My Amtrak love affair

It has been a little over 35 years since I last boarded a plane and flew anywhere - let`s just say that after that last flight and the circumstances surrounding it - the death of a parent in a far away land and a less than smooth flight home with my mother and an already well founded fear of flying I opted to give up flying and use other modes of transportation.

For the most part this meant driving to vacation spots - until around 2000 when a friend who has never flown convinced me to take an Alaskan cruise but is was round trip out of Vancouver.

Fast forward to 2004 and a planned Panama Canal cruise leaving from Miami with the same friends - they booked Amtrak and I joined them and another couple and we had a great trip down.

That cruise got me hooked on both train and ships as methods of transportation.

After retirement at the end of 2006 I started booking more and more cruises knowing that Amtrak could get me to most of the ports that I would be embarking or disembarking from.

That is why when I saw this cruise starting and finishing in North American cities I was more than happy to try and book it.

Similarly in a couple of years I have on my bucket list to visit Europe - want to visit the paternal homeland of Slovakia to visit the small town near the Polish border that my grandparents came from.
It would entail a train ride to the east coast, a TA crossing and then train or cruise travel in Europe and then a repeat TA crossing and train ride home.

I got to visit albeit under unhappy circumstances mentioned above my maternal homeland of Ireland so while it would be nice to return whether that will fit in on that trip remains to be seen.

I have used Amtrak to get to or from, Boston, Miami, New York City, New Orleans and Los Angeles.

I generally take a bus to and from Vancouver to Seattle to make connections there for the longer train rides.

My favorite route is the Empire Builder from Seattle to Chicago, followed by the Coast Starlighter to Los Angeles.

For this trip it will be Vancouver to Seattle to Chicago to Washington DC and onto Fort Lauderdale. I always take a sleeper as it includes your meals etc.

For the trip home - it will be the Coast Starlighter from San Francisco to Seattle and then either the Cascades train or bus to Vancouver.

Will book the train as soon as I know that my Visa has been approved.

Next up - my thoughts on some of the ports that I will be visiting.

Cheers!

D

Just a short update July 5, 2012

Haven't posted anything for awhile so thought I would drop by and post a few words.

As I am approaching the 6 months to sail away date there are some matters that need attending to.

1. Passport renewal - mine expires within the six month time frame so yesterday I headed to the passport office in downtown Vancouver to renew it - I had filled it out on-line, printed and brought it with me - they did ask why I was renewing so early but when I told them that I needed to apply for a Visa that was good enough for them. It will be sent by registered mail to me in about two weeks  - the cost was $87.00 which includes the consular fees.

2. Brazilian Visa - just as soon as I get the new passport I will take care of this - there is an consular office about 7 blocks from my place which is where I will go once I have completed the on-line part of the application.

3. Yellow fever shots - this has been the subject of much debate among us on the cruise critic web site as to whether we need to have it or not - Princess says it is a must but in checking both the CDC and Brazilian site etc it is not so clear - there is also much discussion about whether anyone over the age of 60 should get that shot and I fit that age bracket - many of those cruising who are over 60 have had the shot and not have any ill effects - as a reasonably healthy person I will check with my doctor and also consult the nurse at the travel clinic and see what they say.

4. Amtrak and travel insurance - just as soon as I have the Visa and now that I have the finances for the trip arranged I will book the train and buy the insurance.

5. Packing - with such a long trip I will need to be frugal in what I take - there are laundromats on the ship which I intend to use to cut down on the clothes that I need - because of the variety of weather we will encounter that also means a greater array of clothes. We also have 8 formal nights - I will bring dress slacks and shirts and a tie but no sports jackets - just too bulky - if they won't let me in the dining room on those nights I will just use the buffet.

6. Excursions - while you see in a previous post I have booked some private excursions I am waiting for the ships to be posted. Rio is the one port that I don't know what to expect - while I have a pretty good idea of what I want to see because of the huge and unpredictable crowds I don't know how well the tours will be able to get around and I am hesitant to set out on my own.

Cheers - still plan the story of my love affair with Amtrak.

D