scilly

There were other things that surprised me about the Amtrak trains.

For example both the SF to Chicago and Chicago to Seattle sections were 2 nights on the train, so basically each was 3 days. I looked at the menus for those trains.

The menus were almost identical on all trains, and the menu for each train was the same for all days .............. choice of 2 hot entrees and 1 vegetarian. There was no change from day to day.

I couldn't imagine having to eat basically the same meal each day for the 8 days we would have been travelling/

True, the meals were included in the cost of the sleepers (ie, over and above the train fare), but we would have been paying well over $US6,000 each if we had done that trip.

BristolUK

Are you sure that wasn't a prison train?

scilly

I only wish it was!!!

A few years ago, a couple we met told us to be wary of Amtrak, they loved train travel but had found themselves in a sleeping compartment with the toilet between the 2 beds, near the head end. They were very rude about Amtrak and couldn't be more complimentary about VIA if they had been paid,, even they were Americans!

So I checked when I was doing the look ups last month. The type of carriage used on the eastern US routes has the toilet out in the open compartment, but has upper and lower berths (beds), and the diagram I looked at showed the toilet was near the foot of the berth.

The lid of the toilet seemed to be upholstered with red "leather"

BristolUK

I found a diagram that suggested some sort of enclosure, although it may have been doorless but then I found this.




I'm not sure I'd want to sit on that chair.

And what about having to bend over to reach the sink?

scrubbedexpat091

How long ago?

Looking at their menus now, and while they are basically the same on all trains, they have 5 dinner options.

Via isn't much better, looking at the Canadian they have 4 choices for dinner.

Having taken both Via and Amtrak on long distance and short distance trains, I rate them both about the same, both are underfunded and doing the best they can with what the gov't lets them have. Passenger trains in North America are mostly a novelty and we are lucky the US and Canadian governments have any interest in even keeping passenger rail alive.

scilly

As I said earlier, I was looking online last month to do a trip around Thanksgiving next month.

Our last trip on VIA was last October, our next one will begin in December this year and is already booked.

So my information is about as up-to-date as it could be.

FWITW .......... this year's trips on VIA will be our 17th and 18th since 2004.

VIA has 4 choices of entree for dinner on a 4 or 5 day rotation with no entree being repeated on any of those menus. The Canadian takes 4 nights between Vancouver and Toronto (leaves one city late evening and arrives ca 9-10 am on the 5th day if they have been able to keep to their schedule), so each day is different. There are usually 3 choices of entree for lunch on 3 of the 4 days, with brunch on the 4th day, being a combination of a lunch and breakfast menu. One entree at every meal is Vegetarian, as I think it is on Amtrak.

You do learn which day might be the Rack of Lamb on the journey east or west when you have taken that train as often as I have

The Amtrak menu was the same every day on each of the trains, and the lunch menu was not much different. I was in fact restricted to a choice of only 2 out of those 4 .............. my trip would have involved 6 days on the train, which meant I would have had no change in my diet other than alternating those those 2 choices.

In addition, VIA will provide special meals if requested 10 days before travelling ..... my lactose problem is easily catered for on board, but they will provide all kinds of medical and religious alternates if warned. Amtrak said they could not do any special meals.


FWITW ....... the Amtrak sleeping compartments were smaller than those on VIA, and seemed even smaller because the toilet compartment took up some of the square footage, whereas the VIA toilet is an annex, or in addition to the compartment itself. VIA compartments are pretty darn small!

In general, Amtrak was more expensive even than VI, for the comparable levels that I was looking at

scilly

Bristol .... that's similar to the one that I found, except the sink was separate, and there was this bright red "leather" looking top to the toilet seat, which looked as though you could sit on it.

In addition there was another chair facing that one ..... so they'd be looking straight at the toilet

Largo

Congratulations, Hang in there
.
I have been here 59 years. as of Aug. 1st I arrived Aug. 1st 1957 I have moved around a lot. I did not forget, just too many other things going on -extended family, their problems as well as my own . For the most part it has been a good experience. However, I think Canada is best suited for younger people.
I never intended to stay so long. I thought I would retire to the UK when I retired. However, I took early retirement to take care of my daughter who was eventually diagnosed with brain cancer and after many years of pain and treatment sadly died on Sept.23rd. 2007, at 45 yrs. of age.I have tried to keep in touch with her children( my grandchildren) and hope to visit them around Thanksgiving.
I am 82 yrs old now.. My advice ; do not grow old in Canada, unless you have very strong family connections and a loving, close family . Sadly I don't .
All my life I have taken care of other people. Now when I could use a little help there is nobody. So I will do the best I can on my own as I have always done.
Sorry for butting in on your post. When I tried to do my own I was told either my user name or password was incorrect so many times , which is frankly b.s
Anyway Best wishes for many happy years to come.

Shard

Sorry for your loss and situation. But don't you think growing old anywhere without family or a strong support network is hard? Why would it be any different in Canada?

Largo

Again, I was told either my user name or my password was incorrect. Did the same procedure again , and guess what it worked. I do know about non - capital and capital sensitivity..
I do agree with Shard. My situation would probably have been the same ,no matter where I lived,or not There are so many different circumstances. in a life time. Such as, What if I had made a different decision in this particular situation, starting with if I had married somebody else or remained single. If I had stayed in UK instead of emigrating, though it was my idea to do so.
Much also depends on the relationship with your spouse, which I will not get into. This has nothing to do with Canada
I once read somewhere, that the older you get , the more you need the people who knew you when you were young. There may be something to that.
Mostly, it has been good, but
If someone had told me even 50 yrs. ago that I would be in this situation, I would not have believed it. C'est la vie!

beckiwoo

This may be me in the future as I'm an only child and I only have my mother as family in the UK. Its not something nice to think about but I agree that it would be difficult anywhere in the world - even in the UK, where I have slightly more support

Shard

So much technological change ahead of us. I don't think you need to worry about it.

Davita

Hi Largo
You sound depressed and I have sympathy but, I'm nearly as old as you (80), and still travel the world even I just earlier this year had a colon tumour removed.
You should follow that movie called "The Bucket List" and write down all the things you would have enjoyed given the opportunity earlier...of course you wont be able to fulfill any but it gives you something to do on your computer searches.
ie every Monday I open Yachtworld.com to see what new 100 foot yacht I would buy if I won the lottery...makes me go to sleep dreaming of sailing the oceans....I even put on my jaunty skipper's cap to create some reality, but I look really silly in the morning still wearing this crooked, crumpled cap.
>snipped<
I've never tried skiing so take great delight in watching utube ski accidents...and think...how stoopid.
>snipped<

scrubbedexpat091

Pretty sure my wife and I will end up mostly alone, neither of us are super close to our siblings, and we have no kids, so not much chance of adult kids and grand kids in our older years.

Shard

>snipped<

>snipped<

You're running one funky Canniversary thread here, Beckiwoo. Should link it to The Maple Leaf...!