| AMTRAK - SOUTHWEST CHIEF - July 10, 2003
On Thursday, July 10, my journey back to Kansas City and a new job started. After spending seven long months in San Diego, I hopped on board Amtrak's comfy Southwest Chief and took the two day trip through scenic Arizona and New Mexico back to the Midwest. This particular train ride starts in downtown San Diego and goes to the main Los Angeles station, via a train called the Pacific Surfliner. The Pacific Surfliner is a newly commissioned train and is particularly comfortable and accommodating, as are most coastal lines. After a brief wait at the Los Angeles station, I boarded the Southwest Chief, which I have ridden numerous times over the last 15-20 years. The Southwest Chief leaves LA in the afternoon and passes through California and part of Arizona during the night. Throughout the following day, you proceed through Arizona, New Mexico and the tip of Colorado, stopping in Albuquerque and other small towns. The highest point of the trip is when you cross over the Continental Divide at Raton Pass. Otherwise, you are subjected to the relatively flat vistas of the Southwestern desert. After another night of traveling through the plains of Kansas, you are deposited at Union Station in Kansas City, allowing the train to continue on its way to Chicago. |
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