OTRA - Part 2 Something good & something not so much...

The car attendant on the train from DC to Chicago referred to me using the dreaded S-word.  But in fairness, he may well have had access to my personal information on a preprinted manifest.  So no harm, no foul.   Several passengers referred to me as female.  That’s fine with me!

In discussion during the trip, the car attendant mentioned that he was getting a new job and that this trip was his last one.  So his replacement (temporary OR permanent) will see wifey and I together only on our return trip.  With the possibility of serving 40-plus customers per trip, his (or her) having only seen us together once makes it more likely that they won’t associate the face and the name for my planned mid-to-late August trip (which is still being worked on.)   That’s the good news.

The bad news is:  one of the Amtrak workers at Union Station in DC, with whom we both deal on many of our trips, remembers me AND my wife.  She now associates my wife and I as being a couple.  That’s a good indication I must take much more care regarding femininity there!  

With the exception of the dining car, where I was addressed as “Ma’am” the train staff on the San Antonio train generally avoided any gender-specific greetings for me (us).  However, on many occasions, other passengers interpreted me as female…

Though we’ve ridden a train over this route several times in years past, it’s always good to notice new sights.  Especially because the railroad parallels historic and legendary US Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica, Calif for part of its route in Illinois. (Rt. 66 is called The Mother Road, as described by its fans)  Much of it is in the country, but there are sections in small town rural America.   Below is a picture of a well-kept gas station along what was called The Mother Road…

And also a picture of the Palamar Motel, a historic property in the 50’s style, somewhere along the way.   One can also see occasional disconnected portions of the very old  original concrete roadway, all cracked and weed-grown.  But they still remain very much a part of the landscape there.

Next is a view of the St. Louis Arch – the gateway to the West – from the train on the railroad bridge over the Mississippi River, at sunset.    That’s a viewpoint you don’t get to see unless you’re on the train.

And lastly, a selfie of my typical attire for this excursion, taken alongside the train during a smoke stop at the Dallas train station.   Before we left, I asked wifey if I should bring a pair of stirrup pants in case dressing up might be appropriate.  She said "No, I'd rather you bring capris with pantyhose instead.  They'll be dressy enough for anything we might do - women like them because they look less casual than shorts.  And remember, you look nice in them. "  So that's what I brought, and will have to wear if we need to dress up.  

In case you wondered, that object rising like a huge tree trunk with holes in it behind and above the train is Dallas's  Reunion Tower.

The rest of the train travel to San Antonio was unremarkable....but on a train, it's always fun!

More to follow... 

Mandy