NY to Atlanta on a visit from the UK - about 1995:
* Train hits a tree on the line and grinds to a halt near Philadelphia. After about 30 minutes, the conductor announces that they have tried plugging some of the holes in an air tank (brakes, presumably) with wood, but it hasn't worked (!!!) so we'll have to wait for the following train and change on to it - we have broken down on a section of double track so the next train pulls alongside.
* Made it to Washington on a really packed train. We are due to have the dining car hitched up to us here, but it has an electrical fault so nope - no cooked food for the journey! Delays while faulty car unhitched.
* Drunk woman staggers through train shouting 'Goddamn it, has anyone got a Budweiser and a Cigarette!'
* (Still in Washington) Drunk woman and a man she met are hauled off the train by police for getting a bit too..er..'romantic' in a corridor!
* Outskirts of Atlanta - running slow for some reason - we hit a man walking to work down the track. Train stops and we can see police, fire and ambulance out the window. Man is hauled off to hospital by police and paramedics with nothing more than badly cut arm. Conductor announces that the man didn't hear us coming and has apologized for the delay he has caused.
* Made it to Atlanta station - receive phone call from the people picking us up...they have never used the train and don't know where the station is. We give directions.
* Train hits a tree on the line and grinds to a halt near Philadelphia. After about 30 minutes, the conductor announces that they have tried plugging some of the holes in an air tank (brakes, presumably) with wood, but it hasn't worked (!!!) so we'll have to wait for the following train and change on to it - we have broken down on a section of double track so the next train pulls alongside.
* Made it to Washington on a really packed train. We are due to have the dining car hitched up to us here, but it has an electrical fault so nope - no cooked food for the journey! Delays while faulty car unhitched.
* Drunk woman staggers through train shouting 'Goddamn it, has anyone got a Budweiser and a Cigarette!'
* (Still in Washington) Drunk woman and a man she met are hauled off the train by police for getting a bit too..er..'romantic' in a corridor!
* Outskirts of Atlanta - running slow for some reason - we hit a man walking to work down the track. Train stops and we can see police, fire and ambulance out the window. Man is hauled off to hospital by police and paramedics with nothing more than badly cut arm. Conductor announces that the man didn't hear us coming and has apologized for the delay he has caused.
* Made it to Atlanta station - receive phone call from the people picking us up...they have never used the train and don't know where the station is. We give directions.