Maggie_T
06-09-2007, 07:27 PM
Just wanted to touch bases with my Freecer friends.
Would you guys like to know how our trip is going? I though you would. :biggrin:
The train trip was great. Reminded me so much of my childhood. The service is great and so is the food. However, if you ever have the chance to make the trip, I strongly advise to make reservations way in advance and get a de luxe room, the one which comes with private shower and toilet. The other compartments are called roomettes. They are the size of the seat, of which there are three: two seasts which turn into beds for the night, and the third seat, which is also the toilet with a sink above it. A bit insalubrious, I thought. Not to mention the fact that such arrangement requires travelers sharing such a compartment to be in a very close and intimate relationship. I tried to sneak into one such compartment while the occupants were away to see how the whole thing works, but Jim pulled me away and yelled something about tresspassing.
If for some reason you can only make it to a roomette, well, let's just say you might want to postpone the Metamucil fix till you get to destination. Of course, you can also use the common facilities should the call of nature become too pressing.
The de luxe room, the one we had, has an insert of sorts which houses the shower and the toilet. That's fine because it gives you the necessary privacy. The seats turn into beds at night, which makes the headquarters a bit more cramped and the logistics rather more challenging. I decided to get the upper bunker because a) I love the upper bunker, b) I'm small so I fit anywhere. You should have seen me climb up and down, like a mountain goat. Without using the ladder, or stepping on Jim's nose, either. :D A total pro.<SCRIPT><!--D(["mb","\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>We spent most of the time in the Observation Car, which has glass ceiling and big windows so you can watch the world go by*and get the nice warm sunshine, too.***As we entered Washington state, we got a view of snowed-capped mountains, and the valleys below, and that was breathtakingly beautiful.\n\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Part of the entertainment was a wine-and-cheese*tasting offered by the company.* It was great!* Unfortunately, since it was only "tasting" the portions of wine were small.* I kept asking for more with the excuse that, due to a faulty memory, I kept forgetting what the last sample tasted like, so I could not make comparisons.* Nobody fell for my clever trick, which leads me to believe someone must*have*tried before me.* Damn whoever that was.\n\u003c/div\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:14pt;color:black;font-family:Arial\"\>\n\u003cdiv\>\u003cbr\>\u003c/div\>\u003c/span\>We're in Spokane now.* We arrived here at 1:30 in the morning.* I was exhausted.* The trip is nice but it does knock one about a bit.* So much so that I decided to postpone my e-mails till we reached \n\u003cem\>terra firma\u003c/em\>.* You see, what with the train movement, typing becomes a bit difficult.* I kept pressing the 'p' when I wanted to press the 'm', etc. till there came a moment when spellcheck just shrugged it all off and ignored me.\n\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Ok, got to wrap it up.* Our cab is outside and Jim is pulling me off.\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Hugs to all.* Talk to you later.\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Lucille\u003cbr\>*\u003c/div\>",1]);//--></SCRIPT>
We spent most of the time in the Observation Car, which has glass ceiling and big windows so you can watch the world go by and get the nice warm sunshine, too. As we entered Washington state, we got a view of snowed-capped mountains, and the valleys below, and that was breathtakingly beautiful.
Part of the entertainment was a wine-and-cheese tasting offered by the company. It was great! Unfortunately, since it was only "tasting" the portions of wine were small. I went into the 'please, sir, may I have some more' routine with the excuse that, due to a faulty memory, I kept forgetting what the last sample tasted like, so I could not adequately compare to the previous samples. Alas, nobody fell for my clever trick, which leads me to believe someone else must have tried before me. Damn whoever that was.
We're in Spokane now. We arrived here at the ungodly hour of 1:30 in the morning. I was exhausted. All I could think of was bed, bed, bed. My kingdom for a bed.
We got to our nice room and my adored spouse decided it would be a good idea to "get organized for next morning." I ignored him politely, got into bed, and died until 9:30 of the same morning, at which time I got up and prepared myself for the rest of the day.
Although the trip is nice, it does knock one about a bit. So much so that I'm still a bit woozy and dizzy. Same thing happens to me if I fly and the flight is a bit rocky. Middle ear problems, or so I'm told.
For the same reason, I decided to postpone my e-mails till we reached terra firma. You see, what with the train movement, typing becomes a bit difficult. I kept pressing the 'p' when I wanted to press the 'm', etc. till there came a moment when even spellcheck shrugged it all off and became uncooperative.
The highlight of the day was when we drove to Post Falls, Idaho (30 minutes drive from Spokane) where we bought a nice, spanking new Jeep Liberty, blue. We had made the arrangement via Internet in Maine, so all we had to do was the required paperwork and collect the car. We drove back to Spokane - that is, Jim drove; what between my blotto state, and not knowing the territory, I thought it would be wiser to leave the driving to him.
It's cloudy and coolish in Spokane. We walked about town for a bit, and spotted a nice Italian restaurant. Maybe we'll go there for dinner, although I must admit that, seeing as how I'm still suffering from train-lag (yes, there is such a thing; trust me), it wouldn't break my heart just to stay in the hotel and nibble something in the restaurant. We'll see.
Tomorrow, we drive to Coeur d'Alene - Idaho - where we'll be staying at the Coeur D'Alene Resort. And from there, we'll be driving south to Boise, our final destination. :thumb:
I shall keep you posted.
In the meantime, hugs to all.
