I actually slept heavily last night, alternating between one dream and the other, not quite sure if I was still home or on a train speeding past small towns in Kansas. What confirmed it was the first spoken thing by the person next to me: "It is hard getting a good night's sleep on a train, isn't it?" I knew he was having trouble sleeping. He fidgeted and changed positions multiple times before I dropped off at 9:30 or so. He was also awake a while before I woke up. "About half an hour ago it was snowing outside."
Now it's an endless vista of snowy fields, playgrounds for horses and birds. Thousands of leafless trees frame the picture, sometimes block the view, but not a single picture or set of words could fully capture the hundred new definitions of "beautiful" that I've seen so far. I sit here and bask in the sun coming through teh observation car, awaiting the metropolis coming in five hours, Chicago.
(12:12pm - Pulling out of the Mendota, Illinois depot with two more stops until the windy city!)
(1:28pm - Chicago Union Station at last and yes, snow everywhere! )
Wednesday, December 19th
2:07pm
The last leg
I am definitely feeling the effects of being on the train for four days. My butt is numb, I'm exhausted and in need of a shower, and I'm really anxious to get home with some real food in me.
The Chicago to DC trip was evenful, after having wandered through the cold, rushed streets of downtown Chicago. I stood in front of the Sears Tower, touched snow piled up against one of the bridges, and I thought everything was going to be easy and peaceful from that moment on. I returned to the station to find familiar faces waiting for the train to DC. I thought, "You get to keep a lot of the same friends? This is so awesome." We were checked in and began our mad dash to the train, dragging heavy carry-on luggage behind us. Excitement was building. I got to the door and I should have asked to sit with Danny, the Chicagoan college student I met in line. Instead, what came out was "Can I have a seat with an outlet?" He said "Yes" and assigned me seat number 35.
[Warning: the description becomes graphic at this point. It may not be suitable for people with weak heart or stomach conditions.]
Instead of an outlet, I had to sit in the shadow of a man and a half, the largest and stinkiest resemblance of a human I had seen on the trip thus far. I noticed him chowing down on a bunch of bread sticks from Pizza Hut in line, but didn't even have a moment of dread that I'd have to sit next to him. He smelled like a fiery hot soup of dead fish and sweaty socks, an unfortunate circumstance of not bathing for days and maybe an infection or seepage somewhere. I have been close to people who smelled like they shit on themselves. This was worse. I stood, staring at the seat number, and then had a gag reflex I had to walk off, my eyes tearing as I approached the back of the car. In fact, I only had to sit next to him when I showed the conductor my ticket. I focused on mouth breathing for the two minutes, and then spent 95% of my time on that leg in the lounge/observation deck with Danny, who absolutely made up for my bad luck with the toxic fat man. Even better, he stunk up the whole car he was in, and I never had to deal with it for long. I slept in the observation deck next to the largest windows on the train, and was accompanied by a good number of people within radius of the guy.
Upon arriving in DC, I lost Danny, but immediately put my bags in storage and set out to discover the city. I walked all the way out to the Vietnam Memorial Wall and spent an hour there after having passed the museums, the Capitol building, and the Jefferson Memorial. I spoke with a Vietnam Vet in an area close to the wall, and then slowly and reverently, I walked up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, let myself appreciate the moment and sat down on teh steps looking out across the reflecting pool. Yeah, even as I write this, it's still amazing to me that I was there. I helped take a few photos of people, and then I walked back to the station.
I found a handful of my fellow travelers there and we stuck close together, relieved and happy that this was our last leg. Although this last part has been a little chaotic - this was the fastest and bumpiest ride thus far - time seemed to slow when my friends left the train:
James, the engineer in Jacksonville, FL
Don, who never flies and always travels by train, in Orlando, FL (A lot of people got off in Orlando)
Jay, one of our loudest snorers and definitely our loudest cell phone talker, in Fort Lauderdale, FL
And here I am, with four hours left until I see my family and that shower I so desperately need. As I look out my window at a bright moon at daytime peeking through two clouds, I'm really thankful that I made this trip and saw what I saw. Yes, I have to do it again in two weeks, but this has already changed me.
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