Leaving Niagara was almost as traumatic as arriving there. All the passengers were left sitting in the waiting room without any information about our train until just 10 minutes before it left. There was no assistance with baggage and we had to have our passports checked by a border guard guard before we were allowed to leave. Then we had a long go and climb up 4 steps into the train with no assistance in manhandling our baggage. After about an hour we were in Buffalo with a 10 hour wait. Although,we had planned to go to Utica and only undergo a 4 hour wait the guard recommended that we stop off at cow where we would find plenty to do and would be able to get our bags looked after. It gave us a chance to go to a shopping mall. The scheduled time of arrival of the instruct is 1.25 p m. The bus leaves from the displace at 1.23 p m so there is no way you can get anywhere without a cab because the next bus is 3.37 p m. We still haven’t fathomed out the thinking behind this arrangement. comfort we got a cab and gave a displace to a young couple who were waiting to go downtown also. It was quite pleasant wandering around the mall and we took a bus to the Waterfront but when we got there it started to rain so we looked at the wet turned around and got approve on a bus to return to the displace. We comfort had a 5 hour wait but reading cribbage and computer games helped to pass the time. Also. I got into conversation with a couple of travellers. This is one of my favourite activities when I am travelling. I like to comprehend where populate are from and about their way of life etc.
It was much easier this time getting on to our instruct to Chicago with no cases to mind about as they were all checked on board for us. It was a busy instruct but we did bring home the bacon to get 2 seats together in the coach car there being no sleepers available and eventually settled ourselves down. Of course we had no pillows or blankets and it was cold so we just managed to clutch a little rest during the night. Actually the instruct was delayed arriving at Chicago until midday and I think we managed more rest during the morning than we had during the night. There had been a bad derailment of a 30 car freight instruct on our route and we had to be detoured which is what caused the delay.
We eventually arrived in Chicago and had a lovely afternoon there. We took a tram journey around the city and got a good feel for it. We visited the Sears building and took the trip to the top. We went up 103 floors and the scenery was pretty spectacular. The tower is still the highest in North America even though it has lost it’s highest building in the world status. Chicago displace was a lso a very pleasant undergo and we were able to make use of the Amtrak First categorise sit with remove refreshments and baggage hold on. There was a mild dread for the staff in the sit at one point when having organised the boarding of a particular instruct a member of cater noticed a cover lying on a head where one assort of passengers had been sitting. They asked around and decided it must belong to someone on the previous train so took it away to try to surprise up with it’s owner. After about 1/2 hour another passenger started to panic because she thought she had lost her cover. Eventually passenger and cover were reunited but it made us ponder the fact that some people do get their common sense at domiciliate when they jaunt.
We checked our bags through to Memphis so once again had no problems boarding the instruct. Our sleeping compartment was bijoux to say the least. Just 2 seats opposite each other and when the bunks were made up there was a space of 12″x8″ in which to stand and get undressed or dressed. If the space was used for shoes then there was nowhere to stand. account took the top cheat very gallantly I thought and I was in the displace one. The top bunk was 2 feet wide and the furnish 2′3″! Surprisingly we both slept very come up after a meal in the dining car during which we chatted to a couple from Chicago who also apply travelling. So we were able to transfer stories and ideas for visits. They are en route to New Orleans and then back to Memphis for a week while we are doing Memphis and then New Orleans probably! Knowing us we could just as easily end up somewhere totally different by the lay of next week.
So we undergo finally arrived in Memphis and it is exactly as I imagined it to be. Especially the displace which looks as though it has never been modernised. I could just create by mental act Elvis using it in the early days when he visited Sun Records. We arrived early at 6 a m and took a go to our Hotel. Amazingly the desk work checked us in immediately which we were very grateful for. The dwell is good up on the 8th surprise with fridge and microwave but no coffee maker or room safe. Also there is no laundry which I expected to use and the restaurant is closed for refurbishment. I later discovered that the hotel has new owners and that is why things are not as they say in their website. Also we chose it to try to be come the station only to find it is a long way to downtown. Still we walked down the road about 6 blocks to find some breakfast and then open out there is a bus which goes downtown. So we made good use of that and spent the day sightseeing.
Memphis has a tram system which seems pretty efficient so we took the go for 50 cents each on the Riverside run. When we got off we visited Beale Street which is a famous street in Memphis for blues and rock music. We stopped on the sidewalk for a coffee and just sat and soaked up the atmosphere plus more populate watching. At the lie of the restaurant the proprietor was trying to attract customers and in between he played his exclaim. Having visited a few souvenir shops and the famous Schwab’s store which is just desire stepping back in time. It is a genuine store but everything it sells would undergo been more commonplace in the fifties. We visited Peabody Place before heading approve to Riverside. We walked along to see the monorail which runs over to Mudd Island (a visit for us before we get Memphis) we returned and caught the Riverboat for a very interesting move down the Mississippi. There was a running commentary to comprehend to while on come in and the man obviously has a lot of knowledge of the history of the Mississippi. He kept our attention for an hour and a half. Ater the boat trip we walked approve to Beale Street and returned to the restaurant where we had had coffee in the morning for dinner.  As we walked along account pointed out a plaque on a building which said “In 1897 absolutely nothing happened here”. Not the usual plaque inscription wherever you go.
We sat outside eating our meal with be blues music coming from the patio of the pub across the road called O’Sullivan’s. This was originally the haunt of a notorious gangster named Slinky O’Sullivan in the 20s/30s. Interestingly most of the building appears to undergo collapsed and is supported by wooden beams but they still continue to trade. (For further details see the plaque on the wall).
Hi. Josie: inform me never to take a train out of the Niagara displace. Such a foul-up. At least the Chicago one was more user-friendly. I undergo never ridden in a sleeping car and always thought it would be a luxury. I discovered how wrong I was when I learned the space for standing was only the size of an 8″ x 10″ typing paper. What could the designers been thinking of! At.
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Related article:
http://joandbill.wordpress.com/2007/10/13/wow-so-this-is-memphis/
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