By Train to Washington

Tom arranged a trip to Washington for me. I wanted to go there by train. I wondered if American roads were much different from ours. I also wanted to see more of America. You don’t see much from a plane, do you? Tom wanted to book tickets, but I insisted on making all the necessary arrangements myself. After some time in America I wanted to see if I could manage it. There was no problem with train tickets. We bought them on the day of the trip at the booking office. As far as I remember, we paid about a hundred dollars for our one-way tickets.

Traveling by train is slower than that by plane, but it has its advantages, too. It’s cheaper, safer and more comfortable. Modern trains have comfortable seats in all passenger carriages. From the comfortable corner seat of a railway carriage you have a splendid view of the whole countryside. And there are sleeping-cars and dining-cars which make even the longest journey enjoyable. If you are hungry, you can have a meal in the dining car; and if the journey is a long one you can have a wonderful bed in a sleeper. But that’s if you can sleep on the train, of course. Some people can’t. They feel tired and worn-out after a night on the train. Well, they can take a day train.

However, hardly anyone can enjoy sitting on a train for more than a few hours. Train compartments soon get cramped and stuffy. It is almost impossible to take your mind off the journey. Reading is only a partial solution. During the day, sleep comes in snatches. At night, when you really want to go to sleep, you rarely manage to do so. So you arrive at your destination almost exhausted.

Anyway, I prefer traveling by train to traveling by plane. I feel safer and more relaxed in a train compartment. With trains you have speed, comfort and pleasure combined.

The American passenger railroad is called Amtrak. On most trains you have the choice between First and Second (Economy) Class. First Class seats are more spacious and cost 50% more than the Second Class fare. We boarded the train at Pennsylvania Station. After we were seated, the conductor collected the tickets. He took our tickets and placed seat markers above our seats. I saw our destination – Washington D.C. – written on them. It took us just about three hours to reach Washington. Two hours and fifty minutes to be exact. On the train we had some pizza and cold drinks. Tom said he had always traveled by plane to Washington. It was convenient because the airport in Washington was so close to downtown. But Union Station was literally within sight of the Capitol. The train arrived at the station exactly on time and we got off.

The hotel was within walking distance from the station. We had made hotel reservation from New York.

At the hotel we checked in without any problems. The desk clerk confirmed our reservation for a double room. We filled out registration forms and got the key. The bellman took our bags up and I wondered how much I should tip him. Tom said a one-dollar tip would be okay. The room had all the necessary conveniences and after a light snack and a short rest we decided to go sightseeing.

3.1 C hoose a), b), or c) to complete the sentences below.

1. Alex wanted to go to Washington by train because it was … than by plane.

a) much cheaper

b) less dangerous

c) more interesting

2. The great advantage of traveling by train is that you can …

a) eat on the train

b) see the countryside

c) sleep on the train

3. The conductor placed seat markers above the passengers’ seats with … written on them.

a) their names

b) their seat numbers