs. at best. I’m aching from head to toe. Ok, I like a hard mattress, but there is hard and then there is granite. WOW!
We’re off to breakfast after freshening up, we enter the dining car and everyone is excited to see us. They escort us to our table, as we’re sitting down they ask coffee? Yes, please.
We enjoy a hot breakfast; the attendants ask if our roomette was ok. Kirsten responds why yes, I slept as if I was in my own bed. All the time, I sat
there looking as if I had been dragged behind a wagon, being pulled by hungry mules going back to the barn for dinner.
The train stops and we get off and make our way through Union Station. It’s big and beautiful, the tile work, the wood word. Art Deco to the max.
We park our stuff and me in the waiting area and Kirsten is off discovering the station. Me, I’m trying to catch up on my lost sleep.
Within minutes Kirsten returns, waking me up, grab your stuff and follow me. What, I get up and stumble behind Kirsten as she zigs zags through the hordes of people who are coming at us.
Finally, we turn down this deserted hall with an elevator. Kirsten turns to me and whispers I found Amtrak’s Crown Room, yep they have one.
Oh, yea now this is much better. Kirsten, looks at me and shrugs, do I take care of you or what. Yes, you do!
We hang out in the Crown room till it’s time to board our train. Free drinks, free snacks, free WiFi Yes, this is much better. We then make our way toward
track 10 and waiting for us is the Amtrak Coastal Starlight. This is the train that will take us up the California coast into San Francisco.
We pull out of the station close to 10 am on our way to San Francisco.
Check out the link below it shows you the route and all our stops. We got on at Los Angeles and departed in Emeryville/San Francisco. So, you should read the guide from the bottom up.
https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/408/807/Amtrak-Coast-Starlight-Train-Route-Guide-2014.pdf We ride all the way up the coast along the Pacific Ocean. The ocean views were extraordinary, just like you see in the movies. Then we cut inland to the “Salad Bowl” of America. Fields and fields of produce. As far as the eye could see. So I suggest you click on the link and read all about our experience.
We pull into Emeryville around 10 PM, man we’re tired. We exit the train pulling our rollies behind us. Our hotel is on the other side of the tracks. Literally the hotel is on the other side of the tracks. We walk for a city block then we climb three flights of stairs all along dragging our
cases then down three flights of stairs and across a construction zone and right in front of us is our new Hyatt Hotel.
We walk through the doors into the hotel lobby the desk clerk looks up and says welcome Mr and Mrs Vaughan we’ve been waiting for you.
I think I hear angels singing Hallelujah.
We’re in bed by 10:30 PM and I’m asleep by 10:29 PM
Good Night
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Helga Hoskins
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It's been fun traveling with you all.