Trains Strains and Automobiles

We got up early after the night before, feeling somewhat fragile. Could've done with a beer for breakfast, but 'not the done thing' so it was down in the lift to reception and check out. We booked a taxi with reception to take us to the Amtrak train station a five minute drive away. '10 minutes' says the girl at the desk. That's great, we'll wait outside the hotel. Ten minutes pass and a taxi pulls up in front of us. Great timing, the day has started OK, don't need hassle with the remnants of last night hanging about. Cases and bags in the boot of the taxi, we're just about to get in and another cab screeches to halt in front. 'Are you the hotel folks going to the train station' says the new taxi driver, we are, I say, he then gets involved in a real street side slanging match with the other driver. Evidently, the cab in which our cases are locked into, is a hustler, one of these spot a fare cars that steals genuine drivers fares. So, long story short, the air turned blue, lots of racial harranging thrown about and neither guy will budge. In steps the lady of the hour. 'Look you' she says to the guy who has our cases in his car, 'we've a train to catch in less than an hour, if you don't unlock this boot and give us our bags, I'll throw you over the bonnet and get them myself'!!!!!!!

Needless to say, he listened to this mad blonde Viking warrior in front of him, immediately opened the back of the car and told us to get our damn cases out. Job done, into proper cab and away to station for relaxing ride to Niagara and then Toronto.

Not...........................

An eight hour ride through the countryside turned into a 12 hour ride from hell, with animals on the line, detours round two mile long freight trains, bridges that have broken and worst of all, the mind numbing experience of the immigration set up at the US-Canadian border. We had to leave the train with our bags, go through passport and bag checks inside the station, then exit the station onto the street and go back through the waiting rooms to get onto the train. It took bloody hours!!! Then the train stopped on the track for two hours and then went backwards for half hour! It was 22.30 by the time we got off the train, over twelve hours!

We had arrived and met Blair and Tom.