I love train travel. Not sure why really. Maybe because of the relaxing rhythm of the train. Maybe because it feels like an adventure, like I’m going somewhere. Maybe because it is fun.
Maybe it’s because I can sit idle for hours at a time, and look out the window at the picturesque scenery. Sure I could read or sleep. Sure I could have brought a laptop and utilized the wireless internet. But then I’d be missing the opportunity to see the landscape, to think, to feel, to watch the world go by.
This was my experience on VIA Rail Canada.
As we slowly made our way out of Montréal at 17:55, passing some graffiti, a few freight rail cars, and an industrial part of Montréal, we crossed over the St. Lawrence River on a bridge. I was on my way to Québec City, a three hour train ride. This journey was my link between the two cities, the heart of my travels.
I was traveling in Business class, complete with excellent service, beverages, and a menu of Canadian cuisine. An appetizer of a scorched Feta cheese crouton, with an olive, tomato and basil salad. A main course of grilled salmon, with mango chipotle butter, served with turmeric basmati rice and broccoli. A dessert of passion fruit and banana chocolate petits fours. A glass of red wine. Not to mention the hot towel to wash my hands with before my meal.
Passing farms and cornfields; soccer fields and cemeteries. Neighborhoods with homes, and children’s swing sets in backyards. The train blowing its whistle at each appropriate crossing.
Rural Canada. Who lives here? What do the people do for work? For fun? How did they get here? What are their lives like? These are unanswerable questions I ponder as I watch the world go by.
I wonder what it would be like to take VIA Rail Canada all the way across the country of Canada, from coast to coast. From Vancouver, British Columbia to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and dozens of places in between. Looking through the booklet that I received certainly made this thought quite intriguing. Seeing mountains, lakes, waterfalls, rivers, prairies, forests, wilderness, and skylines. I love sleeping on trains. Sleeper Touring and Economy classes are available.
The sun was setting, and storm rain-filled skies appeared ahead. Then a lightening bolt.
Vegetable gardens. Barns and silos. Trees and more cornfields and cows and grass.
Light rain on the window, and crossing another river. Piles of wood ready for a fire stacked up in a yard.
My large, comfortable seat reclines. Way back. I don’t want to fall asleep though. So I leave it up. I want to keep watching the world go by.
Another lightning bolt in the distance. Train slowing down. Cattails and other plants. A freight train passing in the opposite direction. Train stopping momentarily. Yellow flowers.
Going again. Purple flowers. Getting darker outside, the sun continuing to set. Rain stopped.
A full faint orange moon peeking just above the horizon, with a wisp of clouds across its middle.
Taking the train was easy. While my reservations were made for me, and my ticket was mailed to me, purchasing a ticket online at VIA Rail Canada is convenient, fast, and secure. Reservations can be made over the phone, at most train stations, at some self-service kiosks, or through a travel agent. After your reservations are made, your tickets can either be picked up in person, at a train station that has a ticket counter, or by printing them at a self-service kiosk. Alternatively, you can print your booking confirmation as an e-ticket.
I was told to arrive at the train station in Montréal only a half hour before departure. As I stood in a fast-moving line to board the train, the attendant actually told me that because of my Business class ticket, I could have sat in a lounge and had priority boarding. Oh, well. Didn’t matter to me really. Either way, boarding the train was simple.
In fact, Economy class is also available on VIA Rail Canada. It features on-board snack and bar service, and if you have kids, they provide activity kits. Sounds like fun for the whole family; and for the budget traveler.
The full moon rising higher. Darkness falls. The lights of Québec City approach.
I wasn’t ready to leave the train when we pulled into Québec City. While my three hour ride was relaxing, adventurous, fun, and scenic, I really wanted to ride more. Whether it be three hours, three days, or three weeks, VIA Rail Canada is a great way to travel.
Perhaps someday I will have the opportunity to ride again with VIA Rail Canada. With many options for rail passes, VIA Getaways, and other train packages, maybe I will take that cross-country trip across Canada that I contemplated earlier…so that I can watch the world go by.
Courtesy of Montréal Tourism, Québec City Tourism, and VIA Rail Canada (links below), I recently returned from a tour of these two cities. This is the introduction to several blogs about my travels.
Sweet (and scenic) Travels!
VIA Rail Canada
Québec City and Area
Tourisme Québec
Bonjour Québec
Tourisme-Montréal
Photo Credits:
Map from VIA Rail Canada website
Train and Canadian Rockies from VIA Rail Canada booklet (not seen on my trip)