{"id":6971,"date":"2013-10-28T12:00:35","date_gmt":"2013-10-28T16:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/?p=6971"},"modified":"2013-10-27T10:08:22","modified_gmt":"2013-10-27T14:08:22","slug":"it-takes-a-lot-to-laugh-it-takes-a-train-to-cry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/2013\/10\/28\/it-takes-a-lot-to-laugh-it-takes-a-train-to-cry\/","title":{"rendered":"It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

As far as song titles go, Dylan had a winner with that ^ one. But traveling by train to Quebec City gives it another angle.<\/p>\n

Night was falling as we rolled out of Montreal.\u00a0Only a few distant lights were visible outside. So I took a closer look at the interior of the train.<\/p>\n

\"VIA<\/a>

\u201c’Sticker’ on this baby has to be more than a million dollars. Probably a lot more.”<\/p><\/div>\n

We were on a newer model, more plush all around, with high seats, arrays of lights, outlets, wi-fi, etc. I love trains. I wish there were more of them. Specifically, I wish I could hop on a train in Potsdam around 8:00 p.m. and wake up as it rolled into New York City around 6:00 the next morning.<\/p>\n

This fantasy is always quashed by costs (among other things), but sitting in this passenger car brings the money issue into sharper relief. \u201cSticker\u201d on this baby has to be more than a million dollars. Probably a lot more. But for the purposes of my dream railway, let\u2019s say I could buy an engine and three cars for a cool $5 mil.<\/p>\n

Plying my imagined Potsdam-Penn Station route, I\u2019d have to sell a lot of tickets to pay it off. And then there\u2019s payroll, upkeep, track maintenance and insurance.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s expensive. Hardly original or enlightening, I know. But such thoughts are for another time, because we\u2019re rolling into Quebec (or Quebec City, as it\u2019s called in the States) and this little getaway—that began the moment we stepped on the train in Cornwall—is about to take a decidedly different (and far more francophone) turn.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Next: Quebec welcomes the tourist<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

 
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