Train 171

Having had a relaxing dinner and good night’s sleep while 6” of snow fell, this morning we had an uneventful transition from hotel to AMTRAK station to train.  

It was a little nippy standing on the platform.  The train arrived about 10 minutes late.  We boarded anticipating that it might be quite full of people given airline delays.  We were pleased to find our car nearly empty.

Enjoying a double-seat each, we are now rolling through Connecticut, maintaining a good schedule for catching our next train in New York City.

Riding the Rails

Boarding AMTRAK's Silver Star at Penn Station, we travel the following route...

...making stops at....

Newark, NJ - Penn Station (NWK)

Trenton, NJ (TRE)

Philadelphia, PA - 30th Street Station (PHL)

Wilmington, DE (WIL)

Baltimore, MD - Penn Station (BAL)

Washington, DC - Union Station (WAS)

Alexandria, VA (ALX)

Richmond, VA - Staples Mill Road (RVR)

Petersburg, VA (PTB)

Rocky Mount, NC (RMT)

Wilson, NC (WLN)

Selma, NC (SSM)

Raleigh, NC (RGH)

Fayetteville, NC (FAY)

Dillon, SC (DIL)

Florence, SC (FLO)

Kingstree, SC (KTR)

North Charleston, SC (CHS)

Yemassee, SC (YEM)

Cary, NC (CYN)

Southern Pines, NC (SOP)

Hamlet, NC (HAM)

Camden, SC (CAM)

Columbia, SC (CLB)

Denmark, SC (DNK)

Savannah, GA (SAV)

Jesup, GA (JSP)

Jacksonville, FL (JAX)

Palatka, FL (PAK)

DeLand, FL (DLD)

Winter Park, FL (WPK)

Orlando, FL (ORL)

Kissimmee, FL (KIS)

Tampa, FL (TPA)

Lakeland, FL 

Winter Haven, FL (WTH)

Sebring, FL (SBG)

Okeechobee, FL (OKE)

West Palm Beach, FL (WPB)

Delray Beach, FL (DLB)

Deerfield Beach, FL (DFB)

Fort Lauderdale, FL (FTL)

Hollywood, FL (HOL) 

...before arriving in Miami tomorrow evening.

Train 97

It is fun taking the train, but sleeping on it is another matter.  The beds are ultra-firm (i.e. thin mattress on solid metal frame) and the train tracks provide an uneven ride.  It is sort of like laying on a hospital gurney being pushed down a cobblestone street. 

We have had two meals on the train, both good but definitely lacking the charm of the golden age of rail travel; plastic plates, dessert is a cardboard cup, etc.  At dinner we shared a table with a nice couple from southern Georgia.  He was a Battalion Chief in a Ware County Fire Department and she was a Jessup, GA police detective. 

We are in Georgia approaching the Florida border, running about 90 minutes behind schedule.  It is overcast and foggy.  The view most of the time is variations on swamp, fields and impoverished communities.  It nevertheless looks pretty good because of the complete, total, absolute, utter absence of snow.

12:45 Update:  We are now in Florida.  We had a chance to get off the train for about 15 minutes in Jacksonville.  Pam supervised some the of engine maintenance while we were there.

Having sampled 76 degree weather under sunny skies, it was back on the train.

South Beach: Part 1 of 3

- - - - from 8:00 PM on TUESDAY, MARCH 03 - - - - -

The train having come the entire way from New York City running almost two hours late, in the last three hours of the trip we made up nearly an hour.  We disembarked in Miami’s modest station at 8:00 PM, saying good-bye to our sleeping car attendant Rodney (“Like Rodney Dangerfield only a little funnier and a lot more alive.”) who did his job well and with humor.  

Collecting our bags we were in a cab and on our way to The Raleigh, arriving there about 8:45.  We checked in, dropped our bags in the room and joined my sister Connie and her husband Paul for a light supper.  Oh the joy of sitting outside in shirtsleeves at 9:00 at night.  

We retired for the good night’s sleep that had eluded us the previous night.

- - - - -  thru WEDNESDAY, MARCH 04 - - - - -

Looking out our hotel window and contrasting what we saw with what we had seen looking out our hotel room in Providence on Sunday evening put us in the right frame of mind for today's activities.

We started our day back out beside the pool having a leisurely breakfast.  

The four of us spent much of the day wandering around just taking in South Beach sites.  We were joined late in the day by David and Francis.  Her daughter Charlotte had recommended to Connie & Paul a restaurant called Barton G. Reservations having been made weeks ago, the six of us headed there to try it.

It was fun!

Bucket of Bones

Popcorn Shrimp

Bonsai Tuna

Pot Pies

- - - - -  until 8:00 PM on THURSDAY, MARCH 05 - - - - -

Another leisurely breakfast by the pool, then into cars to visit Vizcaya, the estate of James Deering who founded International Harvester which spawned John Deere. 

Photography inside the museum, which was his home, was not permitted.  There were some fascinating contents.  However, had I been Deering, the artistic director (Paul Chaflin) hired to give the house a 'harmonious theme' would have been at the bottom of Biscayne Bay.  One telegram I read suggested Deering might have been contemplating the same fate for Chaflin.  

Outdoors the house, the waterfront and gardens were impressive.  It must be the season for Sweet Sixteen parties.  We came across two young ladies in full attire having their picture taken.  It was amusing to watch.

What the mother of the girl in pink was threatening to do to the
girl’s cell phone if she did not stop texting was not very lady-like.

Back in the car, Paul proposed having lunch at The Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. Each year while on the Wooster College golf team, the team drove straight from Ohio to Florida to play in a tournament there.  While having lunch at the 19th Tee, Paul told us of his experiences and pointed out aspects of the course.  He is such a knowledgeable golfer it was fun and informative…and the food was good.

After lunch we drove through Miami and back over the causeway to Miami Beach.

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing by the pool.  

We had a great dinner at The Social Club although at first we were a bit skeptical about the place. 

South Beach: Part 2 of 3

- - - - from 8:00 PM on THURSDAY, MARCH 05 - - - - -

Connie and Paul having departed at 5:00 AM for Naples due to a commitment there, Pam & I were on our own starting today. 

 

After again enjoying a leisurely breakfast, we headed out on separate walks, both along the boardwalk (although much of it is concrete), but in opposite directions since it is my belief that “nice”, “long”, “power" and "walk” are words that never belong in the same sentence.  

After a light lunch, we lounged by the pool much of the afternoon. 

 

Towards sunset I went for a walk as activity on the beach was drawing to a close for the day. 

For dinner, we walked over to and then along Lincoln Street, picking a sidewalk restaurant where we had a nice meal with  great people watching. 

 

- - - - THRU 8:00 PM on FRIDAY, MARCH 06 - - - - -

Having been unsuccessful in getting out of the rut of having a nice, leisurely breakfast poolside, we went through that ordeal again this morning. 

Nourished, we decided to rent bicycles for a ride along the boardwalk.  The bikes had seen better days, but were adequate for the purpose.  We rode to south end of South Beach, then along the canal to the causeway before turning around to head back.  On the return trip we stopped at South Point Pier to watch the ship traffic and look north up South Beach.  

The weather forecast and our our own observations suggesting that the good weather of the morning would not last through the afternoon, we headed to the beach to kick back.  We watched a steady stream of advertisements literally go flying by.

And there was some people watching too. 

Rain arrived about 3:30.  When it let up around 6:30, we returned to Lincoln Street, enjoying dinner at a different sidewalk restaurant. 

- - - - TO 8:00 PM on FRIDAY, MARCH 07 - - - - -