We had some business up in Boston, so the whole family (wife, daughter and me) went up on Amtrak. Only a true masochist would drive from Baltimore to Boston, and even if the airplane is faster, I don't relish the short flights during the holiday season. We went up on a Sunday, the Acelas were a bit infrequent on Sunday morning, and I wanted to get in while there was still some daylight. And the fares on Sunday were crazy expensive. So we went up on Northeast Regional 162, leaving Baltimore at 7:03 AM, scheduled to arrive at about 2:20 PM. On the trip back today, we took the Acela 2159, departs Boston at 9:10 AM and gets into Baltimore at 3:20 PM, which was plenty of time for us to go over to the vet and pick up out cat. The fares for the Tuesday train were much cheaper. We did the Northeast Regional in business class and the Acela in First Class.
We got a good predawn departure from the house, having left the cat off at the vet the night before. Nice ride down to the station with no traffic. We had no problem finding a parking spot in the garage fairly close to the elevator, but I was surprised at how full the garage was at 6:30 AM on a Sunday morning. On entering the station, we were greeted by the Christmas tree and Hanukkah menorah. Uh-oh, Dunkin is not open at 6:30 AM on Sundays. This means breakfast in the cafe car! At least we'll be getting free coffee with our business class tickets.
The train arrived on time and made good time throughout the trip. In fact, we got into Boston about 10 minutes ahead of schedule. Despite the expense, I'm really glad we picked business class, despite the high fares. The assigned seats by themselves were worth the upcharge, and the extras legroom didn't hurt either. They were running a 9-car train that day, with 7 coaches instead of the usual 6, and the conductor was reminding the passengers that the train was sold out and to keep moving to find a seat. At least our seats were waiting for us and we didn't have to rush around looking for seats together.
The cafe car is still missing a plain old bagel on the menu, but I got the fresh fruit cup and a bialy sandwich, which was, unfortunately, nuked in its wrapper. My daughter got the egg white and cheese sandwich, and my wife got a muffin. Plus, free coffee, and a bottle of water included. Later for lunch I got the Caprese sandwich, which was OK, but I don't know why they can't get real baguettes, I mean Pret a Manger does them fie. Also, it was supposed to be a "sundried Tomato Caprese," but it was made with fresh tomatoes, and for those of you not from the northeastern United States, December is not fresh tomato season. But we got free sodas, plus another bottle of water.
Because of the extra long train, when we got to South Station, out location on the platform was somewhere around Back Bay. It was a long walk down the platform to the station, which was a bit of a problem for my wife. She isn't mobility impaired, but she gets winded on longer walks. On our return trip, we got the redcap to take her to the train in a wheelchair, which helped. Anyway, we made it into the station, still being disturbed after 3 years by the construction, and it was time to order out Lyft ride.
More to come.
We got a good predawn departure from the house, having left the cat off at the vet the night before. Nice ride down to the station with no traffic. We had no problem finding a parking spot in the garage fairly close to the elevator, but I was surprised at how full the garage was at 6:30 AM on a Sunday morning. On entering the station, we were greeted by the Christmas tree and Hanukkah menorah. Uh-oh, Dunkin is not open at 6:30 AM on Sundays. This means breakfast in the cafe car! At least we'll be getting free coffee with our business class tickets.
The train arrived on time and made good time throughout the trip. In fact, we got into Boston about 10 minutes ahead of schedule. Despite the expense, I'm really glad we picked business class, despite the high fares. The assigned seats by themselves were worth the upcharge, and the extras legroom didn't hurt either. They were running a 9-car train that day, with 7 coaches instead of the usual 6, and the conductor was reminding the passengers that the train was sold out and to keep moving to find a seat. At least our seats were waiting for us and we didn't have to rush around looking for seats together.
The cafe car is still missing a plain old bagel on the menu, but I got the fresh fruit cup and a bialy sandwich, which was, unfortunately, nuked in its wrapper. My daughter got the egg white and cheese sandwich, and my wife got a muffin. Plus, free coffee, and a bottle of water included. Later for lunch I got the Caprese sandwich, which was OK, but I don't know why they can't get real baguettes, I mean Pret a Manger does them fie. Also, it was supposed to be a "sundried Tomato Caprese," but it was made with fresh tomatoes, and for those of you not from the northeastern United States, December is not fresh tomato season. But we got free sodas, plus another bottle of water.
Because of the extra long train, when we got to South Station, out location on the platform was somewhere around Back Bay. It was a long walk down the platform to the station, which was a bit of a problem for my wife. She isn't mobility impaired, but she gets winded on longer walks. On our return trip, we got the redcap to take her to the train in a wheelchair, which helped. Anyway, we made it into the station, still being disturbed after 3 years by the construction, and it was time to order out Lyft ride.
More to come.
One guy took us back through Beacon Hill, which was a nice ride, we got a nice view of the skaters in the Frog Pond in Boston Common. That particular driver was just following his GPS, and when I asked him if we were in Beacon Hill, he didn't even know what I was talking about. Turns out, he was a Kurd who came from Turkey about 5 months ago. Say what you will about immigrants, but if this guy is enterprising enough to get a relatively new car 5 months off the boat and start hustling Lyft rides, he is more than welcome to stay here. Kind of reminds me of my grandparents, although they opened small stores rather than driving cabs. 
