Last night I fell asleep peering at the moon setting through the window, and then woke up later to the sky of stars. This morning, somewhere west of Kamloops, the sunrise reflected off the mountains and water. I’m on the train!
VIA Rail Canada’s The Canadian left Vancouver at 20:20 last night, a departure timed to allow passengers good views of the Canadian Rockies during daylight.
We will reach Jasper, said to be among Canada’s most photographed places, this afternoon. The train will stop there for an hour, and we may get off and explore.
I am traveling with DH (Darling Husband), going “through” all the way to Toronto where we’ll transfer to Montreal. Other passengers are riding shorter legs.
We took a night flight from Honolulu to Vancouver and spent yesterday revisiting places we’d been before and stumbling into new finds.
At Vancouver airport, we bought the all-day ticket to ride the public mass-transit trains and buses, found the Pacific Central Station, and checked our bags so we could walk till we dropped, burning calories in anticipation of putting more on on this vacation.
Look who we saw docked at Canada Place, identified by its sail-like architecture–the Crown Princess! We cruised Alaska on her just last May for a family reunion, and we first saw the Canada Place landmark at the World Exposition a generation ago.
Vancouver’s culture is very cosmopolitan. We enjoyed good dining, art (Hill’s Native Art), and historical landmarks. I was tickled by The Steam Clock that tooted the Westminster chimes.
What follows are some images made en route to Jasper.
Me and Pete
Panorama dome car
Dining car pretties
Forests, rivers, and mountains
Alberta Glacier
Robson Mountain
View from the caboose
Au revoir for today. See you in Jasper!
Popo Goes Abroad 
Keep posting–looks like you are having a great time
We are!
Thanks so much. I read day 2 before day one because I was at a convention all weekend and I’m catching up on email starting with the most recent. All these lovely scenic places helps me rededicate myself to the fight to protect Mother Earth from climate disruption.
Just disembarked in Toronto. Now I can say I’ve traveled across the country. A very scenic trip, and I didn’t have to drive!