When I was very young, my father took the entire family to our downtown train station. I was enthralled as soon as I saw the building – huge columns, high ceilings, and amazing windows. The waiting room seemed enormous – row after row of wooden benches, and a gigantic clock on one end to tell the time. Just beneath the clock were glass-fronted offices and ticket booths. Out back were the tracks. Grass was growing between many of them. I wanted to pull up all the weeds and then catch a train to somewhere exotic.
Now our train station is a Convention Center, and has lost much of its charm. The huge columns are there, as well as the high ceilings. But the tracks and the trains are long gone. Now we have a modern Amtrak station that completely de-glamorizes train travel. Or, at least it has for me.
My daughter has never been to the train station, so I’ve decided to take her there. I have to be sure and check the schedule so she is there when a train arrives, loads, and then departs. The Amtrak trains are still very attractively painted; the porters still wear uniforms, and the suitcases are still loaded directly onto the trains. I think she’ll find it magical, just as I did the station’s predecessor. And let her see another side of transportation she’s completely unfamiliar with.
So when you’re looking for something to do in these last few weeks of summer before school begins, check out your nearest train station. It’s a great way to spend a morning or afternoon.
Stay posted for a review of our trip.
The Barefoot Librarian 
trundlebedtales
August 4, 2010
If you get a chance to go, the best train station museum (actually there’s a lot more there than just train stuff is the Durham Western Heritage Museum in Omaha, NE. Not only does it show all the glamour of train travel, it even has a working soda fountain. This was my visit as part of CE class. I’m so glad I went.
Sarah S. Uthoff
louisecolette
December 3, 2010
I’ll definitely have to check that out! Sounds right up our alley – or should I say track? 🙂 Thanks again!