Amtrak Rail Pass
This summer, I plan to use the Amtrak Rail Pass to travel for 1 month. This blog will contain my plans for the journey, and my thoughts on each day’s experiences.
The following map gives an overview of the approximate Amtrak routes across the U.S. Chicago is the center of the rail network.
Itinerary
Currently, the itinerary is:
- Marshall, Texas -> Chicago (Texas Eagle) April 25@9:30pm-26@4:15pm
- Chicago -> Boston (Lakeshore Limited) April 26@9:30pm-27@8:30pm
- Boston -> New York City (Lakeshore Limited) April 30@3:15pm-7:45pm
- New York City -> Philadelphia (Vermonter) May 5@6:45pm-8:15pm
- Philadelphia -> Washington D.C. (Northeast Regional) May 8@1:47pm-3:45pm
- Washington D.C. -> Chicago (Floridian) May 11th@3:57pm-May 12@8:45am
- Chicago -> Seattle (Empire Builder) May 12@3pm-May 14@11:30am
- Seattle -> Emeryville (Coast Starlight) May 17@9:45am-May 18@8:30pm
- Emeryville -> Chicago (California Zephyr) May 20@8:15am-22@2:45pm
- Chicago -> Dallas (Texas Eagle) May 23@2pm-May 24@12pm
The highlights are all below, but I have also compiled a complete album of photos.
Boston - April 27th-30th
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|----- |------ |------ |------ |------- |
| **Day 1 – Apr 28** | 9:00 AM | Boston Common | FREE | Start here |
| | Morning | Public Garden | FREE | Swan Boats seasonal |
| | Morning | Beacon Hill Friends House | FREE | Brief stop |
| | Mid-Morning | Freedom Trail (2.5 mi) | FREE | Follow red brick path |
| | Mid-Morning | Park Street Church | FREE | Along trail |
| | Mid-Morning | Granary Burying Ground | FREE | Along trail |
| | Mid-Morning | King's Chapel | FREE | Along trail |
| | Mid-Morning | Galleria Umberto | $2.50 | Along trail |
| | Lunch | Faneuil Hall & Quincy Market | FREE | Browse & eat |
| | Afternoon | Paul Revere House | $5.50 | |
| | Afternoon | Old North Church | $5 | |
| | Evening | Rose Kennedy Greenway | FREE | Neighborhood stroll |
| | Evening | Beacon Hill | FREE | End near South Station |
| **Day 2 – Apr 29** | Morning | Massachusetts State House | FREE | 2–3 hours (Fenway) |
| | Morning | Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum | $15 | 2–3 hours (Fenway) |
| | Afternoon | Harvard Museums | $10 | Student ID; take T from Fenway |
| | Afternoon | Harvard Square + Harvard Yard | FREE | Walk around after museums |
| | Afternoon | Museum of Bad Art/Dorchester | FREE | Walk around after museums |
| **Day 3 – Apr 30** | Morning | Boston Public Library | FREE | Back Bay, 30 min |
| | Morning | Regina Pizzeria | FREE | |
| | Afternoon | Seaport District | FREE | Museum of Ice Cream? |
| | **3:15 PM** | **Depart South Station** | — | Seaport is a short walk to South Station |
New York City - April 30th-May 5th
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|----- |------ |------ |------ |------- |
| **Apr 30** | Evening | Arrive Queens | — | Check in, rest |
| **Day 1 – May 1 (Manhattan)** | Morning | Times Square | FREE | Less crowded early |
| **Day 1 – May 1 (Manhattan)** | Morning | $ 1.50 Fresh Pizza | $1.50 (Duh) | Ask for "regular, not cheese" |
| | Morning | New York Public Library | FREE | |
| | Morning | 5th Avenue + St. Patrick's Cathedral | FREE | Start midtown, walk north |
| | Mid-Morning | Grand Central Station | FREE | |
| | Mid-Morning | Rockefeller Center | FREE | Exterior |
| | Afternoon | AMNH | Pay-what-you-wish | Can pay $1 w/ student ID |
| | Afternoon | Central Park | FREE | Walk through after AMNH |
| | Evening | Greenwich Village | FREE | Dinner & wander |
| **Day 2 – May 2 (Manhattan)** | Mid-Morning | Museum Mile (82nd–105th St) | — | All on 5th Ave |
| | Mid-Morning | El Museo del Barrio | Pay-what-you-wish | Can pay $1 w/ student ID |
| | Mid-Morning | The Met | Pay-what-you-wish | Can pay $1 w/ student ID |
| | Mid-Morning | Museum of the City of New York | **$14** | Students free |
| | Mid-Morning | Jewish Museum | **FREE** | Students free |
| | Afternoon | MoMA | **FREE** | Free every Fri 5:30–9pm |
| | Evening | 9/11 Memorial | **FREE** | |
| **Day 3 – May 3 (Queens)** | Morning | Flushing Chinatown | FREE | Best cheap food in NYC |
| | Afternoon | Flushing Meadows-Corona Park | FREE | USTA, Queens Museum nearby |
| | Evening | Jackson Heights | FREE | Little India — great cheap eats |
| | Evening | Queens Night Market | FREE | |
| **Day 4 – May 4 (Brooklyn)** | Morning | Brooklyn Botanic Garden | ~$15 | Free Tues & select Sat mornings |
| | Midday | Prospect Park | FREE | Adjacent to BBG |
| | Afternoon | DUMBO | FREE | Great Manhattan Bridge views |
| | Afternoon | Walk Brooklyn Bridge | FREE | Brooklyn→Manhattan side |
| | Evening | Little Italy | FREE | Dinner on the way back |
| **Day 5 – May 5 (Queens AM)** | Morning | Explore local Queens neighborhood | FREE | Easy since you're staying there |
| | Mid-Morning | Statue of Liberty — Battery Park or Staten Island Ferry | FREE | Ferry is free + closer views |
| | **6:49 PM** | **Depart NYC** | — | |Philadelphia - May 5th-May 8th
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|----- |------ |------ |------ |------- |
| **May 5** | 8:07 PM | Arrive Philadelphia | — | Grab food near hotel; Reading Terminal closes ~6pm |
| **Day 1 – May 6 (Old City)** | Morning | Liberty Bell | **FREE** | NPS; no tickets needed |
| | Morning | Independence Hall | **FREE** | Free timed-entry — book at recreation.gov in advance |
| | Mid-Morning | Free Quaker Meeting House | **FREE** | Steps from Independence Hall |
| | Mid-Morning | Arch Street Meeting House | Free/donation | Oldest continuously used meetinghouse in the US |
| | Mid-Morning | Elfreth's Alley | **FREE** | Oldest residential street in the US; very photogenic |
| | Midday | Reading Terminal Market | FREE to enter | Lunch; $8–15 for a full meal |
| | Afternoon | Delaware River Waterfront | **FREE** | Penn's Landing, scenic walk |
| | Evening | Old City murals / wander | **FREE** | Philly has some of the best street art in the US |
| **Day 2 – May 7 (South Philly + Center City)** | Morning | Italian Market | **FREE** | Oldest open-air market in the US; great cheap eats |
| | Mid-Morning | Magic Gardens | **~$10** | Student discount; Isaiah Zagar mosaic art on South Street |
| | Midday | South Street | **FREE** | Wander, lunch, shops |
| | Afternoon | Rittenhouse Square | **FREE** | Beautiful park, upscale neighborhood |
| | Afternoon | City Hall | **FREE** | Walk around; observation tower ~$8 |
| | Evening | Fishtown | **FREE** | Hip neighborhood, great cheap dinner spots |
| **Day 3 – May 8 (Parkway Morning)** | Morning | Benjamin Franklin Parkway | **FREE** | Outdoor scenic boulevard |
| | Mid-Morning | Philadelphia Museum of Art | **~$14** | Student ID; Rocky steps are always free |
| | **1:47 PM** | **Depart Philadelphia** | — | |Washington D.C. - May 8th-May 11th
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |
| **Day 1 – May 8 (Thu)** | 3:45 PM | Arrive DC | — | Check in, freshen up |
| | 5:30 PM | Embassy Row | FREE | Stroll Massachusetts Ave NW |
| | Evening | Dupont Circle | FREE | Dinner, neighborhood walk |
| **Day 2 – May 9 (Fri)** | 8:00 AM | Arlington National Cemetery | FREE | Tomb of Unknown Soldier, 2–3 hrs |
| | ↳ | Arlington House | FREE | Along the way |
| | Midday | Cross Memorial Bridge | — | Walk or rideshare to the Mall |
| | Afternoon | Smithsonian Museums | FREE | Pick 2–3: Air & Space, Natural History, American History |
| | Late Afternoon | Library of Congress | FREE | Thomas Jefferson Building tour |
| | Evening | Navy Yard / The Yards | FREE | Waterfront bars & dinner |
| **Day 3 – May 10 (Sat)** | Morning | Rockville | FREE | Pike & Rose area, downtown Rockville |
| | ↳ | Metro back | — | Red Line |
| | Afternoon | Baltimore (with Narein) | Varies | MARC train from Union Station (~45 min, $9) |
| | ↳ | Inner Harbor / Fell's Point | FREE | Explore with Narein |
| | Evening | Return to DC | — | MARC back to Union Station |
| **Day 4 – May 11 (Sun)** | 9:00 AM | Mount Vernon | $28 | Drive/rideshare ~30 min south |
| | 11:30 AM | Old Town Alexandria | FREE | King Street, waterfront stroll |
| | ↳ | Lunch | Varies | King Street restaurant row |
| | 2:00 PM | Head back to DC | — | Metro (King St–Old Town Blue/Yellow) |
| | **4:00 PM** | **Depart DC** | — | |Seattle - May 14-May 17
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|----- |------ |------ |------ |------- |
| **May 14 – Arrive 11:30am** | Afternoon | Pike Place Market + Original Starbucks | FREE to enter | 1912 Pike Place; expect a line |
| | Afternoon | Seattle Waterfront / Pier 57 | FREE | Walk along the water |
| | Afternoon | Pioneer Square | FREE | Oldest neighborhood in Seattle |
| | Evening | Capitol Hill | FREE | Best food/nightlife neighborhood |
| **Day 2 – May 15** | Morning | Kerry Park | FREE | Best Space Needle + skyline view |
| | Morning | Seattle Center grounds | FREE | Space Needle exterior, fountain |
| | Mid-Morning | Chihuly Garden and Glass | ~$27 | Student ID |
| | Midday | International District | FREE | Cheap lunch |
| | Afternoon | Fremont + Fremont Troll | FREE | Canal views |
| | Afternoon | Gas Works Park | FREE | Great lake views |
| **Day 3 – May 16** | Morning | Seattle Art Museum | ~$15 | Student ID |
| | Mid-Morning | Seattle Public Library | FREE | Architecturally stunning inside |
| | Midday | Ballard neighborhood | FREE | Fishermen's Terminal, Ballard Locks (free) |
| | Afternoon | University of Washington campus | FREE | Beautiful quad, free to walk |
| | Evening | Last dinner in Capitol Hill | — | |
| **May 17** | By 9:55 AM | Depart Seattle | — | |
San Francisco - May 18-May 20
| Day | Time | Stop | Cost | Notes |
|----- |------ |------ |------ |------- |
| **May 18 – Arrive 8:30am** | Morning | Ferry Building | FREE | Great breakfast, farmers market on Sat |
| | Morning | Embarcadero / Waterfront walk | FREE | |
| | Mid-Morning | Chinatown | FREE | Walk through, cheap eats |
| | Midday | North Beach | FREE | City Lights Bookstore, Beat Generation neighborhood |
| | Midday | Lombard Street | FREE | |
| | Afternoon | Coit Tower | FREE exterior | Views nearly as good from outside |
| | Afternoon | Fisherman's Wharf | FREE to wander | |
| | Evening | Mission District + Mission Style Burrito@La Cumbre | FREE | Best cheap food in SF; Dolores Park stroll |
| **Day 2 – May 19** | Morning | Golden Gate Bridge | FREE | Walk across |
| | Mid-Morning | Golden Gate Park | FREE | |
| | ↳ | de Young Museum | ~$15 | Student ID; free first Tues of month |
| | Midday | Haight-Ashbury | FREE | Historic counterculture neighborhood |
| | Afternoon | SFMOMA | ~$19 | Free last Thursday evening |
| | Evening | Castro District | FREE | Iconic neighborhood, great food |
| **May 20** | By 8:30 AM | Depart SF | — | Pack the night before |
Pizza List
The most iconic pizzas from each city are:
| City | Style | Where | Est. Cost |
|------ |------- |------- |----------- |
| Boston | Thin crust New England | Regina Pizzeria (North End) | ~$4/slice |
| NYC | Classic NY dollar slice + Sicilian Pizza | Luigi's Pizza + L&P Spumoni Gardens | ~$2–3/slice |
| Philadelphia | Tomato pie (no cheese) | Santucci's or Lorenzo's | ~$8–12 |
| DC | Jumbo slice | Any Adams Morgan spot | ~$4–5 |
| Seattle | No iconic style | Ballard Pizza Co. or similar | ~$4/slice |
| SF | Sourdough crust | Tony's Pizza Napoletana | ~$5/slice |
| Chicago | Deep Dish + Tavern Style | Pizzeria Uno + Pizz'Amici | ~$5/slice |Packing List
Essentials
- ☑︎ Hiking Bag
- ☑︎ Water Bottle
- ☑︎ Sleeping Bag
- ☑︎ Drawstring Bag
Clothing
Essentials
- ☑︎ 3 Pants
- ☑︎ 3 Undershirt
- ☑︎ 3 Athletic T-Shirts
- ☑︎ 4 Socks
- ☑︎ 4 Underwear
- ☑︎ Windbreaker
- ☑︎ Shoes
Extra
- ☑︎ Emergency Poncho
- ☑︎ Umbrella
- ☑︎ Needle/Thread
Toiletries
- ☑︎ Towel
- ☑︎ Toothbrush/Toothpaste
- ☑︎ Tongue Cleaner
- ☑︎ Mouth Guard
- ☑︎ Deodorant
- ☑︎ Comb
- ☑︎ Beard Trimmer
- ☑︎ First Aid Kit
- ☑︎ Sunscreen
- ☑︎ Hand sanitizer
- ☑︎ Wet Wipes
Electronics
- ☑︎ Phone/Charger
- ☑︎ Laptop/Charger
- ☑︎ Earbuds/Charger
- ☑︎ Batteries
- ☑︎ Trackers
Food
Grocery Items
- ☑︎ Granola
- ☑︎ Nuts
- ☑︎ Cheese
- ☑︎ Dried Fruit
- ☑︎ Chocolate
Other
- ☑︎ Playing Cards
- ☑︎ Driver’s License
- ☑︎ Pictures of Passport
- ☑︎ Credit/Debit Card
- ☑︎ Tickets
Daily Updates
Day 1 - April 25 (Sat)
