Breakfast on VIA I

8:10 and I’m comfortable, satiated as can be, lingering over fragrant cup of coffee.

My pre-chosen “VIA Preference” breakfast arrived right on cue, just as I’d ordered. Half of a plump pink grapefruit sidelined by chilled pineapple and melon slices, scattered with strawberries. A heaping ramekin of vanilla yogurt, and another of crunchy granola scattered with cranberries. Just as I downed all that, my attendant (gotta get this sweet guy’s name) appeared with a basket abundant with flaky croissants, cranberry-raising bread, and banana bread. Yum. Enough blogging. It’s back to work for me.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders Fields Follow the Path of Remembrance By Toby Saltzman Crowds lining the inner arch of Menin Gate in Ypres bowed their heads in reverence as buglers played The Last Post at the ceremony that commemorates soldiers who perished in the Great War. Silence saturated the air as the master read a verse from For the Fallen , ending with: “At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them.” Waiting for his cue to walk forward to lay a wreath in remembrance of fallen Canadians, my mind swirled with images of innocents at war the voices of my dead parents describing horrid scenes. Though the walk across the archway and up the steps to the monument where I laid the circle of poppies and whispered a personal prayer took mere minutes, it felt like breathless ages. In my lifetime of experiences around the globe, this moment of tribute to those who sacrificed themselves for a better world will linger forever in my heart.     The world’s only c...
Read more

Wintry Visions from my window on VIA Rail

Whoever imagines winter train rides as boring has never seen the beauty of the Canadian landscape in its snowy splendor. Fleeting images are many. Here are but a few. Banks of snow-dusted birches, their white trunks glistening in sunshine. Clusters of ducks paddling in watery holes amid icy ponds. Woodpeckers tap-tap-tapping on a tall tree, oblivious to the train rolling by. The train slowing down as we cross a bridge over a rushing waterfall, its edges frozen into shapes that look like mini polar bears. Pretty clapboard homes, maybe a century old, their gingerbread trimmed with sparkling icicles. Ride the rails in winter and you’ll agree, VIA Rail is more than transportation. It’s a ride filled with memorable images that will linger long after you roll into your destination. For a glimpse of riding the rails in May, read " Romancing the Rails" @ www.travelterrific.com/summer2000/canada_sum00_04.html
Read more
On Board VIA I to Ottawa. 6:58 and all is well that starts well…at official start, that is. Never one to think that if anything can go wrong, it will, this morning I was inclined to an inkling of that believe. For starters, while gathering together all the stuff needed for a writers’ convention in Ottawa, I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t printed my VIA Rail ticket. My first time as a Preference Member (which gives oodles of perks, including privileges to pre-book seats and choice meals), I was intent on getting the perks. Well, the printer jammed. So I e-mailed proof of the confirmation to my BlackBerry. Arriving at Union Station’s Panorama Lounge, I discover their computer is down. With no ticket, I’m ushered to the kiosk, which doesn’t accept my booking due to VIP status. Lucky me: the ticket agent finds my booking, tickets and sends me off to VIA I just in time for boarding. The attendants are sweet (not to mention handsome!): they lift my bags on to the train, shuttle the...
Read more