My train journey across USA

My train journey across USA

Hey friends and readers,

Years back I traveled from Washington D.C. all the way to San Diego by train and then from San Francisco back to D.C.

Now, the reason why I thought of writing about this finally is a particular moment I remembered and something very funny that I realized. We will get to it soon.

From childhood I’ve had trouble sleeping, so needless to say that during this 6 days/nights of travel I got just a few hours in, but the experience ended up being so memorable and colorful. It was really all the characters on the train that I met that made it so funny to look back at now.

When the journey began in the small seat by the window, the first man to sit with me was a thin man in his 70s. He was very talkative and spoke a lot about Kurt Vonnegut. He was shocked to learn that I was an author and I ended up signing my very first book for him, Love in Ashes, which I brought with me. He told me one very peculiar thing.

“Young man, you’ll live till you’re 144.”

He got off in Chicago.

Not till yesterday that I realized that when my son was younger he constantly mentioned number 144 as his favorite.

Why? What a coincidence?

Anyway, moving on. The next man to sit next to me was a young farmer who just served a mission helping the poor in Africa. He was going home. He too expresses to me that he wanted to be a writer one day. We found a lot in common, including our love for English Premier League.

During the ride I would often go and sit in the observation cart. Watch mountains, rivers, desert, towns. The farmer left in Kansas.

The next man was someone who actually aided me with a future novel. He was an inspector of railroad tracks and he described the desert town he lived in as this weird quirky hot place with bad dirt storms. I based a town in my novel “It comes in the dust”, that’s contracted for next year’s release, on that place that the guy described.

Exhausted I finally reached a small town in California. It was beautiful. From this town I rode in train by the gorgeous coast. Two wealthy youths sat close to me. I remember them talking about all of the luxuries they had.

Then I reached my destination in famous Santa Fe station, San Diego.

San Diego is a great city to visit, with perfect weather and great food. I met up with my sister, mom, niece and nephew. During my time in California I got to go to LA and walk the stars walk with my best friend, Luke, who lives there. He also showed us the Hollywood sign. Then I saw Malibu, Santa Barbara and in the end it was San Francisco. It was time for another 3 days back on the train.

This time, the passenger next to me was a large man who was also going to DC and was a bit too friendly if you know what I mean. So I literally spent all 3 days in the observation cart. Sleeping a few hours leaning on a table. Funny enough I wasn’t the only person who was constantly there. An eccentric photographer from Paris took a liking to me. Also probably too much. He told me I was beautiful and had to visit him in Paris one day, lol. Another young man in the cart was a guy who was knowing as “Prince of weed”, at least according to him. He said he was the biggest pot smoker in the world. Finally there was a psycho guy in a long black trench coat and sunglasses. He kept saying that he was going to blow up some city.

Needless to say that after a few stops he was arrested and taken off the train.

At the end of it I got home safely, with all of these funny memories.

So…what is up with 144?

Blessings.

P.S. Here is a photo of Luke and I from this year when we once again met up in California and went to a funny diner at night.

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