Today was a surprisingly relaxed day. I fell asleep around midnight and woke up around 7 (a little shorter than I would have liked, but restful nontheless). I got ready and picked up Rina from UTD, and we got cookies from Hug Cafe in downtown McKinney. I probably never would have heard about it if it weren’t from a coupon I received in the mail, but honestly it may be worth revisiting. The food was good, but more compellingly the restaurant provides employment to primarily people with intellectual disabilities. I came home and had paneer fried rice with Rina, then went to Swig for a small treat. We lost track of time a little, but made it home by 4 to leave for Marshall. I tried Chili’s for the first time on the drive over, and Rina and I both ordered the veggies burger. It was alright, although there was nothing exemplary about it. I am excited for her move towards flex/veg-itarianism. It definitely will be challenging for her, but I also think it will be very rewarding. Overall, it was just nice being able to spend time with my family and one of my best friends, and I am looking forward to more days of just time to spend idly with Rina and Rino over the summer. I hope Rina has time when I go to D.C., but I am not holding my breath since its finals season. This does feel like the right time to travel though. Logically, I have the most time now, but I am also reminded of Ibn Batuta’s words as well: “travelling - it gives you home in a thousand strange places, then leaves you a stranger in your own land”. I hope this journey gives me a new lens on America, and I hope I come to appreciate my friends and family and home here even more. Until I got onto the train, I hadn’t really contemplated the magnitude of the trip, but 30 days of constat travel is a long time, and more intense than even my 3 weeks of travel in India in December ‘24. I am a bit nervous, but also very excited. But first, as I write this, its probably time to sleep. The seats seem reasonably comfortable, and definitely more than I was expecting. Overall, today was a great start to what is hopefully a great trip.
Musik: Freight Train, Peter Paul and Mary
Day 2 - April 26 (Sun)
I woke up today morning in rural Missouri. I was expecting primarily cornfields on the train north to Chicago, so to see the woods south of St. Louis was a pleasant and unexpected surprise. I am reminded that people rarely see the things in their own city. In the same way, people rarely have the chance to fully see their own country, despite it being the easiest and cheapest to travel within. Given the scale of the U.S. there is the simultaneous problem of inaccessability between costs (where cost may be uncomfortably, if not prohibitively high to visit), and accessibility, with the easy of modern transit. After all, the best place to hide a needle is in a stack of other needles. I have heard similar stories of people from Singapore never seeking out the other side of the island since its relatively close, yet making the trip to sightsee in Malaysia. There is a degree of intentionality it takes to see the places you feel are home, and as a result we can all be left somewhat clueless about the places closest we are most comfortable in. Today morning’s journey took me through Missouri and Illinois. I had passed over the cornfields in the fall when flying to Champaign, but with state lines more clearly indicated by train stops, I am realizing partially how different the two states are geographically. Along the line, I felt that Missouri had relatively humid woods along the Mississippi River contrasting with the cornfields almost immediately after leaving Saint Louis and entering Illinois. I am also seeing more clearly how much effort must have gone into building the Amtrak. America has a long way to go with trains, make no mistake. Compared to European, and especially to East Asian rail networks, the slow speed and limited reach of Amtrak is pretty sad. But the sheer distance and diversity of geography the train goes through and the scenery it has (in what is essentially a glass moving cafe) are still stunning, compared especially to what is possible to see and experience on my wn (or with a hourse, as it would have been 200 years ago). No wonder people barely left the towns they were in for so much of history.
On the stretch between St. Louis and Chicago,I met someone named Rafiq. He reminded me a lot of Rina, and was talking about the U.S. needed just one high speed rail built between cities for coach-class passengers, and that it would spread across the U.S. quickly, and how it needs more metro rail, and less cars. The high speed rail projects between SF/LA and Dallas/Houston/Austin may soon lead to a more connected country, and leave the older Amtrak trains second fiddle. It seems like America lost a part of itself in WWII when it destroyed the rail networks to get steel for creating machines of war. The national priority seemed to shift from developing internally to external intervention, and its retroactive justification of war has shaped american culture to be more focused on violently disarming potential threats than building opportunities for better futures. And to me, this loses sight of the dream of pregress and freedom, and the hope of a better society.
I was thinking a bit about origins. I have been shaped by having spent a long time in many American cities, raised with a middle eastern religion and indirectly from my family’s upbringing in India. Don MacMillan talks about place of origin being the weighted sum of where you have been. I like this idea, but if I feel uncomfortable claiming to be somewhere from the middle of the western half of the United States (Maybe Utah or Nevada), since I have barely been there. In some sense, I don’t feel from anywhere in particular, and cosmopolitan in the original sense. All this leads me to think we need better small talk, to ask more meaningful questions. For some people their place of origin genuinely is large shaper of their lives, but for others it’s work, and for others it’s faith. For the faithful, I hope they hold their religion and religious principles in higher esteem than their country.
Right now, things are coming together in preperation of the next phase of my life - Signing the lease for living in the meeting house, starting to say my goodbyes, and accepting my offer of admission. It is difficult to leave Rina behind, but it is exciting to wonder who I will become and who I will meet. In a weird way, it is almost easier to leave family. I think it feels like the time to leave the nest and do things my own way, and so leaving family feels natural where leaving friends is always more out-of-place. It makes me think that childhood is like the apprenticeship for adulthood in the same way a PhD is the apprenticeship for research.
I had some time today in Chicago between the Texas Eagle and Lakeshore Limited trains, and was able to walk a bit through Chicago. Although I have visited once before, it still impresses me how small you feel walking through a street with tall buildings on both sides. In some way, a city is to humans what a cliff is to a dove. To me, it makes it feel a bit more natural (but no less impressive). Although I didn’t do much, I am not concerned since I will be passing through twice more, and spending more time the last time.
I am skeptical if I will be able to attend a meeting for worship in this upcoming month, but I think enjoying of teh silence the silence of the Great Hall in the station today may be all that I can do for know. Seeing both poverty and extreme opulence in Chicago, I can’t help but reflect on the words of George Fox “God’s greatest lesson is love, and for that reason we must take the greatest care to learn it.” But in an uncertain world, it is unclear to me what that looks like in action in day-to-day life . It almost seems easier to describe qualities of love than love itself. For example, in 1 Corinthians 13, “Love is patient and is kind. Love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not arrogant, does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, keeps no account of evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejouces in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” But to strangers, what does it mean to love? The parable of the Good Samaritan is a difficult lesson often, since directly giving money carries the risk the money will be misused or stolen.
Boarding the train to oston, I met a Philosophy student from Northwestern who considers the consciousness of AI. If an alien came to earth which had the intelligence of a human, would we give it the same rights? To those who believe in souls, would this alien have a soul? I don’t know. I think her tending was to err on the side of being kind to the alien, which seems to make sense to me intuitively.
Overall, today was slower paced, but I had some interesting conversations, and I am looking forward to meeting people on the train ride tomorrow and seeing Boston’s Chinatown.
Musik: Draft Dodger’s Rag, Phil Ochs
Day 3 - April 27 (Mon)
,
Last night’s sleep was far worse. Partly, this is because the overhead lighting on the Lakeshore Limited didn’t turn off all night, but I also think I need to start using my mouth guard on the trains as well. Thank god I brought it on the trip, I wasn’t sure for a while, although it might be a bit annoying to wash on the train.
I also think I overpacked food. It seems like just bringing sandwiches or rice is more than enough to make it through the long hauls, and I won’t need the granola bars or dried fruit much. The weight is a bit of an inconvenience compared to buying a pizza. Amtrak also serves hot water for free, which really scratches the itch for coffee when waking up. It will get lighter as I go on, since I can use the nut bars as mini-meals/snacks in the cities, and I am giving Chocolate away as I go.
I woke up about 1-2 hours west of Cleveland. Like with Missouri and Illinois, there was definitely a shift in scenery as we passed through each state. OH was more traditional Midwestern farming with corn and soy, where Pennsylvania was more fishing on Lake Erie and grapevines. New York felt industrial, especially Buffalo, and had swamps and the Erie Canal, and although there was a certain peace going through Pennsylvania, the hills in Massachusetts were just stunning.
On this trip, I think I should practice my Esperanto/French. It isn’t likely going to be super useful, but having learned Esperanto has given me more reference words for learning other languages. French in particular was the source of most Latin and Greek into English, and so should be easy from vocabulary (alongside being fun and widely spoken internationally). I as considering writing by blog in Esperanto, but I think that would defeat the point of a blog if only a few people could really read it. It’s also a lot of work to write in two languages. So for now I think I will write my notes in a combination of Esperanto and English and retranslate as I type up the blog.
I met some more Amish people in the train. I was surprised by how many people I saw dressed plain, but since they typically can ride in, but just not operate motorized vehicles it makes sense. And, of course, being geographically within where the Amish and old-order Mennonites live helps. I would learn Pennsylvania Dutch, but honestly the romance languages seem a lot easier (knowing full well that if I knew more of a germanic language I would think the opposite). From what I did understand from overhearing their conversations though,it was generally hilariously mundane. It is a good reminder that despite our dissimilarities, we are all hilariously human.
I met my first two rail pass users today as well. The first was a background actor from Manhattan, who gave me some recommendations for where to eat and some places to add to my itinerary. We didn’t speak too much though, and mostly watched the scenery. The second person was Dominic, from Boston, and we talked more in depth about traveling with the rail pass He actually had an interesting idea, of using the rail pass to do weekend trips to a different place every weekend. He had a Bingo card he made of various travel and work goals to achieve each month, which was really cool. He had also traveled last September in the loop around the west of Chicago, but seen it a bit more fully, including the parks between cities. I met one more person from Buffalo, who I talked a bit about Christianity with, specifically the reliability of the Epistles of St. Paul over the teachings of other early church fathers, and how that related to Orthodox Christianity. It was interesting, since I had a similar conversation with Rina. In my skeptical Quaker manner, I think it is important to remember when reading it, that St. Paul was ultimately just a guy. It is impossible to know how he would have reacted or spoken/written to modern society, and instead should (in my opinion) be examined looking for larger themes and relating it to Jesus’s sermons in the gospels.
