A Train Ride

Blog Prompt: The first railroad in the US was built in Massachusetts on October 7, 1826. Have you ever ridden on a train? Where did you go and what was it like? If you hadn’t, where would you like to travel by train?

I remember my one and only train ride that I took by myself. I was a sophomore in college and was going to take Amtrak from South Carolina to Florida for Christmas because it was the cheapest way to go. My parents were in West Palm Beach so I had to get the train in Columbia, SC in the middle of the night. This was already a 90 minute drive from my college. In fact, my boyfriend brought me to the train which stopped at an intersection with a road in order for me to get on. It was about 1am so the car was dark and all of the other people looked asleep. The train took off and I just prayed that I was on the right train. In the morning, the conductor finally came by to check my ticket and I guess I was on the right train. When we arrived at DeLand, FL, he tried to tell me that I needed to get off the train but I refused. I wrapped my legs around the seat legs and told them that they would have to arrest me to get me off. I didn’t know where this place was but I knew I was getting off in West Palm Beach! I was the only one left on that car until we arrived in West Palm Beach hours later and I was scared to death. I ended up calling my boyfriend from my parents’ house and telling the whole story. Two days after Christmas, he showed up at my parents’ home to drive me back to South Carolina. No wonder I ended up marrying him a few years later.