Part Two of the Empire Builder saga:Still Day Twenty-one: We checked our dinner reservation; and, sure enough,it was time to eat again. I was not looking forward to this, though I knew that the company would be good. We sat with a young couple traveling from Minneapolis to Portland to go to a wedding. They were enjoying the train experience and the scenery, checking out the train's ascent into the Rocky Mountains. It seemed like it was just one long loop...and there we were in the mountains. We were traveling along, gaining altitude but not feeling it much, until that long right-hand turn that brought us quickly into the foothills.  We could look out and down to see where we had just been, off in the distance. The hills turned to mountains really fast, and soon we came to the East Glacier Park stop. It was dusk by now and the light was fading, but we could still see the snow-capped peaks off to both the right and left. We went through some snow sheds and seemed to be heading up a canyon with no end in sight (I was facing backwards this time and we were near the front of the dining car). Soon we were in a long tunnel (about five or more minutes, I'd guess) and the trees and darkness blocked any more views of the tall peaks around us.  One very interesting occasional sight was the passing of another train.  One in particular was a special with about twelve private varnish cars behind two AMTRAK engines. We passed a lot of freights through the mountains too: there seemed to be a lot of double track in this area, as we did not have to wait on sidings or switch tracks a lot during the evening. The dinner was unmemorable; the food choices were limited and the service almost non-existent. However, our traveling companions and the scenery more than made up for the staff's lack of professionalism. After dinner we returned to our compartment, relaxed and in the darkened room watched out the windows, although there was not much to see as it was pretty dark outside. We called the car attendant to make the bed; and after he left, I tucked Mary into the top bunk and settled in for another night. It has been so cold in our room that Mary had purchased Souvenir AMTRAK blankets this afternoon in the lounge car -- I was glad for the extra warmth.

Day Twenty-two: I slept on and off all night. I did awaken at Spokane, but not enough to get up and even look out the windows. In the morning we awoke to a shortened train. The lounge car was gone (as well as the Portland Coaches and Sleepers) and half of the diner was set up as a lounge. We missed the first seating for breakfast so we had to wait about twenty minutes (they had only half a car). Mary asked for the fruit cup and was told they did not have fruit. She then asked what else they were out of and was rudely told to order what ever she wanted to eat. She again asked about what was not available, so she could think about her choices...and the waiter just dropped the checks on the table and left. He spoke to the dining car chief (loudly enough so we could hear) and told her he would not wait on us.  The onboard train chief then became our waitress, but no apology was offered for this man's rudeness when we asked what 'was the problem'. The waiter soon brought the other couple at the table some lukewarm coffee and totally ignored us. They asked for some hot coffee and were told that the coffee they just received was hot. He returned in a few minutes with their breakfast and some (actually) hot coffee, again ignoring Mary and myself sitting there with empty coffee cups. 

When the chief brought us our food and some coffee, we asked for complaint forms to file with AMTRAK about the service.  The other couple at our table, a mother and daughter from England, wanted the address as well. This same waiter had been rude to them at another meal earlier in the trip. The entire staff of this train, with the exception of our car attendant and the lounge car attendant, seemed to be unpleasant and did not seem to like their jobs at all.  The main reason it was so noticeable is that this was absolutely the exception to all our other travels on the seven other trains we rode, where the crews seemed to genuinely enjoy  what they did (and it really did show). Breakfast finally ended and we returned to our compartment where Mary showered and we packed for the end of our Empire Builder adventure. We stopped briefly outside Everett, WA to wait for train #760, the Cascade, to pass by on its way to Vancouver BC. We had so enjoyed that particular train ride that it was hard to believe this was the same system. Oh well! The most scenic part of the morning was just ahead: the train skirts the shore of Puget Sound on its way past Edmonds and into Seattle. We arrived at Union Station, and soon were standing on the ground looking at a mountain of luggage we had lugged off the train. A nice redcap waved to us and said he would be right back to get our stuff. We only needed to go to the front of the station, where we would be picked up by the car rental agent, but he was so eager to help us we were thrilled. He loaded our stuff onto his electric cart and drove us to the front of the station. He remarked that he truly loved his job, helping people all day long to get where they were going. His upbeat attitude should be a motto for all AMTRAK employees. The car rental attendant showed up in about five minutes and we were whisked off to the rental counter. When I looked out to check the van that had delivered us, it was gone. When I asked about our luggage, we were told that it was already in the trunk and back seat of our rental car. What great service.

We headed off to Ron and Joy's, our friends and hosts for our weekend in Seattle. I dragged in our suitcases and headed for the shower. (The train compartment had a toilet/shower; but since my shoulders touched each side of the compartment when I used the toilet, I had guessed that the shower would be too difficult.)  After my shower and a change of clothes we headed off to Larry's Market on Aurora Avenue. We had to pass Green Lake; and since it was such a nice warm day, the scenery was excellent. We had enjoyed Larry's so much when we lived in the area, it was a logical choice for our first shopping experience in Seattle. We ate at the in-store restaurant and had a tasty blue plate special of fish and chips. After lunch we returned to Ron and Joy's to do some phone calls and computer stuff. They came home from work and we picked up Mary's former roommate Jody (we finally meet: Mary has known her for years but I had never met her in person) and then went out to dinner at Fremont Classic. We visited for a long time, finally saying "good night". Going to sleep in a real bed that only rocks when you make it do so was a nice change.