Page 213 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL EATING IBERIA

in the memorable movie "Sleepless in Seattle." And Amtrak has another newfound feather
"Tiramisu," Reiner says, off the cuff. in its hat -- climate change.
"What is tiramisu?" Hanks asks. Increasingly, the system is being heralded
as a way to minimize our collective carbon foot-
"You'll find out," says Reiner.
print by getting out of cars and planes and into
"Well, what is it?" trains, unbeatable as transportation among con-
"You'll see!" cerned environmental citizens. We found this out
"Some woman is gonna want me to do it to her on our trip -- people going out of their way to take
and I'm not gonna know what it is!" said Hanks. the train for this very reason.
"You'll love it," says Reiner. We started up the coast from San Diego on
Well, we didn't try tiramisu at the market- Amtrak's frequent Pacific Surfliner service. touch-
ing the beach at Del Mar, Carlsbad and San
place, but there were plenty of other temptations
Clemente before changing trains at Los Angeles
for foodies and others as we walked among the in-
door stalls. Fresh fish, especially salmon, called out Union Station, an architectural gem.
for us to sample. There, waiting for us, the gleaming two-level
Coast Starlight was ready for our trip to the Pacific
Breakfast? No worry. Our hotel had a full-scale
Northwest.
Starbucks just off the lobby. My credit card had
just alerted me to a 10 percent discount offered on We quickly found our accommodations on
purchases at the coffee behemoth. And, if you're a the lower level of a sleeping car. Home for us would
real Starbucks groupie, you can take a selfie out- be an enclosed compartment measuring roughly 6
side the original shop, still pouring lattes, across 1/2 feet by 3 1/2 feet, with two facing seats during
from Pike Place Market. It was established in daylight and a big picture window. At night, the
1971. attendant converted the
space into two beds,
Further keeping the cost of this adventure
down, my digital buddies at Lyft had emailed me a bunk-style. The top bed
had a strap to buckle
10 percent off voucher, which made getting
yourself in if the ride got
around Seattle cheap, when combined with $2.75
express bus service. rocky and a personal
reading light along with
This was going to be a good trip, I thought. Af-
an area for essentials
ter all, I'm a die-hard rail fan. But I had strayed. My
such as glasses and wal-
rail adventures in recent years have taken me to lets. Down the hall, just a
Europe, especially Great Britain, where there's an
few paces, were several
endless assortment of high-speed and quirky
toilets and a separate
back-country routes with frequent service. I had shower compartment
stayed clear of Amtrak, fearing it would be beset
with towels.
with problems over a lack of funding and severe
Despite our 6 a.m.
operational troubles.
start in downtown San
Not so, we found. The Wall Street Journal Diego, the trip north was
summed up my feelings in a recent story. "For a
everything I had hoped it
company coming off its best year ever, Amtrak
would be -- surfers along California's coast, rolling
faces a strange challenge in 2020: convincing its fields of gold grasslands, seemingly endless groves
owner, the federal government, that the railroad is
of almond trees and back-yard views through the
running in the right direction.
Bay Area with glimpses of San Francisco's sky-
"The national passenger railroad reported an scrapers. But stark reality also came to life as we
adjusted operating loss of $29.8 million in the fis- passed track-side homeless camps in cities large
cal year ended Sept. 30, the best financial perfor- and small along the way.
mance in Amtrak’s nearly 50-year history."

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