Day 59

1st day of day 3 1/2 on the Indian Pacific train that will take me from Sydney, through Adelaide and into Perth Western Australia. The official description is:
"The Indian Pacific gives you two oceans on one of the world's longest and greatest train journeys. But most of your cruising will be across the vast continent of Australia. From the spectacular Blue Mountains to the treeless plains of The Nullarbor desert, where the train travels the world's longest straight stretch of railway track (478 kilometres), see unique landscapes unfold and spot a fascinating array of wildlife from the comfort of the lounge or your cabin. "

I'm not too sure about how "unique" the landscapes will be but it will be a great opportunity to see close up some of the desert I see passing under the plane as we fly over the Australian continent. Check in is not a big hassle, thanks to an angel who has helped drop me at the station (thank you thank you) and I board the train rather hesitantly, not sure what to expect. The shower and bathroom is thankfully very very big, a kind of custom made handicapped/senior citizen friendly bathroom, so it's very spacious and lots of room to move around. It's also very clean with many signs to remind people to lock the door after entering! The seat is a quite cushiony, unfortunately the arm rests in the middle don't lift up, so I end up draping my legs in every possible direction at night. Sleeping in the train is ok..I realize that flashing lights at night and the shifting of the train isn't the best thing for a restful night, but with ear plugs and eye mask it's ok.

The food isn't great , I only expected chicken schnitzel as the best kind of food at the cafeteria car. Unfortunately it's even simpler than that (I realize later it would be a health and safety thing to NOT have hot oil on a moving train) so the choice is meat pie, hot dog, pizza and pre packaged and reheated pasta ($10). Oh, and as much mints and m&ms as you can eat. Ok ok there is some fruit. For $3.50 an apple. A sarcastic hip hip hooray! At least water is free. Actually that would be, cold filtered water. Hot water is $1 a cup. It sinks in how much time I'm spending on board and hope that there are cafes where we make stops. I glumly open a packet of biscuits and munch away...

Settled in, I watch the blue mountains flash past my window and day turn into night...