The weather was really nice today, so it’s a bit of a shame that it was a train day, but I think it gave a good chance to walk around Boston and see Chinatown. In Albany they actually split the train itself into two parts rather than reboarding some group, with passengers headed to Boston assigned seating in the first half, and passengers headed to NYC assigned seating in the second half.
It was also cool catching up with Durgesh, we talked a bit about The Republic and the shortcomings of classical philosophers and their failure to introspect. I hadn’t known much about them, but it was interesting hearing the critiques of these usually lauded writers. Tomorrow morning I think I will have some orange juice and nut bars for breakfast, it seems like a good, on-the-go combo. Since I am trying to get a keychain from every city, CVS might be a good place to get both in Boston since it’s so close to Piano Row where I am staying. I didn’t realize that it as named for the actual original (now decrepit and abandoned) Boston Steinway showroom on Boylston.
Today was slower paced, but it was nice to see the scenery, finally take a shower, and see Boston.
Musik: Piano Concerto no. 5 “Emperor”, Beethoven
Day 4 - April 28 (Tue)
Today was really fun. I did everything on my list (although slightly out of order), and ended up walking 34,734 steps all told. Boston common is definitely one of the best public gardens I have seen. I didn’t spend too much time there, but it felt like I could walk and talk there for hours given the chance. The weather was chillier than yesterday, but with the amount of activity I think that was preferable. It was realyl peaceful, especially by the pond and the river. I didn’t get into the friends meeting-understandable since 21 people live there as part of a Quaker community project. But I am glad I went into Beacon hill and looked around.
I went from there to the state house to pee and fill my water bottle, but it ended up being really cool inside. It is not only smaller and much prettier than the Texas capital, it also feels much more like a capitol building than a tourism site, since the senator’s offices are not separated from the rest of the building. The buliding is actually covered in 23 karat gold, just to give an idea of the kind of money that went into building it.
Boston as a whole has a huge preservation movement, so walking through the freedom trail twice was nice. I could do without the militarism and propogandization, but the philosophical background and seeing where people from the 17th and 18th century lived hteir lives was really neat.
I stopped for lunh at Galleria Umberto along the way. It was surprisingly cheap, and definitely worth it. It was $2.25 for a slice, and it was crispy and airy and flaky. My personal preference is with less oil and more of a fresh tomato flavor rather than cheese, but it was hard to deny that it was a good slice. The North End/Little Italy area was really cool. I am looking forward to comparing it to the one in Manhattan/Brooklyn.
I also really enjoyed the Paul Revere house. It isn’t that I have any particular fondness for his war-hawkishness, but the docents seemed fully aware of the irony of american secession. The house itself was also a really interesting example of life from that time. I spoke to one of the docents about the American Bread. This is something I want to look into. Apparently the early bread was made from milled corn, which lead to dense bread (since corn doesn’t have much gluten). Despite this, bread was the backbone of the meal. In the 20th century, the convenience movement traded quality for cost, and led to the ultra-refined wonder-bread style bread of today. Apparently we are going through one of the largest land transfers in history as well, the transfer of land from individual farmers to large corporations, but its hard to say how this will turn out. Regulation may be neccessary. It was also nice being able to compare it to the 1920′s house in Coppell, Texas. Very little changed in the way people built houses for the first 200 years, except maybe with slightly better heating systems.
The Old North Church was interesting, but probably not worth the $10. It did have the first organ fully manufactured in the US, which I found quite interesting. If I lived in Boston, it would warrant a visit to the service I am sure. The Old South Church on the other hand was absolutely beautiful, if not as historic. It’s organ is also much larger, but being a Tuesday afternoon I didn’t get to hear it.
I had oranges from a market in Beacon Hill (the best orange I have had in a long time), which really scratched the itch from yesterday, and went to the Charles River Esplanade. I think its clear that Boston has put a lot of thought into creating public spaces. The Esplanade was probably my favorite walkway. Boston also seems to have a lot of indoor markets. Quincy Market was my favorite of the three I visited and although the prices were ridiculous (I would not pay $20 for ice cream unless my life depended on it), it was pretty good.
I stopped by the Boston Public Library, although I didn’t look around much since I will go there on Thursday anyways, but it felt less like a library and more like an art museum. It was a really cool stop, which I was not expecting, and I am excited to see more. I actually got back around 5:30, since my phone was about to die, and texted with Rino and Rina a little before going on a walk to Berklee and the Christian Science Reflecting pool.
Although Boston is a little too into itself for being around for the revolutionary war, it is by far one of the most beautiful and interesting cities I have visited.
I’m absolutely craving cheese today, I am looking forward to eating lots of Paneer, hummus, and Challah when I get back. I am also developing a craving for feta and the Greek Tortellini Salad (recipe by Delish). Maybe I should try to make Paneer Piccatta when I get back as well. I passed by a few fancy restaurants on the way back. I bet I could make some pretty solid Beet Gnocchi, like what was on their menu.
Action Items: Purchase Keychain from CVS History of American Bread
Musik: ‘Tis The Gift to Be Simple
Day 5 - April 29 (Wed)
Today was one of the more thought provoking days, as it was all museums. Yesterday was more physically demanding, and today was more mentally demanding. Tomorrow might be somewhere in between. I still did plenty of walking, about 25k steps, but there was a lot of standing as well. I woke up early, so I headed to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.
I got some coffee and bought the keychain in the Medical Academic Area. I walked around the Fenway garden (again, really pretty, but not super unique) and went to their visitor center. I also went to the Massachussetts Historical Society. The docents were very helpful, especially Amelia (I think she was going to a meeting, but stopped to explain the exhibits). They had multiple original prints of the Declaration of Independence, which was nice to see completely unexpectedly. Amelia also showed me George Washington’s epaulets, which he gave up immediately after the Treaty of Paris was signed, ending the war for American secession. Although I disagree with the militarism, I think it was really fascinating that he gave up several of his posts willingly. I think it requires humility, and means the president has a keen eye on the vision of democracy. I am not sure that the United States would even exist as it does today had he not resignd, not just in the sense that other presidents may not have, but also since countries, like people “that live by the sword, die by the sword.” They had a beautiful space, and it was suprisingly old. Apparently the building was built in the mid 1800s, but the society was founded in the 1790s. They also had the Remember the Women letter on display there written from Abigail Adams to John Adams.
The Isabella Steward Gardner Museum was really nice. It was unlike any art museum I had been to before. The second and third floors were all right, but the first floor, new wing, and special exhibit, were probably my favorite. They were thought provoking, since the objects in the room were not actually connected by any history or style, but essentially on vibes. And together, these created some themes that could be interpreted as an argument. For example, the special exhibit was a commentary about identity - the gap between what identities are assumed and the identities that are enforced, and the various ways people live up to and challenge these identities. I’ve never seen these sorts of blended displays, so I am glad I went. My favorite room was probably the MacKnight room, since it was so lively. It isn’t that the room itself was brightly lit, but the paintings themselves were bright and animated.
I went to Harvard for lunch, and tried Banh Mi for the first time. I really should learn to make it at home. It was one of the best sandwiches I have had in a long time. I am not sure it will be good for every meal, but it may be good to make occasionally to add to my repertoire. I also had some fries that were pretty good, although probably not worth the price. That area seems pretty expensive in general, but the food was also really good. Harvard Yard reminded me of UIUC in layout, with its big green spaces with diagonal lanes, but with the tall brick buildings of Purdue. I visited the Art Museum, which was free to the public, the Scientific Instruments Museum, and the Natural History Museum, which was $10 with the student discount. It was definitely nice, but I was most excited to see the glass flowers, of which this collection is the only one like it in the world. I was expecting artworks, but these glass flowers were almost indistinguishable from real life, which was mind-boggling. They also had a glass sea creature collection and rock collection which was super cool. The rest of the natural history museum was good, although it was nothing too new.
At the end, I visited the Museum of Bad Art. It wasn’t very big, but it also undersells itself. Some of the art was pretty funny, even if it wasn’t as technically impressive as the Harvard Art Museum. When given the chance, I think when traveling it makes more sense to try to see art museums than natural history without a compelling reason, since art is unique by nature, and natural history museums all often have similar information. The Field Museum in Chicago was worth visiting in particular, and I have heard similar things about the Smithsonian in NYC, but other than that I am not sure I should keep spending time in those. Walking through Dorchester, I saw the oldest house in Boston still standing, which was a pleasant surprise. Dorchester felt more like a “normal” more affordable neighborhood (Beacon Hill is unbelievably posh, and the North End is pretty wealthy too), but it still had a lot of character. In some ways, it reminded me of San Francisco, although more stately and with wider, less walkable roadways. I guess that would make San Francisco is sort of the average between Dorchester and Beacon Hill.
Unless South Boston and the Seaport District really impress me, I think North End was my favorite neighborhood to explore, not only because it is beautiful, but it also has affordable food, lots of history, and a dense feeling. That being said, if I had infinite money, I would probably live in Beacon Hill. In fact, if I ever move to Boston, if I could live with the Beacon Hill Friends Meeting, I could get a pretty great deal along with participating in that community and the amazing location.
I think I packed well for this trip. Everything is lightweight and convenient. I do think I should buy an industrial/camping carabiner though, since I seem to be using my small one a lot, but I am not sure if it can hold up. As for tomorrow, I think I will have a slightly easier day since I have to get to the station by 2:15pm, even though there is a lot of walking with the rather heavy backpack slowing it down.
I am looking forward to NYC. I need to make sure to try Pizza, Bagels, Cronut, Babka, and Cheesecake when I get there (although tomorrow I will just get to Queens and eat and sleep).
Musik: Shipping up to Boston
Day 6 - April 30 (Thu)
I woke up today early-ish in the morning. I slept pretty poorly on the floor, but I moved to the coach and had much better sleep. I think the quality was good, but overall I still have a sleep debt. The coffee I had helped a lot.
I went to the Boston Public Library again as well, and had time to really see all the murals. I didn’t get to see their copy of the Declaration of Independence, but maybe some other time. I wonder how they financed all of this publicly. The Great Hall was especially lovely. If I lived in downtown Boston, it would probably be one of my, if not the, go-to-spot for studying and getting work done. They had an advice column payphone setup in the library, where you could either ask for advice from an advice columnist or listen to other people’s advice. It was pretty charming, even if I doubt many calls are truly taken. I wonder what life as an advice columnist would be like. It started raining around the same time I left the library, but my hiking bag has a rainproof hood (the yellow in the background of the Seaport District picture), so not much was affected.
I ended up in the South Station a little before Regina’s opened. I was hoping to eat lunch with Durgesh, but he had his final so I just said bye to him at the station and we split ways. I got two slices, as pictured. One cheese, and the other melanzane (ricotta, onion, and eggplant). The crust was absolutely incredible. I thought Galleria Umberto was good, and for the price it still is, but Regina’s was on another level. The crust was like a Pringle chip on the bottom, completely crispy, but with the dough above, just soft enough to have a chewy, dense, bite. The sauce and cheese were also more to my taste than Umberto, but I have had better of those elements. Now the melanzane changed that. It was genuinely one of the best slices of pizza I have ever had. It was lightly sweet from the caramelized onion, but just enough to bring out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes and complement the richness of the ricotta and mix with the flavor of the eggplant. This was within the top 5 pizzas I have had in my life.
I explored the Seaport area a bit, but I lost interest. Part of it was the rainy weather, which made it less appealing to be out and about. In better weather I might have walked around more. But it also didn’t stand out to me as as beautiful as the North End and Beacon Hill, as expected. I saw the Museum of Ice Cream, and it definitely is for kids. I think with an unlimited pass it could be worth it to spend a day there with friends, but as-is it didn’t make sense for me to go. I will be making pleeeeeenty of ice cream over the summer anyways. I also passed by the Boston Federal Reserve Bank, although they don’t have a museum. I ended up sitting in the station for a while, but I was able to get printed tickets for all the journey so I don’t need to be as worried about my phone running out of charge.
