Planes, Trains and Automobiles -- Day 4 (MT to WA and some reflections)

Our arrival into Pasco, WA was uneventful. We were more or less on time. We were awake well in advance because I'd turned off my cell phone data so the Fitbit was convinced we were an hour behind. [sigh] But Danny was, as always, a Starr, and even though coffee was supposed to be available in the car from 6-11 AM, he managed to have it ready at 5:15 AM so we could take a cup with us as we stepped off in Pasco. So sweet. 

The lounge car visible while in Pasco

We made it to Pasco!

I was delighted to find that Lyft worked in Pasco at such an early morning and was able to, within 12 minutes, pick us up and then take us to our hotel. Now, the reason for the hotel was not to sleep but to allow us to get a shower and wait in a holding pattern (and, let's be honest, a WiFi zone) until the rental car facilities at the airport opened. The hotel had a free shuttle to the airport, but I realized looking out our window that I could simply walk there in about seven minutes. The plan worked surprisingly well.

Back at that long stop in Shelby, MT, I had service on my phone, so I had confirmed with the (very nice and responsive) Courtyard by Marriott staff that we would be a late/early arrival and all was in order when we arrived. (While I'm not sure when I might ever need to stay close to the Pasco airport, this was a GREAT property.) So anyway, we picked up a rental car, enjoyed a scenic drive alongside the Columbia River Gorge, met up with my Mom's friend at a travel plaza in Biggs Junction and they went their separate way, leaving me for about a day on my own before my wife arrived in Pasco. 

Nice outdoor area at the Courtyard

What I did during those 24 hours is a separate story, but it did give me time to reflect on my Amtrak long haul experience. And here are some of the takeaways I had. 

Lack of WiFi is a feature, not a flaw. When I booked the trip and saw that there was no WiFi on the train, I freaked out a little bit. But I quickly realized that might be exactly what I needed to truly disconnect. I packed an old digital camera to take pictures (it's faster than whipping out my phone since the latter can't do facial recognition while I'm wearing a mask) and decided to just turn my phone off. I realized, of course, that it would be easier to upload pictures from my phone to this blog or other sites, so I just turned data and cellular service off. And once I'd made that decision, I didn't have to fight the temptation. There was probably service at most stops along the way, but it was just nice not even needing to think about it -- and especially to not have to check e-mail for work and let my amazing colleagues back me up so I could take some time off. I look forward to helping them in the same way on their own vacations.

You can figure things out if you try. Logistics were challenging on this trip not because of the logistics themselves, but because I had a pre-set way of how things would and should go and wasn't willing to spend more. But with a little bit of research, everything worked out well. Too often, it's just easy to dig in deeper rather than thinking of other options.

The ability to be amazed or curious is not dependent on one's age, race, religion or status. I think I saw pretty much every demographic flavor on the train. Families with children, solo travelers, retired couples, young people, multiple religions, every skin color on the rainbow. Everyone got along fine as we just enjoyed the views unfolding in our own ways. For a brief slice in time in this often-divided country, I felt a sense of community and shared experience that I rarely do these days. And I felt comfortable just being me -- even when that meant wearing a ratty -- I mean, "classic" -- 2005 Shamrock Shuffle race t-shirt that I had slept in overnight most of the day because we couldn't get to our suitcases until Danny was able to restore our room to the daytime setting. 

Yet there are always classes. Despite what I just wrote above, there were classes on the train based on whether you were in a sleeper car or not. As Amtrak is transitioning back to full menu service, for some reason only those in sleeper cars are allowed to eat in the dining car. So it felt really awkward to be passing through the other cars en route to the dining car. 

So many workers need our support. The whole train (before it split in Spokane) included four sleeping cars (which held about 120 people) and three coach cars (which held about 180 people), plus  the sightseeing lounge car, the dining car, and the two engines. Since only the lucky sleeping car passengers could eat in the dining car, that left the other 180 to either bring their own food (I don't recall seeing any food for sale near the train stops we made where there was time to get off) or to go to the cafe in the lower level of the sightseeing lounge car. In that cafe, there was only one person (Cindy) working. One. For the entire train and entire trip. Whenever she needed to take a break, there was an announcement made on the train that the cafe would be closed. I ventured down there once to get some water and I was the only person there at the time and I could just sense how tired she was and we started up a conversation. She was totally exhausted and stressed. She's just one of many people working under difficult conditions not only on Amtrak but in retail, restaurants and other places of work that have become much more difficult with changes brought by COVID. I need to do a better job of honoring their contributions and thanking them.

Keep looking out the window. It might seem like one wheat field is the same as another, but things change and pop up when you least expect them. And it is those surprises that really make the trip. I'm sure there are things that maybe only one or two of us may have seen from the train -- like a really interesting art thing near a field that appeared to be a giant metal hamburger followed by a wagon that contained gigantic metal French fries.  But it was gone before I could even reach for a camera. Same in life, though. If we're not paying attention to what's going on around us and are in our own little bubble, we'll miss the little gifts of serendipity and joy that life serves up.

Your life and way of life are not the only ones. I'm sure that most of us think that our way of living is the best way. Not that we might not want to change, but we have things figured out. When you look out the window, it can help you realize there are other ways of living that we hadn't considered before. I saw so many rusting hulks of farm equipment just sitting on farm grounds and wondered why that was and why they didn't just clean things up. But then I thought about it and realized A) it would be really difficult to load up a non-functional piece of equipment like a combine, B) you'd probably have to rent equipment to just move the things, C) if you're in the middle of rural America, there may not be a place to rent said equipment and there's likely also not a county dump where you could take the broken equipment. And so it sits. Or perhaps there's another reason. But the more we travel and take ourselves out of our comfort zones, the more our minds can be opened up to new ideas and ways of life and doing things and hopefully that will also be accompanied by kindness, compassion and acceptance of others who live a different way. 

This beautiful country is only the beginning. This trip reminded me of how much there is to see of just the United States and how I have barely scratched the surface even though I have technically been to most of the states. But then you think about the views out of a train in China or from a boat on the Amazon or even out the window of an airplane and realize there is sooooo much more to explore. So I can't wait for the next adventure. I'm looking forward to COVID being wrestled under control throughout the entire world so we can travel more freely again. But for now, I'll keep reminiscing about the rumble of the train rocking me almost to sleep, the beautiful images flashing by outside, and the community we had inside for just a few days.