All Aboard

I had a quick trip to Boston this week combined with a brief meeting in NYC so rather than hop on and off two flights and test my luck with thunderstorm delays I took the train.

The Acela is great - delays are rare, more legroom, no TSA hassles, and WiFi - and I try to take it whenever I go to NYC but it's been a long time since I've been any farther than that.

The trip brought back lots of old memories.

The first and I think only time I rode a train to Boston I was around 12 and my cousin and I were heading north to visit my sister (and have some cheese and bread...inside joke). I can't imagine parents letting two 12 year olds ride the train by themselves these days but it was a fun time back then to be free-range kids.

The last time I rode a train that far in the U.S. was 25 years ago. I was fresh out of college and in Providence for a business meeting. A line of severe thunderstorms were heading east and flights were getting cancelled one after another. My colleague and I decided to have a big lobster dinner, several drinks, and then hop on the overnight train back to DC. What a trip...it was a calm and quiet ride until we got to NYC and someone decided to start playing the guitar and singing at 4am.

This trip was as expected, relaxing and hassle free, and it was nice to catch the beautiful sunset as we sped through small coastal towns in Connecticut and Rhode Island.  It won't be another 25 years before I do this again.