Tomorrow I think I will eat at H&H Bagels, $1.50 Fresh Pizza, and a Cronut. It is a lot of carbs, but I can probably offset it with walking, and will be eating much healthier the other days and probably packing food from home. I met M.A. and co. again today after a few years. We spoke for a bit, and I think the conversation was pretty interesting. It is mind boggling to me how far New York stretches. It isn’t all high rises and tiny apartments like you see in the movies, which logically makes sense, but is also not what you think about. It really feels like a collection of cities (which it really is, thats how the Borough system came to be). I will buy Babka on the last day and bring it to Shilpa Auntie, and eat at the Panera when I go to Brooklyn on Monday to use up that card, since there is one in Downtown (unless I am not hungry, in which case I will use it in Seattle, or another such city).
I am glad my beard isn’t bothering that much. The speed at which it grows must have increased a good amount over the past couple years or something. I am glad though, as Forrest Gump says “Thats good. One less thing.” Overall today was a solid day of travel. It was not the most exciting day, but I got my steps in and am in a good place to see NYC.
Musik: New York, New York - Frank Sinatra
Day 7 - May 1 (Fri)
Whoa. That’s really the best way to start. Today was the 7th day, marking 1 week of travel. I am glad to say that it is all going well so far. The first day in New York City was wild. I started the morning with some crazy dreams, but a very very restful street. The public transit so far has actually all been really nice and navigable. I was promised unintelligible conductor announcements. Is this Mamdani’s NYC!? This is UN-AC-CEPTABLE. In all seriousness, the transit in New York City, if you get used to it, is basically teleportation inside Manhattan or within a single borough. M.A. gave me some fruits, which I ate throughout the day. There really is quite a bit of “suburb” in NYC.
I think Appa would be fine in Queens or New Jersey honestly. It has most of teh convenience of the city like late closings, good food, and public transit. while still having the more relaxed culture of the suburbs. The suburbs are also very pretty. The suburbs have more nature than Dallas in some places, but Midtown and Times Square feel unlivably utilitarian. There are barely any green spaces, and it feels almost stressful for that to be so much of the norm, especially compared to a city like Boston which is littered with them.
Everything in Midtown was insanity though. The things to see were very cool, especially Saint Patrick’s Catherdral, which was very pretty. It would be hard to do this every day, but to have it accessible is very nice. It makes a lot of sense that Midtown is more a business district than a residential one.
Grand Central Station was very cool. The Grand Hall in Chicago’s Amtrak station was nice, but this was really on another level. The dining area reminded me of Fenueil Market in Boston, but also connected to every train and built underground.
I had the $1.50 Fresh Pizza. I think my pizza that I make at home was better, but I did like the sauce and cheese more than the New England Style. The crust was good, but I think I like a crispier crust. I also had Black Street Bagels from the Metlife building. It was good, but I wasn’t impressed to the point I believed it was an icon, the same way that I could believe in the pizza being truly iconic. There was a lot of cream cheese and it was lighter than a lot of cream cheese I have had. It was also slightly more sour than I expected, but not bad. The best bagel I have had was probably the one at Suju’s Coffee, with an Italian Soda on the side (sparkling water with flavor syrup).
Overall, I think I understand better what people say when they mean its “fast paced”. Simply put, to describe Manhattan, in other cities where you can wander, in NYC and Chicago you explore. And this is good and bad. It means there is alot to do, and always something new to see, but at the same time it is inelegant and messy and not beautiful. And in other cities like Boston, San Francisco, and D.C. (which are also huge major cities) you have more breathing room stop and smell the roses, since the city is designed to be both grand and beautiful rather than a big machine. I don’t think I would want to live in Manhattan, especially not close to midtown (maybe little Italy wouldn’t be terrible), but living in Queens certainly seems nice, and having NYC and that sort of city to explore.
On the way to the American Museum of Natural History from Midtown, I walked through the south half of Central Park (East to West along Sheep Meadow, then West to East around the lake, then to the AMNH). As I was walking, I was thinking - I shouldn’t let worries about futures with inconcrete steps to achieve them weigh me down. I should focus on the more immediate things that ultimately serve to these end goals without having to think about the end goals themself. So in other words, don’t let the good life pass you by.
The AMNH building was fascinating. It is one of the biggest buildings in terms of area that I have seen here. The exhibits felt slightly outdated, but it was still overall competing with the Fieldd Museum in Chicago. I think Chicgao has a better space and dinosaur exhibits, but the shadowbox presentation and organization was clearer here. I may still slightly prefer Chicago, but it was still very very nice overall. I especially liked the primates and human origins exhibit (although this is a soft spot of mine). I liked how they made it clear what was “filled in” information and what was real in the fossils and remains using only wire outlines. I went to Tribeca afterwards, then through Chinatown and Little Italy in Manhattan. I had some noodles there for $3.50 that were pretty good for the price.
One cool thing about NYC is the amount of street music. In the scale of peacefulness, I think NYC is the most high-intensity city, then Chicago, then (with a bit of a gap here) Boston, then DC, then SF. I haven’t been to Seattle and Philly before, so I am looking forward to seeing how that compares. Lower Manhattan is definitely nicer to live in that downtown. I also saw City Hall in passing in Tribeca waiting for the Bus to arrive to take me back to Queens.
So far, my favorite part of Manhattan were Little Italy (even if its small) and Central Park.
Note: I will upload pictures tomorrow or Sunday because I have a LOT to sort through. Tomorrow I will essentially walk from 105th St/South Harlem to 6th St/Lower Manhattan and see the museum and sightsee along the way. It will be exhausting, but very fun. I am also going to skip the Guggenheim because of time, and opt to focus on seeing the Met more thoroughly, and the MoMA if I have time, and that gives me the freedom to choose.
Musik: Always Look at the Bright Side of Life, Monty Python
Day 8 - May 2 (Sat)
It really is crazy to think that it’s been a week already. I slept really well again, once I get back I may need to invest in a better pillow. The one that I am using here is Living Lux Cooling Gel/Memory Foam, which honestly would be nice. I think the investment would be worth it. Normally I sleep face-down, but here I barely roll over, so maybe my posture is a result of poor neck support. I pretty much followed the plan today. I saw more of Central Park (the gardens), then went to the City of the Museum of New York, then El Museo del Barrio, then the Jewish Museum, and finally the Met. After that, I walked from the Met to the 9/11 Memorial (about a 2 hour walk), and finished seeing (most of) Manhattan. I was on my feet a lot, but surprisingly didn’t get as many steps as yesterday, only 30380. It isn’t the end of the world, just a bit surprising. I think having a borrowed charging block on hand was very useful, I may need to try to buy one at some point if I get a chance. Wired earbuds similarly may be a good idea. Some of the subways were a bit confusing on the way back, since the train switched from a local to express train suddenly and without warning, but I was able to get back all right without a large delay. I did learn though that Subway Surfers is based on a real game, and is extremely dangerous. I feel bad for those peopel, it’s so dangerous, I am skeptical the adrenaline rush is worth it.
The City Museum was very cool and the miniature especially was fantastic. Overall, I learned a lot from it. I think Jacob Riis’s and Upton Sinclair’s work is really interesting. I should look into it when I get back. Tomorrow I am going to visit the Flushing Friends meeting, which is over 300 years old. New York began as a trade port connecting Lake Erie and the Midwest with the Atlantic since the Hudson River is a great harbor, then an immigration hub as a result of the multiple moving populationa, which then made it an industrial center. From there the reforms of the early 19th century pushed it towards becoming more focused on other things like large companies and less manufacturing and developing suburban neighborhoods. Now it is sort of going through the reverse of the Tenement phase, where quality of life and affordability are needing to be balanced and the whole city is too expensive for many, causing migration to New Jersey. New York is also trying to start preserving and restoring it’s older neighborhoods rather than turn the whole city into high rises, much like how Botson once did. I think you get a sense looking at the history of NYC and it’s surrounding areas of being a canary in the colemines in a sense of the cultural moments of the U.S., similar to SF and Chicago.
El Museo del Barrio was not worth it. It did raise the question to me, what is the value of photography if it’s simply information and not tied to a concrete medium? I can’t auction that 1+1=2 after all, and there was certainly work attached to developing that a la Peano. In a way, digital photography was the original NFT.
The Jewish Museum was pretty nice. It has a painter exhibited called Paul Klee who painted around WW2 with watercolor and pen, and his work was quite good. There was also an exhibit by Joan Semmel casting the female nude from her own perspective to sort of “reclaim” the female gaze. There were also historical artifacts which were nice too, but I think the Klee was my favorite.
The Met was absolutely amazing. It is one of the largest art museums in the world, and I definitely believe it. I think I could have spent weeks in there. I got to see some of my favorite pointillist works by Signac and Seurat, and learned that Monet dabbled in Pointillism too, just like the other post-impressionists. I really do want to understand the “story” of art a little better. I also got to see some very very old pianos, including the oldest fortepiano discovered. I learned about Degas. I do need to look into a few things: Degas, European Porcelain Art, the inspirations of Gothic Architecture, and Le Academie de Beaux-Art. Since Caravaggio and Le Tour were trying to break away from the academy, I wonder if they started their own or just went freely like with the post-impressionists. I will ask Nila about the story of art when I get back. I also need to search up the difference between a Harp, Lyre, and Zither. I noticed that many instruments were made specifically for young women, but not many for young men. The history of music is very man-focused until the Romantic Era, but it feels like the musicians must have been women, I am not sure.
On the walk south from the Met, I saw most of the boroughs. I also unexpectedly saw the residence of Antoine Saint-Exupery from when he wrote the Little Prince. I didn’t see Hell’s Kitchen or Chelsea, but my favorites were probably Soho and Little Italy, although Harlem and Noho were also really nice. The other neighborhoods, though cool, didn’t feel very livable to me, and didn’t have enough green spaces along the sidewalks and roads.
Again, I will not post pictures today, but I will soon once I relabel everything. I will briefly visit Manhattan again on the last day, but I will mostly be focused on the Staten Island Ferry, and walking across the Brooklyn Bridge from Williamsburg. I am glad tomorrow is a little more low-key, it will be nice to have a break. I just wish my friends were with me to see it all. There is a very unusual kind of lonliness that come from traveling alone. It isn’t the same as isolation, and I feel more mentally stimulated in some sense than I have in months, just because of being around people all the time. But at the same time, not being able to put down roots and have real connections is difficult. And in a lot of ways, thats why I couldn’t live in Manhattan. It isn’t the constant annoying noise, or the price, or the intensity. It is just by far one of the lonliest places I have been, in some sense even more so than Rapid City, South Dakota (which is surrounded for hundreds of miles by nothing but vast unending beautiful virtually uninhabited flatlands). Manhattan feels like a machine geared towards productivity, but in a lot of ways it is missing the consideration for the human element that makes living somewhere like San Francisco or Boston so ideal. It is impossible to wander and admire the beauty (excepting certain areas), but only rather to explore and to try to know the nooks and crannies. But for today, I am glad that I was able to see so much. Exploring has its time and place, and I hope to explore West Lafayette and Lafayette extremely thoroughly as a student. But an environment with no room to stop and smell the roses is just hard to live around.
Musik: I Got Rhythm, George Gershwin
Day 9 - May 3 (Sun)
As predicted, today was a more slow-paced day. I slept very well, but not very much, so I was still really tired by the end, even though I only did around 22000 steps. I also ate a lot, like probably three days worth of food, which didn’t help. No wonder everyone I spoke to said Queens has the best food. It was by far some of the best food I have had on this trip on average.
In a lot of ways, Queens, especially east of Astoria, overall reminds me of Fremont (California) culturally. It is more hostile and intense than North Texas, where people definitely lean more towards giving you the time of day, but still more of a middle to upper-middle class suburban pace of life and attractions. I began and ended the day with pizza. I started in Flushing, in my opinion the best Chinatown in NYC. Rino, having visited both, put it perfectly. Chinatown feels like an advertisement for China. Flushing feels like China. To be more precise, the ethnic majority neighborhoods in Manhattan feel like a pastiche, but in Flushing (and from what I have heard, parts of Brooklyn) felt genuinely like stepping into China. In Flushing, I ate at a pizza by the slice place called Lucia’s which was meant to be some of the best pizza in Queens. It was good, definitely much better than $1.50 Fresh and probably marginally better objecitively than I could make, atlhough I still may prefer my own. I don’t think it the best pizza I have had on the trip, that award still goes to the New England Style at Regina Pizzeria, but it was very good. The crust had the same mild sweetness that was almost reminded me of a chinese bakery (appropriate, because it is Flushing). I also had a coffee cake a la Seinfeld. It was good gas station food. Generic, but interesting, since I hadn’t had it before.