Talk to you later.
Bye.
Would you guys like to know how our trip is going? I though you would. :biggrin:
The train trip was great. Reminded me so much of my childhood. The service is great and so is the food. However, if you ever have the chance to make the trip, I strongly advise to make reservations way in advance and get a de luxe room, the one which comes with private shower and toilet. The other compartments are called roomettes. They are the size of the seat, of which there are three: two seasts which turn into beds for the night, and the third seat, which is also the toilet with a sink above it. A bit insalubrious, I thought. Not to mention the fact that such arrangement requires travelers sharing such a compartment to be in a very close and intimate relationship. I tried to sneak into one such compartment while the occupants were away to see how the whole thing works, but Jim pulled me away and yelled something about tresspassing.
If for some reason you can only make it to a roomette, well, let's just say you might want to postpone the Metamucil fix till you get to destination. Of course, you can also use the common facilities should the call of nature become too pressing.
The de luxe room, the one we had, has an insert of sorts which houses the shower and the toilet. That's fine because it gives you the necessary privacy. The seats turn into beds at night, which makes the headquarters a bit more cramped and the logistics rather more challenging. I decided to get the upper bunker because a) I love the upper bunker, b) I'm small so I fit anywhere. You should have seen me climb up and down, like a mountain goat. Without using the ladder, or stepping on Jim's nose, either. :D A total pro.<SCRIPT><!--D(["mb","\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>We spent most of the time in the Observation Car, which has glass ceiling and big windows so you can watch the world go by*and get the nice warm sunshine, too.***As we entered Washington state, we got a view of snowed-capped mountains, and the valleys below, and that was breathtakingly beautiful.\n\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Part of the entertainment was a wine-and-cheese*tasting offered by the company.* It was great!* Unfortunately, since it was only "tasting" the portions of wine were small.* I kept asking for more with the excuse that, due to a faulty memory, I kept forgetting what the last sample tasted like, so I could not make comparisons.* Nobody fell for my clever trick, which leads me to believe someone must*have*tried before me.* Damn whoever that was.\n\u003c/div\>\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-size:14pt;color:black;font-family:Arial\"\>\n\u003cdiv\>\u003cbr\>\u003c/div\>\u003c/span\>We're in Spokane now.* We arrived here at 1:30 in the morning.* I was exhausted.* The trip is nice but it does knock one about a bit.* So much so that I decided to postpone my e-mails till we reached \n\u003cem\>terra firma\u003c/em\>.* You see, what with the train movement, typing becomes a bit difficult.* I kept pressing the 'p' when I wanted to press the 'm', etc. till there came a moment when spellcheck just shrugged it all off and ignored me.\n\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Ok, got to wrap it up.* Our cab is outside and Jim is pulling me off.\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Hugs to all.* Talk to you later.\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>*\u003c/div\>\n\u003cdiv\>Lucille\u003cbr\>*\u003c/div\>",1]);//--></SCRIPT>
We spent most of the time in the Observation Car, which has glass ceiling and big windows so you can watch the world go by and get the nice warm sunshine, too. As we entered Washington state, we got a view of snowed-capped mountains, and the valleys below, and that was breathtakingly beautiful.
Part of the entertainment was a wine-and-cheese tasting offered by the company. It was great! Unfortunately, since it was only "tasting" the portions of wine were small. I went into the 'please, sir, may I have some more' routine with the excuse that, due to a faulty memory, I kept forgetting what the last sample tasted like, so I could not adequately compare to the previous samples. Alas, nobody fell for my clever trick, which leads me to believe someone else must have tried before me. Damn whoever that was.
We're in Spokane now. We arrived here at the ungodly hour of 1:30 in the morning. I was exhausted. All I could think of was bed, bed, bed. My kingdom for a bed.
We got to our nice room and my adored spouse decided it would be a good idea to "get organized for next morning." I ignored him politely, got into bed, and died until 9:30 of the same morning, at which time I got up and prepared myself for the rest of the day.
Although the trip is nice, it does knock one about a bit. So much so that I'm still a bit woozy and dizzy. Same thing happens to me if I fly and the flight is a bit rocky. Middle ear problems, or so I'm told.
For the same reason, I decided to postpone my e-mails till we reached terra firma. You see, what with the train movement, typing becomes a bit difficult. I kept pressing the 'p' when I wanted to press the 'm', etc. till there came a moment when even spellcheck shrugged it all off and became uncooperative.
The highlight of the day was when we drove to Post Falls, Idaho (30 minutes drive from Spokane) where we bought a nice, spanking new Jeep Liberty, blue. We had made the arrangement via Internet in Maine, so all we had to do was the required paperwork and collect the car. We drove back to Spokane - that is, Jim drove; what between my blotto state, and not knowing the territory, I thought it would be wiser to leave the driving to him.
It's cloudy and coolish in Spokane. We walked about town for a bit, and spotted a nice Italian restaurant. Maybe we'll go there for dinner, although I must admit that, seeing as how I'm still suffering from train-lag (yes, there is such a thing; trust me), it wouldn't break my heart just to stay in the hotel and nibble something in the restaurant. We'll see.
Tomorrow, we drive to Coeur d'Alene - Idaho - where we'll be staying at the Coeur D'Alene Resort. And from there, we'll be driving south to Boise, our final destination. :thumb:
I shall keep you posted.
In the meantime, hugs to all.
Talk to you later.
Bye.