Monday, July 09, 2007

South Station

tired puppy
Despite the late start, delays along the way, and my impatience, the Lake Shore Limited arrives in Boston South Station only 15 minutes late from its scheduled 9:45 pm arrival time. Once again the Amtrak folks have squeezed the proverbial rabbit out of the hat with this one. We had been over an hour late at one point, and somehow – mysteriously – we are almost on time. One of the passengers comments that if it arrives anytime with 12 hours of its intended arrival time, Amtrak considers it a good day.

While we make the last few miles from Framingham, I hear the people behind me talking and sounding confused about South Station, North Station and Back Bay. I enquire and learn they too are from Maine – Presque Isle, Maine. I thought I had won the prize that day for the longest trip. But theirs from LA, through the southwest, up to Chicago and then to Boston beat mine; and they still had a 10 hour drive ahead of them.

They were on their way to a hotel for the night, a bus ride to Portland at 8:00 am and then the long drive home. I kinda wished I had introduced myself earlier it might have been fun chatting with them more. But I was in a bit of a foul mood as I was expecting the train to be as much as two hours late and worried about my friend Bob having to wait for me.

I grabbed my bags from the platform and headed out to Atlantic Ave and met Bob. We were back at his house in Wells by midnight and after a beer and a little time to decompress, it was bed and dreamland for this tired puppy.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

well, I suppose you are safely at home by now! Any train I have ever taken has been habitually late. It is not the mode of travel for those in a hurry to escape their departing station (Cary Grant notwithstanding...). Me, I would board any train any time any where.