Sunday, June 08, 2008

Summer vacation

After a lot of hemming and hawing about our need to take the kids on a bonafied family vacation we have settled on going to Glenwood Springs, Colorado on Amtrak. My happiest childhood memories include traveling to Colorado on the train with my mom and dad and brother. There was a piano bar and I remember banging out "Cold as Ice" by Foreigner on that piano because I was a hip, happening sixth grade graduate. I recall a magical trip. Fast-forward several years and Gary and I took Amtrak to Glenwood Springs and then again to Whitefish, Montana. We got on the train in Redwing, Minnesota for that northern trip, met Bob and Doug McKenzie's cousin Jim, and sat down to drink beer and play cards most of the way across Minnesota and North Dakota. We observed an official F.R.N. on the train who appeared to have many, many, many tools and toiletries strapped to his person in some special combination of a travel fanny-pack/tool belt. We had tons of fun and talked about the day when we could take our kids on a train trip.

So our trip to Colorado is booked and we have a sleeper car! Yes! They are hard to come by and they aren't inexpensive but the extra cost beats being trapped in a van with crying kids while we try to navigate the turns on I70. We hope.

After I purchased the tickets I went searching for Amtrak kid fun and reviews. This was the first review that came up when I googled it:

Amtrak-- Hell, But Slower

3 comments:

  1. OMG! I hope that your Amtrak experience is way better than his! When are you going?

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  2. Mrs. Rellim took the OMG right out of my (still laughing) mouth. That travel review made me snort out loud. And reconsider that Empire Builder vacation we've been thinking of trying with the 3 kids...
    If your trip by train ends up going well, maybe we'll consider it.

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  3. Anonymous10:34 AM

    That was an awesome trip!...all the hip shaking, and the miniature whisky bottles...and of course walking between the cars when you're 9 years old makes you feel like Indiana Jones. Have fun!!

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