I then went to the Flushing Friends Meeting, the second-oldest continually (except for 2 years in the 1770s because of the America War of Secession) operated house of worship in the United States (with a meeting house in Maryland predating it by about a decade). It was built in the 1680s at the same time that Quakerism was coming into fruition, and was just a really cool historic space. It was also the home of the first school in Queens, hosted George Washington twice (although he probably didn’t sleep there), was extremely ironically given the BSA’s military association where the creaters of the Boy Scouts of America and the Campfire Girls went to worship growing up, hosted George Fox and William Penn, and was involved in the early Hicksite splite. It also was a good example of the kind of old growth wood available at that time, and medieval style wooden braces. I attended the meeting for worship and met the other congregants. One was a historian at CUNY, and another was a theatre in Long Island and at Cornell. I learned a lot there about Quakers and their origins in the Americas, which was really cool.
After meeting for worship and getting the tour of the space, I went to a noodle place to have the best cold noodles I have ever had. They were peppery and fresh and spicy, and tasted even better than they looked. After that, I walked to and around Corona Park. It was not great overall compared to Central Park and those huge beautiful and well designed spaces. The lakes were certainly cool, but it felt like too much of it had been bulldozed and turned into a highway. The World’s Fair globe was cool, but overall the glory days are over. That being said, it seems to serve a different function. Rather than being a park truly for wandering and enjoying, as a community space for birthday parties and soccer games it seems to do just fine. Because of how much space is there (again likely due to the initial World’s Fair construction). I walked from Corona through the neighborhood, had a Bialy (which was nice, although not too different from a Bagel), and took the F train to Queensbridge. It was probably a mistake, but ended up pretty well, since I got an amazing view over the East River. I was trying to get to Astoria, not Long Island City, but it was still beautiful. Queensbridge is actually the largest project housing in North America, and it was definitely poorer than East Queens and Corona. By the end, I was dead tired, so I came back and took a nap, then had pizza from a restaurant called Singa’s Famous Pizza. Those leftovers are going to be really good on Tuesday when I am walking around and on the Staten Island Ferry.
Tomorrow is mostly just walking through Brooklyn’s various neighborhoods. I have planned about a 11 mile walk through northern Brooklyn, but that assumes no stops. I will start at Moore Market, go to Prospect Park, then eat at Luigi’s, then walk north to explore DUMBO, eat a slice at L&P Spumoni Gardens, and then go over the Brooklyn Bridge. It will be a long day, but very fun. I was thinking today about the different types of days that you can have when exploring a city. Parks and Mark(et)s. Neighborhood/Rino days, where you walk forever, and Museum Days. And choosing how to manage that and keeping it consistent leads to most enjoyment. Building healthy relationships is very difficult. I think it takes a lot of time to feel close to me in a sustainable way. It isn’t that you can’t feel close after only a very short period of time, but I think that it becomes unsustainable since it isn’t very fulfilling. In contrast, the relationships which are built slowly and intentionally with the knowledge and intention of there being more time are more likely to succeed because the people are working together to create the relationship in the way that is the best for close friendships. I am looking forward to this summer with Rino and Rina. I don’t know how much time all three of us but just spending time with my closest friends before I go is very important to me.
The Corona Park neighborhood is very pleasant. It feels more like Rich suburbs again but in a more dense way then Little Neck, sort of like DC. I am still skeptical that there is a HOA since there is no uniformity but still the houses all have a certain charm and there are lots of trees and lots of green and front yards. I think having big well-maintained trees and even an attempt at keeping me the sidewalks and roads clean the and graffiti-free automatically make a neighborhood look more nice and appealing to live in. I think Manhattanites are performative, and Queens people are the kind of ppl to hang out at a local park and play basketball or something, but not really wander - very Fremont-esque.
My biggest critique on NYC is suprisingly the noise pollution. There is a constant wooshing sound from traffic which is really unpleasant.
So far, the highlights of of the trip have been the Charles River Esplanade, Beacon Hill, Freedom Trail, Regina’s Pizzeria the Met, Central Park, and Flushing Chinatown’s food. I am really looking forward to Brooklyn. I’ve heard a lot about it and suspect it may be my favorit district, but who’s to say how it will turn out.
I also have a lot to look forward to coming back. Getting new glasses, returning to my yummy paneer/hummus diet. Learning to make new foods too.
Musik: You’ve Got a Friend in Me, Randy Newman
Day 10 - May 4 (Mon)
Today was a lot of fun, maybe one of the most fun days of the trip. I started the morning by going to the Avenue of Purto Rico and Moore Street market, however most of the shops were closed. From what I saw and smelled though, the food seemed absolutely delicious. I think if I had stayed longer it would have been really cool, but I spend to go through the neighborhoods and didn’t get to see it. Today was mostly seen through the clarity of beautiful weather, and the haze of tree pollen allergies. One of the nice things about moving to the midwest is that tree pollen basically doesn’t exist, only grass pollen, which is much better for me. I started in Williamsburg, and unlike Manhattan and Flushing, none of Queens save for the downtown area seemed too crowded. While walking, I saw Hasidic Jews for the first time. New York has such a diversity of accents. Between the ethnic neighborhoods and borough-to-borough differences, it feels like I have heard dozens of accents just within this small area.
I overall really liked Brooklyn. It felt diverse, but definitely not as poor and unmaintained as some of the neighborhoods. Even the “rougher” neighborhoods I had to pass through like Bedford-Stuyvesant were really quite nice. Brooklyn really does feel like the best of both worlds. It has the calmer suburban neighborhood feel of Queens, while still having dense housing and walkability and character and things to do and downtown area that Manhattan had. The houses were tall and skinny, and were probably the ones used for filming. It felt like you could go around the corner and find any shop you could want, and yet could still feel like you were in a normal neigbhorhood. The houses were brownstone, and there were green spaces and parkways everywhere. I even saw neighbors talking to each other, which feels impossible in Manhattan. If I were to move to New York, I would definitely try to live in Brooklyn. From Williamsburg, I walked to Prospect Park. After Central Park, Prospect Park would easily be next. It felt like the Ramble and Sheep Meadows sections of Central Park, but with hardly any crowd.
From there I took the train south to L&B Spumoni Gardens. I think in some way, commercial pizza places like Dominos and Pizza Hut are cheap imitations of Sicilian Pizza. This was the real thing. It was some of the best pizza I have ever had. This had the crisp oiliness that was so nice in the New England style, but was pillowy and soft. I suspect it also had garlic in the crust, which gave a great flavor. In a lot of ways, New England style is the middle ground between Sicilian (with a thinner version of a square slice), and a NY Slice. I then took the train north to Luigi’s and had the best pizza I have had on the trip. The cheese, the sauce, the crust. Everything was perfect. It was denser and less oily than the New England style, and very filling. The herby sweetness that I liked so much in the Melanzane came from Basil, not from an oddly sweet dough like Lucia’s. It was pizza, mastered. With neither pizza, I felt the need to add pepper flakes. It lived up to the hype. In Texas terms, I would drive 90 minutes for either pizza.
From there, I went to the downtown area of Brooklyn. It reminded me in a weird way of the Loop in Chicago - at least, what I imagine the Loop must have been like 50 years ago. There were a combination of high rise office buildings, normal apartment buildings, and historic buildings. But it was pleasant, clean, and well designed overall. I think it may one day compare to a small version of Midtown Manhattan, but today, was just a pleasant large-city feel. From there I went to what is my favorite neighborhood of Brooklyn and probably my absolute favorite residential neighborhood in NYC, Brooklyn Heights. It is a historic neighborhood, with all Brownstone buildings. It is extremely expensive, just as expensive as Beacon Hill, but in many ways had the exact same friendly atmosphere. There were a lot of similar-ish neighborhoods in Brooklyn, I also liked Clinton Hill for the same reason, but Brooklyn Heights did those things a bit better (although I am not sure that the price justifies it). I looked it up, and the median rent is about $6000 per month. I know I am in a uniquely affordable position with my rent in Lafayette, but that is more than a year’s rent for me. One of its big appeals is its riverwalk, which goes along the East River and has a view of Lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. I then went to Dumbo (definitely nice to walk around) and Vinegar Hill, and then walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. Walking over the bridge was cool, not just for its views of Manhattan and the East River, but because I felt like a commuter from the 1850s who was using the bridge for its original purpose - walking to Manhattan. It was also convenient because it allowed me to directly take the QM8 back to East Queens. Tomorrow I will get an early-ish start and leave around 8:30 and take the QM5. I will focus on seeing Wall Street, then Battery Park and taking the Staten Island Ferry, from there I will go towards Penn Station, buy some Babka and Cookies, and then head to PA.
I did not coordinate well for arriving to PA, but I think it should all work out. Since now I am going to be going from the suburbs, I will have to be a bit more intentional with timings towards the end of the day. I will try to get onto Septa Transit to Colmar Station by 5 each day and uber part of the day. It is good that the interesting parts of PA are so small, since otherwise this would be much harder to do. I will need to leave home by 7:30am for sure every day to catch the 8:09 Septa, so that means waking up at 6:30am,and I can start heading back at the 5:30 Septa from center station. I am not planning on trying any new foods in PA so lunch will be easy. Downtown PA is also very walkable and very small, which also makes things easy. Pictures will be posted tomorrow, since I need to rest today.
Musik: Chopin Scherzo no. 2, Seong-Jin Cho
Day 11 - May 5 (Tue)
I took the express bus to Manhattan today and spent some time in Battery Park. On the way, I bought some cheesecake babka for Shilpa Auntie and co, which ended up being quite good. I then took the Staten Island ferry and walked around St. George. It was about as peaceful as Brooklyn, but it didn’t have any of the same benefits and felt very boring and dull. One of the things about eating so much pizza on this trip is that my cravings for light food and dairy protein especially have skyrocketed. Just eating paneer and a salad sound amazing. I don’t know if I will continue to have pizza after D.C
I walked around Penn Station and Downtown Manhattan after coming back from the ferry, and texted Rino. It was a very laid back day, and I only got around 15k steps overall. I am glad though, I think that I would have not had energy to travel otherwise on future days. Tomorrow I will have Tomato Pie and go through the planned itinerary. I didn’t realize how small the central part of Philadelphia is. I will also probably walk to the river. Rino says theres not much to do there so despite tighter time restrictions I don’t think I will be missing anything.
The Vermonter train to Philadelphia is about the same as the Northeast Regional. I think after I leave D.C. all the trains will be comfortabl New York was overall very interesting. It feels hostil to religion, but much easier to be cultural. In the same way americans are encouraged to only discuss and live religion on Sundays (what I call “Sunday Christians”), New York somehow (partially due to its fast pace) fells especially antagonistic towards the reflection that faith deserves. At the same time, the speed and diversity encourage you to not only learn about other cultures but to have a specific identity so that you can quickly find a community. Maybe thats why faith easier in India as well, just the sheer diversity of faiths and the search for connection. I am curious about the differences between African-American culture and the culture I grew up with. It is really interesting being around a lot of black people for the first time, and being around the comparatively looser culture. The intensity of NYC might come partially from people being unwilling to share about themselves and trust other people easily without a good reason. Conversation exists, but it generally has a specific goal, and is never just free to breathe, similar to California. I was also randomly wondering what the world would look like if all 8 billion+ people (minus the people who need to work in agriculture). It would certainly be very interesting, there would be a very different sociopolitical environment. I also wonder why tobacco usage in the East Coast is so much more normalized than in other places I have been to. Philadelphia and NYC seem to be the worst about it, even young people are using tobacco.
Musik: Weightless, Marconi Union
Day 12 - May 6 (Wed)
I arrived to Philadelphia without knowing what to expect. Having recieved mixed reviews, I didn’t have super high hopes, although I was curious about the Quaker history in that area. When I arrived in the morning, I had to wait for the Septa train. The frequencies are really terrible, its only one train every hour. There was hardly anyone at that time tho whole trip into downtown, so I suppose it is justified, but it is still annoying. The subway is good, but it has weird acceleration and is not very clean and clearly very old. Philly as a whole does seem more reliant on cars, even when the city is naturally walkable inear the downtown areas. I ended up seeing a lot and still coming back early. The nature of the things to see in Philadelphia are all “drive by”, where it is simply sufficient to walk past rather than spend time doing an activity.
