The first day of my trip started very early. I awoke around 5:00 AM to get ready and head for Houston's Intercontinental Airport, to catch my flight to New Orleans. Houston has very regular service to New Orleans, but I didn't want to chance getting to New Orleans late and missing the train's 11:55 AM departure. So I was scheduled on a flight that would get me to New Orleans about three hours before the train's departure. That way, if there was any delay at all in the flight, I'd still have a nice safety buffer that should allow me to get to the Amtrak station in New Orleans on time.
It turned out to be a good thing that I had scheduled myself on an early flight. As I was driving to the airport, thunderstorms hit Houston. Traffic slowed, and while I knew I'd make my flight just fine, I was confident there would probably be some delays at the airport. Sure enough, while the flight boarded on time, we were delayed in taking off. No worries though, as I had plenty of time to get to New Orleans. Around 8:30 AM my flight lifted off the runway, and I settled back in my first class seat for the short flight to New Orleans, and drifted off to sleep.
An hour later I woke up as we approached the airport in New Orleans. This was my first trip to the city since much it was destroyed in Hurricane Katrina and the floods that followed that storm. As we approached for landing, my eyes were glued to the window for signs of the storm's destruction. Most noticeable were the blue tarps on roofs, which were too numerous to count. It was very much like what I'd seen in Southeast Texas nine months earlier after Hurricane Rita. However, while most of those blue tarps were gone, here in New Orleans they were still everywhere.
We landed, and after collecting my things, I headed to the taxi cab stand, and from there, to Amtrak's station. Rail stations in major US cities used to be a symbol of the city's wealth and prosperity. However, since rail travel went into a steep decline after World War II, most rail stations in the US are now more functional than anything else. Yes, there are still some examples of the previous glory days of rail travel that are preserved and actively in use; New York's Grand Central and Washington's Union Station come to mind. New Orleans' Amtrak station is not one of these. The taxi dropped me off outside a very plain, institutional looking government building. I walked inside to find fading linoleum floors that badly needed buffing, hard plastic benches, florescent lights with yellowing plastic covers, and a ticket counter. I approached the ticket counter to pick up my tickets, and was told that since I had reserved sleeping accommodations (my "Roomette"), I was entitled to wait in the station's first class lounge, the Magnolia Room. The lady behind the desk pointed the way, and I headed for the lounge.
Unlike airline lounges, which are often quiet, comfortable, and offer amenities like a fully stocked bar, complimentary snacks, and business services centers, Amtrak's Magnolia Room was basically a small room with a couple of worn sofas, table with four chairs, a water cooler, an old TV, and a Mr. Coffee with a can of store-brand coffee and some Styrofoam cups next to it. It was only marginally more comfortable than the main waiting room outside. Still, the TV tuned to CNN provided some entertainment while I waited. I was soon joined by several other first class passengers, and we waited the Sunset Limited's departure together.
Finally, it was showtime. Boarding was called for that day's run of the Sunset Limited. I was in the single sleeper car, assigned to Roomette number 11, an upper level space on the train's right side, just in front of the dining car. The train was rather short; two engines, a crew accommodation car, my first class sleeper car, the dining car, and two coach class cars, one with a snack bar on the lower level. Amtrak advertises a lounge sightseer car on nearly all of its long-haul routes west of the Mississippi River, but the Sunset Limited is an exception. Due to declining ridership, Amtrak had removed the sightseer lounge from the Sunset to save money.
I boarded the train, and got settled into the small space I would be calling home for the next two days. On Amtrak's Superliner fleet, a Roomette is approximately 6.5 feet long by about 3.5 feet wide. It's a rather small space, designed for one or two people, with two reclining seats that face each other, a table between the seats than can be collapsed, a large picture window that provides a view outside, a sliding door to the hallway, several windows into the hallway, and a very small storage shelf and hanging rod for clothing. The two recliner seats are folded down at night to form the lower bunk, and an upper berth can be folded down from the ceiling, to provide sleeping space for two adults.
For my journey I had brought along several things to entertain myself — a novel I was reading, my iPod, my laptop computer to play DVDs, and four or five DVDs to watch. All of Amtrak's sleeper accommodations have a standard 120 volt AC outlet in them, so I'd be able to plug in the computer and use it to play movies while I was traveling. The small table in the room was just right for setting up the computer for this purpose. I had also heard stories about Amtrak's food, and that sometimes the snack bar had a very limited selection, so I brought along some nuts and dried fruit, as well as a six pack of bottled water. And, just in case the pillow provided with the bed wasn't comfortable, a pillow from home.
Soon after departure from New Orleans, the dining room opened for lunch. Meals for first class passengers are included in the price of the accommodation; for coach passengers they can be purchased at reasonable prices. I headed for the dining car for my first of seven meals on board the train. For lunch I chose the cheeseburger, which was served with potato chips. It was an average burger; better than what you'd get at a fast food place, but far from gourmet. It was still quite satisfying, and I enjoyed a nice conversation with a couple from Beaumont, Texas, as we ate, and the train crossed the Huey Long Bridge over the Mississippi River on its westward journey out of New Orleans.
From New Orleans we headed west, with short station stops at towns like Schriever, New Iberia, and Lafayette. Somewhere around New Iberia, a car crossed the tracks as we were approaching them and the train barely clipped the back end of the car as it raced in front of our engine. This resulted in about an hour's delay while the accident was investigated. Fortunately no one was injured, and the car was actually drivable, as the train had just barely clipped it. Had the car been a split second faster, it wouldn't have been hit, a split second slower, and the results could have been tragic for the driver and his passenger. After that mishap, we headed on.
As the afternoon wore on, I enjoyed reading, listening to music, and enjoying the scenery of southern Louisiana. Hours after leaving New Orleans, we crossed the Sabine River, and into Texas. I had dinner as we approached our stop in Beaumont, Texas. I chose the evening special, which was country fried steak, mashed potatoes, salad, a roll, and a slice of cheesecake for dessert. The food was good, and I was informed by one of my tablemates, who was a frequent Amtrak rider, that the "special" was always country fried steak, and that it was one of the dining car's more reliable menu items.
After dinner, I watched the sun slowly set as we continued west toward Houston. Somewhere along the way I realized just how slow long-distance train travel in the US can be. My flight that morning from Houston to New Orleans had taken less than an hour. A drive from Houston to New Orleans down Interstate 10 can be done in less than six hours. My train was taking approximately 10 hours to make the journey, and shortly after 10:00 PM, we entered downtown Houston, and made our stop there. Many passengers got off at Houston, and were replaced by others. I took a few minutes to get off the train and walk around, picking up an ice cream snack at the station's Blue Bell vending machine.
We then pulled out to continue our journey. The sleeping car attendant made up my bed, and I settled in to watch a DVD before drifting to sleep.
by ssullivan on July 14, 2008