I took a nice train trip last may and I think service has even expanded since then (the amount of trains/day was quite bad, but not nearly as slow as what you describe). I always feel like I'm just making an excuse to take the train rather than actually wanting to go to those places but maybe that's just because I haven't taken a full length (least one week) vacation in ages. Maybe I can save up for a cross country trip next year or over the winter
Honestly it's the only time I took a passenger train. In the states I've generally been touring eith a band and therefore driving and otherwise I've gotten around by hitchhiking, I'm right in that zone between too scary for someone sketchy to pick up and not too scary for someone cool to pick up. If you're a socially inclined person, it's pretty fun and if you know how to depart your town reliably you're looking okay. For me the first bus in service in town is a 4am one to the airport, it gets you there at 4:30 which is absolutely perfect because it gives you a half hour to walk to the exit ramp cause trucks leave at 5, get one of those and sometimes your still getting 12 hours out of town.
I've never hitchhiked any significant distance but I can see how it'd be fun, I might also land in that nice zone of not-getting-fucked-with tbh, though I'm not thaaat "socially inclined", as you put it so it would give me mad anxiety the first couple times
I don't drive that much any more but I used to love picking up hitchhikers, you just don't see them that much anymore in the city because of piggie harassment I assume. And my uncles used to hitchhike to work every day in this town
Socially inclined is less in the desire sense and more in the skill sense. I'm funny as hell in a conversational kinda way especially. I'm witty and dry and have had the social ace up my sleeve since 7 that I can make anyone laugh more or less at will (everyone secretly does love puns and dad jokes). Also I carried a crocodile dundee knife as well as fireworks and if things went sour I'd threaten em.witj a knife and then set off fireworks in the cab. But that's just deterrence.
somehow worse than amtrak?
I took a nice train trip last may and I think service has even expanded since then (the amount of trains/day was quite bad, but not nearly as slow as what you describe). I always feel like I'm just making an excuse to take the train rather than actually wanting to go to those places but maybe that's just because I haven't taken a full length (least one week) vacation in ages. Maybe I can save up for a cross country trip next year or over the winter
Honestly it's the only time I took a passenger train. In the states I've generally been touring eith a band and therefore driving and otherwise I've gotten around by hitchhiking, I'm right in that zone between too scary for someone sketchy to pick up and not too scary for someone cool to pick up. If you're a socially inclined person, it's pretty fun and if you know how to depart your town reliably you're looking okay. For me the first bus in service in town is a 4am one to the airport, it gets you there at 4:30 which is absolutely perfect because it gives you a half hour to walk to the exit ramp cause trucks leave at 5, get one of those and sometimes your still getting 12 hours out of town.
I've never hitchhiked any significant distance but I can see how it'd be fun, I might also land in that nice zone of not-getting-fucked-with tbh, though I'm not thaaat "socially inclined", as you put it so it would give me mad anxiety the first couple times
I don't drive that much any more but I used to love picking up hitchhikers, you just don't see them that much anymore in the city because of piggie harassment I assume. And my uncles used to hitchhike to work every day in this town
Socially inclined is less in the desire sense and more in the skill sense. I'm funny as hell in a conversational kinda way especially. I'm witty and dry and have had the social ace up my sleeve since 7 that I can make anyone laugh more or less at will (everyone secretly does love puns and dad jokes). Also I carried a crocodile dundee knife as well as fireworks and if things went sour I'd threaten em.witj a knife and then set off fireworks in the cab. But that's just deterrence.