I started the morning at Chinatown. Honestly, it was nice. I don’t think it was on the level of Flushing, but in some ways it reminded me of San Francisco’s Chinatown. It didn’t have big buildings or anything, but it had a similar amount of “chinese-ness”, probably because both were constructed and settled within two decades of each other. Reading Terminal Market. It was really cool. I think if I lived here I would hang out more. I met an Amish person and we spoke briefly, and she told me about the Greman word “grumbeer”. It literally translates to “ground bulbs”, and apparently it is derived from the western part of Germany, where the Lancaster Amish must have come from. Different Germanic languages and dialects have different words for potato, like grumbeer, brambor, kartoffel, patata, peruna, aardappel, etc. The French (and Dutch) are pretty funny, the “earth-apple”, although “ground-bulb” just sounds wholesome. Everything in the market smelled incredible, even if it was expensive. I had some “kaes grumbeere”, which were very nice.
I think Philadelphia is a bit worse than Boston, in that it glorifies the revolutionary war without acknowledging the hypocricy. It is interesting, since having a historically large Quaker population I would have expected it to be more strongly anti-war. I learned about the “Free Quakers”, who seemed rather stupid to me and not very Quakerly at all. I felt that Boston was more aware of the inconsistencies, at least the docents who I spoke to. Apparently New York and Philadelphia were both the capital of the country. The Betsy Ross Museum was interesting in furniture, but I felt that the docents were less interesting, and less in touch with Quaker culture (despite talking so much about it).
Philly definitely doesn’t have the same vibe as New York and Boston. It feels a bit more broken down, and definitely doesn’t feel as developed. It definitely has cultural areas like Chinatown and Little Italy, but these feel a bit more small. In another half century, I feel it could become either 1980s Detroit, or as great as Boston, and very little in between.
I then went to the Liberty Bell and the Independence hall, which where kind of forgettable. The history of Independence Hall (where the constitutional conventions for the Declaration of Independence met) was definitely interesting, but the Liberty Bell felt unimportant to me as a monument.
I tried Santucci’s Pizza today, and I was overall not impressed. It wasn’t bad, it was definitely unique, and it had the tomato sauce on top as promised, but it wasn’t nearly as good as L&B Spumoni gardens. It tasted a bit like a classy version of 7/11 pizza. Good, but nothing incredible. It is surprising how many chinese and african-american people are in Philadelphia. Elfreth’s Alley was really really cool. It is the oldest continuously inhabited street in the U.S., and felt really historic, alot like Acorn Street.
After that, I went to the U.S. Mint. I liked that exhibit a lot, even if we weren’t able to take pictures. What was special was to see the factory in action, even if the collected display was not too large.
Culturally, the city feels a bit like the Midwest. The co-occurence with Amish people in both places makes me wonder if they have influenced each other overall.
Tomorrow, if I have time, I am considering of going to King of Peoria in addition to the rest of the schedule to see their shopping mall, since it is the fourth-largest shopping mall in the United States.
Musik: If I Had a Hammer, Peter Paul and Mary
Day 13 - May 7 (Thu)
Today I saw much more of Philadelphia, and I think it is a more interesting city than I initially assumed. I started at Jefferson Station, and walked to the Little Saigon area. It wasn’t a great start, it felt like a small vietnamese strip mall that happened to be in Philadelphia than a true cultural district. It feels like a lot of Philadelphia’s markers are a bit outdated, since the population has changed over time. But when I went to the Italian Market it was even better than promised. It wasn’t strictly italian, there were other stalls too, but the open-air market was vibrant and really fun to walk around. I bought an italian soda there (gingerbread flavor) which took me right back to the italian soda and bagels at Suju’s Coffee as a kid, and had some awesome samples of cheese and some sweets at the stores. After that, I headed to Magic Gardens, a huge “art space” where everything from the floor to the ceiling was part of a mosaic. I don’t know that it was worth $12, but it was definitely nice to see. I think if I appreciated folk art more I would have liked it more, but it probably didn’t reach me like it was meant to. I can appreciate the idea of not needing form, but I don’t find it as visually appealing as some other people do. Walking around the downtown area and the high rise buildings and local neighborhoods was also very nice. It seems like in some places it could be a really pleasant place to live. It felt almost like a more spaced out version of Brooklyn or Boston’s North End, which was very pleasant. I also saw lots of construction while walking, so I genuinely think that in the future Philadelphia will catch up to Boston and have its population growth (as long as people don’t go too far out in the suburbs). I also went to Aldi and bought Cheese and Crackers that were sealed which I can bring to D.C. and on the train. I am most excited by their “snacking parmesan”, which is both vacuum sealed and hard, and is extremely protein/fat dense, then called Amma at the Schulkill River Walk. I was considering buying apple dumplings at Reading Market, but ultimately didn’t. It seems interesting to make at home, but probably too much sugar to buy outside. Next to the train station, I found a huge donut, the likes of which I have never seen before, if I lived here it would be cool. With all the walking this trip, my shoes are definitely taking a beating. Once I get back, it may be a good idea to take it to a shoe repair shop to get it “tuned up” so to speak, and to buy any hiking shoes if I decide to get into that later on.
As for hobbies, I think once I finish a Language Transfer cousre, thats about the time when I will invest in individual tutoring. If I finish the German course in particular, I will probably start Yiddish tutoring rather than German, because it sounds more fun and can be really funny (especially as its the ashkenazic language of daily life).
Tomorrow I only have one item on the itinerary (for the morning): Benjamin Franklin Parkway. I actually need to buy the keychain too.
Musik: Little Boxes, Peter Seeger
Day 14 - May 8 (Fri)
I’ve been able to eat a lot more dairy the past few days. I had 4 yogurts, and the cheese and crackers which I bought. I think that is most likely what I will end up packing for the long travel, in addition to the food from the Y.
I was thinking a bit about music today and how prevalent it is in our lives. It’s interesting because we hear it constantly and listen to it often, some more than others. But I wonder if that detracts from the goal of music. I think music’s purpose isn’t just to function as a sound track, but to to be an actual active activity. I think that this may lead people to not appreciate certain music, like romantic era music, which is very beautiful, but also requires some active listening skills. In other words, I think that listening to music is becoming a rarer art.
In D.C., I am expecting to get a lot of steps, or I will regret it as I will have two weeks of relative sedentariness. I have the most opportunity to stay out late, and I think the public transit is easy to navigate. The important things are also all close enough to reasonably walk. I should buy a battery pack and face wash for Seattle when I get a chance.
One of the nice things about D.C. is how spread out things are. The wider roads, height control, and lower density to spread out the people make it feel much calmer. Having such annoying diagonal roads overall is probably nice for the city as an individual, even if you can’t get between places as quickly. I can see why Ani liked Embassy row, its very peaceful and I think it would be very fun to just spend a few days visiting all the embassys. It feels like a big neighborhood, not like office buildings like I expected. Every house definitely has its own beauty, and they are all built in distinct styles that somehow seem to form a tapestry together.
I saw a tiny baby squirrel running around the old growth forest near Washington’s Cathedral, which was also very beautiful. I think I will get the most exercise in D.C. because of the hilliness, second only to San Fransisco. I think these days when I have to walk with my backpack are part of the challenge. I think I am getting more comfortable knowing what to pack, likely a lot of cheese and crackers.
Musik: I’ve Got Rythm, George Gershwin
Day 15 - May 9 (Sat)
I guess today is the halfway point for the journey, which is crazy to think about. It was probably the most emotionally draining day of the trip so far. I did also walk a lot, but that wasn’t what got to me. I didn’t realize there was so much militarism in Arlington national cemetery. I can intellectually appreciate the idea of martyrdom, but in a lot of ways, with soldiers and the military specifically, it feels like celebrating killing and violence and keeping them in an honored place. In general, there were a lot of references to war today, in the Library of Congress, which was hard to be around, I felt very sad for a lot of the day.
And after all of this celebration of death, not a single one commemorates protest and activism and conscientious objection. It isn’t that I have to be personally honored, in fact I definitely shoulnd’t be, but it feels like the country simply doesn’t recognize the value of acting peacefully beyond the most superficial notions of peace. I pray one day for a change in conscience of humanity, and a global recognition of the value of life. I don’t think people as a whole don’t value peace, but people are scared and prideful, and respond to this with violence. They believe that the ends justify the means, no matter what it may be, which just breaks my heart, since it is the collective lack of conscience that causes these problems.
I visited the African American National History Museum. It was really well done, and was very interesting. I thought about it, and I think that museums that curate (so nearly every museum) are in a lot of ways reflective of a moment in history, much like any art. In a very explicit way, it explains how the current society looks at the past. I think a logical step then, would be to have a museum of museums. I need to do more research on the Nation of Islam. I tried to learn about them once, but I don’t understand the black supremacy movement for the same reason I don’t understand white supremacy movements. I also visited the Museum of Asian Art. I really like Japanese woodblock printing and Illuminated Manuscripts, although I am not sure why. I find them very comforting. The Library of Congress was honestly not that interesting as a whole to me, but a lot was also closed. The building itself was really beautiful, even if the exhibits were only alright. I especially liked the George Gershwin Exhibit, where they had his actual piano on display.
I learned a few interesting facts. In 1884, the Washington Monument was the tallest building in the world. And apparently bees buzz at Middle C to shake excess pollen from what they pick up.
Tomorrow I am planning to visit the Adams Morgan, Crystal City (and the mall), and Ballston Neighborhoods, then visit S.C. and explore Takoma/Takoma Park.
Musik: Tomorrow, Annie
Day 16 - May 10 (Sun)
Disclaimer: Today I didn’t take many photos. There really wasn’t any need. I essentially followed the plan to a T, although I did slightly less walking than anticipated so I could visit S.C. on time. I walked between Pentagon City -> Crystal City -> Ballston Quarter, then took the train to Adams Morgan and walked north to Takoma to meet with S.C. and A.U. It was overall a pretty fun today, very relaxing, although a decent amount of exercise. It was cool getting to catch up, especially since the last time I saw them I was only in seventh grade. I thought Ballston was nice, but I really liked Adams Morgan, if I had infinite money, I would probably live there (although maybe the nightlife could discourage me if there are lots of drunk college kids in practice). It also had a lot of pacifist/anti-war signage , which I very much appreciated. I think just from exposure to things, I came up with a few things I want to do. I should watch Porgy and Bess with Rina (and Rino, although I am not sure if it will be his thing), and to learn some Gershwin. I also think I should watch Smoky and the Bandit when I get back. That one might be better with Rino. There’s really not much to say, but I think it was a solid day of D.C. overall, and a great way to spend it before heading on the long road back. Tomorrow morning I will take care of shopping and packing for the trip. I have most of the things I will be eating, but I will buy an extra box of crackers and snacking parmesan just in case. I still haven’t picked up face wash and a battery pack either, so I will try to find those. If I have time, I will visit Alexandria, and then I will say goodbye to Rino and head to the train station. G.U. offered to pick me up after the first day in Seattle, so I think that will make it easier, since the transit to the suburbs will take a while. Overall, I am really excited for a few days to recharge and meet cool new people on the train.
Musik: An American in Paris, George Gershwin
Day 17 - May 11 (Mon)
Today was a very chill day. It was shaped mostly by preperation for the train travel. I woke up and got ready around 8, but Rina was still asleep so I went to Aldi to do groceries. I bought olives and crackers, and when I came back I waited for Rino to wake up and then went to the Y. I ate quite a bit, and packed two sandwiches and some naan and hummus, all of which I ate for dinner. I ate quite a few calories, so I felt quilty. I think it set me back a decent amount, so I will have to work it off in Seattle. I had forgotten my bottle at S.C’s house, so I ended up meeting her at Howard to retrieve it. I walked around for a while, and it was a nice train station, even if it was small and very empty (school was over). I didn’t see anything too special about the campus, but the area around it was definitely a bit rough. I called Rina for about a half-hour while waiting for the train since it was a bit delaweyd, but the journey started easily enough. I had a few consversations passing through Pennsylvania/West Virginia on the future of how AI and how it was invigorating a few fields like formal verification, and the need for world governance to maintain the peace. I get the feeling that the people associated in military afil to recognize the humanity in other people who have different ideals than them sometimes. It would make sense then to kill, since it is no different than shooting a gun at a target, which is quite sad. I think reading “Eserhaddon, King of Assyria” by Tolstoy would be productive for them. I went to sleep around 10, but the train was completely full and my seat didn’t have a window, which made it hard to et comfortable.
