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Our trip in coach back to Miami was fine. A final reminder of the last part of the trip was provided when we crawled through Broward County, from Fort Lauderdale through the Miami-Dade County line. No reason was given for this, but when I heard the news that evening, I found out that a tornado had touched down in Hallandale. A tornado warning having been issued for the area, I then understood why once again we had been crawling.
We thoroughly enjoyed our trip, even with its mishaps. We fully expected many things that occurred, and even the things that we did not expect merely added to the adventure. For better or worse, this is what one must expect when one travels on trains in American today. Perhaps when Congress decides to abandon the ridiculous notion that passenger rail should be profitable--when nowhere in the world is it profitable, and when private industry got out of American rail 30+ years for that very reason—we will see a change for the better. Perhaps when passenger rail ($521 million per year) is subsidized at rates similar to the airline ($6 billion) and auto ($4 billion) industries, we will have better service. In the meanwhile, I am amazed that Amtrak does as well as they do with the meager funding they receive. As in all areas, the better-informed one is and the more one knows what to expect, the easier time one has. We were informed and we knew what to expect, so we were able to relax, take in the sights and enjoy our fellow passengers. I, for one, am glad we took this trip.
RRRICH Member # 1418
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Chatter- Great trip report!!!! I enjoyed reading all segments of it. It sounds like you had great AMTRAK crews to work with, and your wife sounds like a wonderful person!! You are a lucky guy!!
Just one comment -- when you had to get off the Sunset in Sanford on your next-to-final leg, I assume you know that you could have caught the Silver Star to Miami right from Sanford, without having to take the bus to Orlando...
zephyr Member # 1651
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Excellent trip report. Please consider posting it on Trainweb's travelogue section.
CHATTER Member # 1185
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I knew that we could have caught the Silver Star at Sanford; in fact, this was the plan if the Sunset Limited had been much later than it was. However, we knew where we wanted to eat in Orlando, and that was closer to the Orlando station than anything is in Sanford. There is no staff at Sanford (minus one guy) at that early hour, whereas there is at Orlando. So for security and aesthetic reasons, and to avoid having to reticket or otherwise re-explain our situation at Sanford, and with plenty of time available, we stayed on the bus to Orlando. Thanks.
irish1 Member # 222
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enjoyed your travelogue. sounds like you sampled the good and bad of train travel. glad your trip worked out. i agree your wife must be a saint.
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