The Journey

Day 1, January 3rd (and the adventures of the day before):

The day I heard that we were going to be taking the train from Champaign to New Orleans I lined up someone to drop me off and pick me up, then offered the same to my roommates. If there is one thing I do not enjoy it is being stressed about every aspect of a trip. I am a homebody so leaving was going to be hard enough without trying to make sure I didn’t forget anything, say goodbye to family, not start crying because I was leaving, get myself to Champaign, not get lost, be on time, not start crying because I was leaving, park, get all my luggage inside, and not start crying because I was leaving… in case I hadn’t mentioned that. When my dad dropped us off, we said a quick goodbye and headed inside with all our stuff for the week! After a 2 hour wait, we boarded the train ready for an adventure. We found our seats, settled in, and tried to sleep as best as we could. Have you ever slept on a train? Well, let me tell you, it is not as easy as it looks. I was able to finally fall asleep and it definitely could have been worse. We then ventured off to the viewing car to see what there was to do somewhere else besides our isolated caboose. When we arrived, we received our luggage and raced outside to get a taxi. I have never ridden in a taxi before, so this was an interesting first for me! Our driver was amazing, and she was so funny. She was not a very big woman, but man when she is coming in that car – get out of the way! She got us through the bustling city of New Orleans in one piece and dropped us off right in front of our hotel.


Stay tuned for a post about our first night in New Orleans!

The bridge on Lake Pontchartrain

Beautiful houses seen from the train