All Aboard....Train 1

 ALL ABOARD!  

Hey cyberspace, welcome to my first official blog post.  At this very moment I am on VIA Rail’s transcontinental passenger train known as The Canadian. Along for the ride with me is my trusty travel companion and lovely wife Sandra.

I am doing a little experiment that you can all benefit from if you follow my blog for the next 4 nights and 3 days.  Well actually anyone can benefit from it after that too, because it will always be archived somewhere on here, at least that’s what my experienced blogger companion tells me. I hope that by combining my love for travel along with my love for photography you will be able to live the journey along with us. As we travel the many miles from Toronto to Vancouver I will attempt to capture the beauty of Canada through script and images. Our route takes us through 4 time zones, and many geographical landscapes such as the Canadian Shield, the Prairies, and the beautiful Rocky Mountains ultimately ending at the gorgeous Pacific coast in Vancouver.

We arrived at Union Station around 6:30 p.m. where we were able to check our baggage so we didn’t have to lug it around, and were able to go out for dinner nearby. When you travel by train you have two options; leave your baggage with the main check in station until just one hour prior to boarding or for a nominal fee/tip basis you can have a purser take care of everything. We chose that route and for $10 our baggage was in our room upon arrival.

We boarded our train last night (March 15^th) at 10 pm. Prior to boarding we had the opportunity to hang out in the Panorama Lounge at Union Station. This lounge is provided for VIA Rail passengers travelling on the Canadian. They provide complimentary refreshments, take preferential dining reservations and some humour to boot.

Once on board we were escorted to our tiny refuge for the next 4 days by our service attendant Jason.  Our beds were already made up for us so we really couldn’t grasp the whole concept of how we were going to adapt to the layout before us.

We were quickly encouraged to attend the Champagne welcome aboard party that’s held in each observation car, and we had no problems obliging.  Not only do you have the opportunity to indulge in free booze, but you get to meet fellow passengers and acquaint yourself with the staff. Allow me to introduce you to our new Czech friend Jara.

After the party we certainly didn't have any problems sleeping through the night. 

Here are a few pictures from our first full day of travelling across the Province of Ontario....surprisingly, it took us 26 hours to cross this vast landscape into Manitoba. I don't have WiFi access to post daily as we have to disembark to major cities to access it. So I will post more photos with minimal script as originally anticipated. 

These pictures are taken from the very end of the train on the observation deck in the Park car. 

We are in Winnipeg at the moment, and have a few hours to walk about in the city. The weather is beautiful and mild and we will re-board the train around 11a.m. to continue our journey. I will have more pics and script for you when we reach Saskatoon, in the meantime I will leave you with a little live action. Thanks for checkin' in with RAD.