Day 18 - May 12 (Tue)
I slept poorly last night. It was the same problem as the train to Boston, where the lights didn’t turn off and the seats were a bit smaller. Once I get to Chicago though, the rest of the trains should be nice, like the Texas Eagle. I lost my eye mask, but my beanie is slouchy enough that I acn pull it over my eyes (which is convenient since it can get cold enuogh to justify having the beanie on anyways). I finished the rice crackers, and met a NASA fuel researcher. We talked about NASA’s space operations, and some of the problems within NASA. Apparently there is a decent amount of nepotism that goes on with promotions internally, and Ayush told me about the unstable project for less outwardly interesting missions, even if they are useful. I personally also wonder why the Artemis missions exist, when the same money could be used to do many more productive things like managing the national debt, or otherwise just creating sattelites which are useful for the public and the world at large. The research and geodata work at NASA is great, but I wish they received more funding. The other stuff feels more like a way for politicians to serve their egos and appeal to a less forward-thinking masses.
Today I went to the Bean/Millenium Park, have lunch, then come back to the station. I had a sandwich from Panera Bread, even if I felt a bit bloated from the large lunch/dinner yesterday. I think I overpacked food again, but that is probbaly the better problem to have than not having enough food. I am looking forward to cracking open the olives. I think the next stretch back to Dallas I can pack a bit lighter (or honestly, just bring a couple filling items, and then purchase the remaining meals in the cafe).
Overall, today I learned a lot. I wasn’t expecting to, but I got drawn into a long conversation with some Amish folk. The first boy I met was going to Wyoming to visit his brother. He was pretty young, and he taught me the colors and the animals in Pennsylvania Dutch. He also taught me that elks and deer shed their antlers every year, and that you can find them in the forest. He was a hardwood logger (maple and oak).
After that, I spoke with a few more people headed to LaCrosse, who really taught me quite a bit more. I learned the numbers, as well as some common verbs and nouns and prepositions. Unt gameschpiela Rummikub. We talked and played games on the train for around 3 hours, before they left, and we shared some food. I think being around people speaking a certain language is really the best way to pick it up. It also feels a little bit like being a toddler again who is just learning to speak. You don’t really have the words to express yourself, until you figure out the right way to say it, and when you do it feels like a huge relief, and is very fun. I felt something very similar when I went to India and learned Tamil. For the first 3 or 4 days, my brain needed to “get used to” speaking Tamil, but when I came back I felt comfortable expressing my thoughts in Tamil, even if my tone is apparently a bit excessively polite. I think this is surprisingly nice to struggle with though. It gives the same freedom to be ignorant and be incorrect freely as children are given.
For some reason, I am thinking a lot about the childhood experience. Both in the biblical “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways”, but also recognizing that giving up childhood isn’t always neccessarily good. I think there is definitely a lot to learn from children. I think about Maud Muller especially
“Ah that I were free again
Free as when I rode that day
Where the barefoot maiden raked her hay”. Children are interesting and bring so much mirth because they don’t have any baggage whatsoever, which I think is what many adults (myself included) often seek.
On the train, I also took care of sending my lease to Aletha. I am excited that things are comint gotether for moving as well. PhD is really looming on the horizon as another great adventure to start. As time goes on, I feel more and more like I am eking out the last bits of time I can before I go on to another long exhausting “vacation”.
Overall, these train days are very interesting. I always feel like I learn something I wasn’t expecting to learn.
Musik: “If I Were Free”, Peter Paul and Mary
Day 19 - May 13 (Wed)
I woke up today IN rural North Dakota (if there is an urban North Dakota to compaer to), where we will spend most of our day. Save for some small patches of trees in the distance, the land is mostly flat. There were quite a few ponds we saw as we rode past, and so there are lots of ducks and geese, which was a surprise to me. It is similar to the midwest, in that it has a vast expansive beauty. The data has been surprisingly good on this stretch, although I don’t know if it will stay this way (I know it will not). There is a guy sitting next to me vaping, so I ended up moving to the observation car until he left the train. It is really annoying when people are super incosiderate. He looks like a teenager too, which makes it a little sad.
As we moved into Montana, we began to see the foothills of the rockies and cornfields. I met two older women named Lois and Dale, and they taught me to play Rummy and Golf, talked about life, and travel, and shared interesting facts. Dale was from a farming community in Oregon, so she told me about the different restrictions of agriculture and methods they used to grow wheat. She also shared the idea of a “4H”, where the children on the community are able to practice certain useful skills. I think it would be really interesting if a similar program existed for cities. I will read more on that once I get back from the travel.
I took a brief nap around noon, and when I woke up we were in a high wind waring area. Because of that, the train car moved very slowly (around 20 miles per hour), causing a 3 hour delay. We made up an hour and a half by the afternoon, but ended up having much shorter breaks overall. I don’t know what time we will reach Seattle because of that, but it ultimately shouldn’t cause huge problems for my specific plans. There was also some incredible lightning due to the storm, which I was able to video. I also saw an antelope and a moose for the first time. The moose was small and far away, but the antelope was very pretty. It was orange and white, and about the size of a deer without antlers.
Towards the sunset time, we saw a really magnificent double-rainbow. It was huge and created a complete arc which touched the ground. Despite being so wide, it was extremely vibrant, and was even more incredible as hte sky turned red from the setting sun. It was a bit too cloudy to see stars, and because the observation car will split in Spokane in the wee hours I won’t be able to see the sunrise. Lois was able to get good pictures of the sunset, and her and Dale and I spoke about buying local produce. It really isn’t possible in Dallas, but once I move to West Lafayette I think I should do that. I think high quality with more limited options is preferable to low quality with lots of options, as tends to be the difference between local stores and superstores/chains. Flour/Chickpeas/Sesame/Yeast/Sugar/Sald/Oil/Balsamic Vinegar/Tea/Eggs/Milk/Vinegar/Apple/Orange/Spinach/Mushroom/Pasta/Sun Dried Tomato is really all the essentials I use, and as long as I can buy them, even if it ends up being in a larger scale than I do in Texas, would be really convenient, and I can make most of my usual foods. In a similar vein, I need to mend my clothes more often. I have enough that I won’t need to for a while, but it would be nice to use a speedweve.
These granny-types always ask me if I have a girlfriend. I think its very flattering, but I can’t tell if that is small talk. They tell me whoever I meet will be lucky, which is pretty funny. I wonder what all this is about. It seems a little beyond normal midwestern smalltalk, but I don’t mind one bit. Now all thats left is for someone to convince the girls.
Musik: “Bolero”, Ravel
Day 20 - May 14 (Thu)
I woke up just east of Spokane, and saw the cars seperate. My trimmer broke last night, so I will have to buy a new one when I get back. During this final push to Seattle, I wasn’t be able to use an observation car, but it was beautiful either way. We passed through eastern Washington and the Cascades, and saw the snow capped peaks and older growth forest. There were lots of ferns and scattered wildflowers in patches. I even saw some bluebonnets. Most people I met initially were headed to Portland, so today should be a more quiet day.
I suspect based on this journey that I will take the Amtrak to West Lafayette when I move, since the luggage allowance is higher and is overall cheaper than any flying for that volume of stuff (plus, points!). I would arrive around 10pm, so hopefully my new roommate or Aeltha/Jill/Liz or someone from the meeting can help me move my stuff from the station. My bed, clothes, cookware, and miscellaneous items should perfectly fill up four bags. When I get back, I am going to get back into cooking with some ingredient pre-preperation like making pesto, spinach, and cutting mushrooms. I have been feeling very snacky while on the train, which I really hate. What I have packed isn’t quite balanced enough. There was a ton of salt and carbs, but I don’t know what I can do better. Maybe the nut bars is what I should start with, and I should try to eat salad before leaving, and to pack naan instead of crackers. I think this trip has been hard food-wise since I finally found what works and makes me feel good for me prior to leaving, and had to give it up very suddenly. I am prety sure I am not losing fat and bad weight either, especially around my waist. Getting protein is tough, but I think the nut bars will get me through. When I get back, I will need to get a haircut and a proper trime.
Over the Cascades, the train travel reminded me more of Fremont. We went right along Puget sound for a few hours, which was probably my favorite part, and comparable in beauty to Montana in a completely different way. I saw a bunch of waterfowl, and saw an Egret catch a fish. The connection was a bit spottier arong the mountains, but not too bad overall. Seattle and SF will be easier to manage temptations since I don’t have any particular foods to try other than coffee, which is very nice. Of that, the Starbucks Roastery shut down, so I went to Cherry Street, a local chain. I ended up buying some apples and coffee today, but that is all well and good. The apple vendor actually ended up giving me two for one, which made me very happy.
I am glad I have been ablo to work with Emily these past 2 years. Even if our productivity wasn’t great, I think I have learned alot about CS, and feel more confident than when I started that this is what I want to do. I am not sure when the best time is to stop meeting weekly, but I suspect around the end of July. I am also very excited to start orking with Alex. My labmates seem very fun to be around and work with. I don’t know exactly what to expect, or if I can know, but from what I can piece together I think it is the place where I belong. Annoyingly though, I haven’t been reimbursed for my visit to Purdue. Once I get back, if I haven’t been paid, I will have to bother them a bit.
I started in the Seattle Public Library, which was amazing. It was an extremely modern architecture, in contrast with the more “classic” east coast libraries, but I really thought it was beautiful. In some ways, it was the best library to actually do work in of the lot (except maybe Boston’s main study room). This city is a bit more physically challenging to walk around in than most because of the hills. It isn’t as bad as the bay area, but it definitely makes it more fun. The city also has a strong bohemian culture. Seattle seems to be doing a lot to try and maintain its history and culture actively, and the buildings have a certain tech-y feel reflective of their recent growth. The piers are very close to the city, much like with S.F. (although much smaller), which make it really nice to walk around. It makes the city feel more intentional than New York, where the piers are simply industrial areas. The prices for food are by far the highest on this trip though. Pike Place was really cool. It was definitely worth visiting, and the best indoor market I have seen on this trip. People were also very friendly overall, like Boston.
The public transitis very new, and the 0 emission trams were fascinating. The city feels new and fresh and waiting a story. It has a good friendly vibe too, with SF-style architecture. It definitely has a CoL problem to deal with, but in a lot of ways it feels comparable to Boston. Where Boston has history, Seattle has modernity. Both are friendly, and I definitely could see myself living in either. The weather fluctuated between sunny and cloudy, and there was a pleasant consistent wind as well, which was very pleasant. The biggest con was that there was a relatively high population of homeless people, although it was still less than Chicago. Like Pennsylvania Seattle has a lot of interesting public art, although it is more sculpture than murals. The most notable thing about the city is the nature. It feels carved out of the woods and truly part of the Pacific Northwest more than curated gardens, which makes it naturally beautiful.
Musik: Symphony no. 3, Rachmaninoff
Day 21 - May 15 (Fri)
Being able to use a car again is very nice. The drive around Redmond is really beautiful. One observation is that the suburbs, especially Redmond, has a lot of traffic circles. It fits with the theme of Seattle overall - modern, new, and with a clear set of priorities. I finished the rest of my granola bars and the other apple, and the Beecher’s cheese that is made here. It was all very good. The smells walking around Seattle are insanely good. Maybe its because the weather is cold that it smells so appealing, but I stayed strong.
I think for the Zephyr, I am just going to finish my crackers and the dried fruit, and then manage with what is on the train, since they have salad. Seattle is probably my favorite city so far. It is between SF and Boston conceptually, but seems to preserve all the nature, even out to the suburbs, and is trying to build densely. This is definitely going to make the CoL problems worse in the long run without more development of single-family homes, but it is still really cool and nice to walk around for now. Seattle’s Chinatown was definitely worth visiting. It was cool, but was not as good as Flushing. It definitely did feel a bit like China, although definitely also felt very Seattle. The area was a bit rougher than some of the other spots, and the time I went was early enough that things were closed, but it was still nice. The gum wall in Pike Place Market was interesting to look at, and also mildly (extremely) disturbing. Chihuly was really fascinating. The glass atrium was probably my favorite room, although I also really liked the Chandeliers. It probably wasn’t worth 40$, but with the glass blowing exhibition it was still overall really cool.
