To and Fro - the trip to Florence

For Father's Day I took the train home to Florence as planned. I was dropped off at the train station around 15 minutes before the train was to depart. The station in Charleston is old and has not been updated in a very long time but it was clean. I boarded the train and was very pleased at how clean and nice the Amatrak train was. The seats are comfortable and very roomy. Each seat reclines and has a foot rest so you can easily lean back and go to sleep if needed.

The ride to Florence was a little less than an hour and a half with only one stop in Kingstree. I have lived in Charleston now for over 12 years and have travelled home by car so often that I just about have every tree memorized. Now everything is different. I was very interested by the route the train took and all the surroundings along the way. I got to see all kinds of new places.

My parents picked me up in Florence and I spent the day with them celebrating Father's day. It was a nice visit. I stayed longer than I normally would have if I had driven but there are no complaints about spending time with my family.

I was dropped off at the Train Station in Florence around 20 minutes before the train was to depart. It was once inside that I found out that the train was going to be 40 minutes late. Not really a big deal, I just sat and read. The station in Florence is fairly new and also very clean so it made for a nice wait.

The trip back was very similar to the trip up. All was well and all was clean. I was very concerned about the cleanliness of the train. I had heard stories in the past so I was concerned. Once home I got off the train and walked home. It was a nice walk, a little less than a mile from the station to my house.

After this experience I will take the train home again. If not cheaper, it is as cheap as driving. On the train I get to relax and read and the end result is better on me and the environment. I will just have to adjust to being on the train schedule and not mine.

k