Part 1 Of Epic Trip Report

Wednesday 2/25: Did not sleep the night before, not sure why, I wasn't nervous about the trip. Train left on time at 9:45am. The coach car was nearly empty, but the conductor wanted all the single riders to sit together. Kind of annoying. We were still sorting it out when the train started to move. It was such a smooth motion that I didn't notice till I looked out the window and saw that we weren't in the station anymore! I put in a reservation for lunch in the dining car, and napped for a bit. Lunch was an inexpensive and perfectly acceptable hamburger. I sat with three pleasant strangers, and we talked about train travel and current events, mainly Octomom. In Portland, my neighbor left, and I had both seats to myself for a little while. I treated myself to dinner in the dining car also, and had a nice meal, but very untalkative companions this time. The train filled up and after dinner, I had a seat-mate for the rest of the night. The seats reclined more than airline seats, have footrests, and are spaced much farther apart, but it was still pretty uncomfortable, trying to sleep next to a stranger. Earplugs, a sleep mask, and two TylenolPMs were very helpful. The rocking and swaying motions of the train are actually kind of pleasant. I only woke up when the train came to a stop.

Thursday 2/26: Arrived in San Jose at 10:30, only about 30 minutes late. Collected my bag and called magscanner who'd agreed to pick me up and take me to the hotel. Moments later, he arrives and we set off. It's warm, sunny, and I'm very happy to be there! The Alameda/El Camino Real corridor hasn't changed much that I can tell. I'm dropped off at the hotel, and my room is ready. Yay! I really needed a shower. After that, I call calimac. Time for lunch, but first I see their new apartment (very nice layout!) and I catch a lucky glimpse of one of their shy cats. wild_patience comes home, and we go to Kabul, an Afghan restaurant that was on my list of "places I must eat on this trip". Delicious! When I got back to the hotel, I decided to check out their little excercise room, and I did my 35 minutes of cardio. I felt invincible! It was so warm and sunny, afterwards I went for a swim in the outdoor pool. I had another shower, then I sat in the lobby and read and watched people come in. I'd called whumpdotcom and made plans for dinner. There were four of us- Whump, cynthia1960, amy_thomson and myself. We went to a Japanese place that was great. Then an Indian ice cream parlor with intense, exotic flavors. We dropped off Amy and Cynthia at the hotel, then Whump took me to see his apartment and meet his kitties. Lovely girls, one sat nestled next to me and allowed pettings, the other was more aloof. I did get a nose boop, and a tail pull, and I was satisfied with that. Whump handed me a spare laptop, and I got a much-needed LJ fix. Returned to the hotel utterly wiped out. Called Luke then collapsed.