The view from Kerry Park was great, I think within Seattle proper, Queen Anne was my favorite neighborhood (although I would need infinite money to live there), and although it wasn’t really a “park” other than in the sense that it was run by the parks department, it was really worth visiting for the views. I walked to the Fremont area, which was cool but not something super unique. I did meet someone who worked in a Harp and Dulcimer shop, which was really cool. I learned a lot about the two instruments, and lever harps/zithers/lyres/dulcimers and modality.
I also went to Beaux-Art Village, since I had extra time. It was really cool, and definitely my favorite neighborhood in the Seattle area. It feels carved into the woods, like a small town that in practice is insanely wealthy. I also walked to Downtown Bellvue, which was really cool.
One thing I don’t understand is why Cannoli is so expensive. It seems so simple to make, I have added it to the list of things I will make when I get back.
I need to deal with this fear that the people who I meet are military and/or don’t have a strong moral compass/principles. It is definitely not good, I need to figure it out. I am still very much missing my friends, it is a bit unfortunate they won’t be back when I am. We need to do the trip to the big boyie knife. Rina especially has been a bit lately, and since she is going to Prague she will be busier.
I still felt pretty bloated, but dinner was really really good. I think I still maintained the correct calorie balance overall.
Musik: “La Fille aux Chevaux de Lin”, Debussy
Day 22 - May 16 (Sat)
I wonder if Rino and Rina will ever finish reading my blog. I called Rina while she was going to the airport today, but it was pretty interrupted throughout.
I’m a bit worried I won’t have data to finish the trip easily, since I’m almost done with my 30GB for this month, before it slows down. I didn’t even know there was a limit. I’m going to shut down maps in extreme battery saver once I leave S.F., since one I am on the train I don’t need to really care about it, I can rely on rough estimates of distance. The weather in S.F. is supposed to be perfect so I’m really looking forward to it. Today was easy, Mohai, UW, Pier 57 to buy some bread, I’m thinking of that huge bread, and Ballard’s. I ended up coming home around 5, and then went to dinner and to Snoqualmie with G.U. and A.A. G.U. reminds me a bit of Rino.
A lot of Lake Union Park was closed for renovations, but MOHAI was really cool. Seattle has an interesting history. It was first settled by Native Americans, then Spanish, then British and American all the while with Russian fur trading presence. Then, it was mostly colonized through the oregon trail. The natural harbor makes sense for why so many early European groups were there. It also became a mill town. Then the university was built bringing progress. What is fascinating is how much terraforming was done to make way for the current city, and to straighten out the river. The Seattle fire and the Chicago fire and S.F. Earthquake each did the same things in creating opportunities for rebuilding. There was really no need to rebuild on the same land, so I am curious what it would look like if one completely new city was designed. Maybe the best well planned modern cities have been destroyed at some point before being rebuilt. New York is all over the place, but D.C., S.F., Chicago, and Seattle were all designed at the same time. The MOHAI is really entertaining. the gold rush seems to have done the same for SF and Seattle.
The Ballard neighborhood was quite nice. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but it was pretty cool seeing the woodcarvings in the different shops and the Scandi influences. It didn’t seem as purely Scandi as the Chinatown was Chinese, but it was still really unique. I really like Scandi art. It has the same simple warmth and Shaker furniture. It was extremely lively and fun to walk around. It had the energy of a downtown in a small place (similar to Hot Springs).
University of Washington might be the best campus I’ve ever visited. It was super super nice and fun to walk around.
Conversation with Rina has slowed down recently, so I hope things come back to normal once she comes back. It’s not that we haven’t spoken, but the conversation has all been surface level, which means neither of us have really been engaging as we should. It is something that I will try to be more intentional about, and I hope she does to. I asked her about it and her position is also understandable, but in the long run it is not good. I think I also need to listen more, it is my greatest weakness, and Rina really does have interesting views.
I saw a street preacher today, which I wasn’t a huge fan of, as I have spoken about before simply because I think it misses the point of the faith, but what bothered me more is the people who walked behind me who commented on how they would like to assault him and give them a piece of their mind. It sounded like they had been hurt by faith honestly, but at the same time hadn’t thought about it enough to truly consider why this evangelical would care so much as to stand on the streets preaching. Now I don’t want to cast stones at either of them, I have been close to either of them at some point, but I feel like there is a gap in understanding for both of them that prevents them from recognizing the deep faith and humanity of the other. I was talking to G.U. about it, and he made a good point about the problem with religion, that people often act self-justified just because they believe the “right thing”. But I overall agree, that the purpose of religion is to not be a shield against hell, but a mirror.
I bought some bread for G.U. and A.A. Seattle has a salty air similar to SF, so I think it might have the same claim to fame. From S.F. I should try to buy a big loaf for my own trip from Boudin. That with the fruits and remaining crackers and salted margarine should be plenty with some cheese. This time I will also get just one.
I need to call Ibrahim and coordinate my coming to Chicago. I had kind of a huge dinner. It was super tasty but it was at a restaurant so I forced myself to eat a lot. I think I’m getting a sense of what full is for me, and honestly I can see why Rina doesn’t typically push farther than she normally does. I suspect tomorrow I will feel a bit bloated, but I also won’t eat much so I think it should be fine as long as I walk around the car.
Tomorrow I have some sourdough and phool makhana and palak paneer to eat. I probably will try to save the crackers and dried fruit or share for the long long haul, as long as things aren’t going bad.
Day 23 - May 17 (Sun)
I had a pretty slow start today. i woke up around 7, packed, and talked with G.U. and A.A. until 8:30. G.U. dropped me off, and I got onto the train. They did something interesting where they assigned the seats before sending us onto the train rather than checking after we had boarded and chosen seats freely. Maybe too many people tried going straight from Seattle to Tacoma for free. The weather is pleasant, and bound to get better as we got through S.F. and get the amazing views of the Pacific Northwest. In a weird way, the stretch around Seattle reminds me of I20.
I missed Rina’s call because my Whatsapp has been broken, but I told her that Discord will work (more or less). I hope she has a really fun time in Prague and takes notes on what she does.
I started reading Cannery Row. I want to give it its due dilligence, since it seems really interesting. Steinbeck’s work is definitely shaped by his perspective on the time and place, but seems to hearken back to the California countryside in a very realistic way for the time (despite him writing these works long after he had moved away). It is also written in a very simple and readable style, which I always enjoy. In some ways its almost Dahlian.
I saw two people on the train who I had also ridden with on the Empire Builder. She is an agro-chemical engineer (to hopefuly not make an Agent Orange #2). I think there is a sense of comraderie shared by Rail Pass users, since everyone has collectively decided to go through these extremely long journies together. The problem in the train is ultimately that you can very very rarely deeply emotionally connect with the people you meet, since there is a shared awareness of it all being temporary in the scale of days. Some people thrive on it, I imagine New Yorkers would be fine, but I think I personally prefer the slower pace, the sharing of values, and being in it for the long haul.And my values (and the resultant politics) are hard to share sometimes beacuse of how controversial they are. I guess I take a while to warm up to people. I guess my take “killing people is inherently bad” is too hot of a take. I related well to the people going into Chicago and Boston, and with the woman I met who was going to Kalamath Falls, but in general there are so many military people in the train it becomes hard. People my age (or within 10 years of it) are generally fun to talk to, although rail pass users are often older. People my age often don’t seem to be able to engage, which is a bit sad.
Overall from the train ride into and out of Seattle and the city itself, I have come to really appreciate Washington’s conservation movement. The whole state is genuinely beautiful. On the ride down, there were some volunteers from the national park service between Seattle and Portland who gave some information on the different things along the way. Apparently there is something called squirrel bridges, which are tiny bridges for squirrels, which also sounds absolutely adorable. They also showed some ash from Mount Saint Helens, and we assed through miles of agricultural land that was apparently all shaped by the ash from the eruption as well.
I finished the crackers lotus seeds, bread, and palak paneer, so tomorrow morning I can just have the dried fruits and get food in the city. On the way to Dallas I will just buy some Sourdough in S.F. and jarred things and pickles. I ate a lot today, so I feel very quilty and a bit fat. Maybe I do need to weigh myself. In some ways my attitude towards food has gotten both better and worse.
Going through the fiels of grass, I am reminded of Neruda’s poem “and beacuse love battles”. It peaks of the burning agricultures in the minds of men and women. I thin the purpose of the poems is to be a comfort, to tell the reader to take strength in what is true for the individual regardless of external appearances. I think this year has been very educational in that regard. In other words, to use a Quaker-ism: “No storm can shake my inmost calm”. Today moved by really quickly. I don’t know why, I feel like I almost lost time. It is lovely to stare out the window and just admire the beauty and listen to music. I found the northern part of Oregon prior to entering the cascades very flat.
I wonder why Alex picked me of all people, it is something that I think will confuse me a bit, I wonder if he will tell me at some point.
I will never not be struck by how muc hthe culture of military people is not only consistent across groups, but very self-justifying, coars, ungental, shallow, brutish. This, I cannot relate to. I think the soft touch has guided me more, even if I myself struggle to do the same at times. I don’t know how to guide with complete calmness, but I think I am growing closer as I get older, and that it can be done. Maybe I will learn it through my Ph.D. That does seem more Alex’s style, which I am glad about. I don’t think I respond the best to threats and threatening guidance. As the sun sets, we went through the Cascade mountains. It was definitely my favorite part of the trip, and I still remember it from when I was a yung’n on the train as well.
A problem I have had in the past with relationships is that I give my time an denergy and care very fully, withotu ever feeling the same effort reciprocated. I don’t give them a chance to choose to make an active effort to spend time with me. This is not an easy thing to do, to ease of and to receive love. And I do have faith in my closest friends to step up, but maybe less than I should. I’m fairly certain that the person who truly does this for me, I will fall head over heels with in a heartbeat. I may be the Jesus of reaching out accoridng to Rina, but this is also a problem in sustaining relationships long-term. After all, my desire to maintain the friendship only means something if they want the same.
On the travel from Kalamath Falls, I met a woman, an ex-mormon, who was really interesting. We talked about faith a bit, and our politics, and she taught me a bit about Mormons (endowment ceremony and their recursive-Jesus view of the afterlife), the Pacific Northwest, and managing forest fires. She had taken the train several times, so knew quite a bit about the area and where the most scenic moments were in the Cascades. The more I learn about the C.O.J.C.O.L.D.S., the more I feel that it is heretical, even if I have no dog in the fight. I don’t really think it matters if they are christian or not, but it certainly seems to not actually have an understanding of the New Testament without serious cherry-picking (at least from my lens). To be completely fair to them, the Mormons I have met are genuinely great people, very friendly, and they posess a deep faith that I admire greatly. They are certainly abrahamic, but I don’t know that I would naturally classify them as Christians as an outsider simply because they almost view Jesus like how Muslims do (as an individual to be revered whom you can become), although they are free to disagree with me, and I have a very limited perspective and a lot to learn. She told me I would be a good professor, which I thought was kind of funny. I think it would be a lot of fun if I went about that track, as long as I found the thing I was teaching to be interesting. If I like West Lafayette a lot and enjoy teaching, I could also just stay in that area if Purdue hires me, but that is far in the future. Before she got down at Kalamath, she gave me some Huckleberry Jam, which I will save for the trip back home to eat with my sourdoughs. The houthern part of Oregon through the cascades is absolutely beautiful. I pointed out reading the bible it’s extremely interesting to look at who Jesus was. I think he was deeply frustrated with the other people around him, and was trying to tell everyone to a certain message, even if he himself got outwardly annoyed sometimes. It’s a very humanizing view, but it fits with the women and the well for example, and with the view of him as a historical figure. Chel asked how much of it was planned, and how much was on the fly. And she hypothesized that Jesus likely knew his basic points for the sermon on the mount, and that he did the sermon itself impromptu. Overall, today was a solid day on the train, I enjoyed it a lot.
Musik: “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”, the Beatles
Day 24 - May 18 (Mon)
I woke up about an hour north of Sacramento, with the comforting thought “On Halde” (stay on). It is really a lovely morning, and I saw the sun rise over the hills. I woke up fairly early at 5, but I feel extremely calm.
I tend to be pretty forgetful about time consuming/tedious things, so for when I go home, I should print and laminate a morning and evening checklist.
Make Bed
Select Clothes
Trim Beard/Shave
Shower
Lotion
Brush Hair
Brush Teeth
Mouth Wash
Floss
Water Floss
Tongue
Clean Glasses
Trim Nails
Hand Cream
Face Cleanse
Sunscreen/Moisturizer
Clothes
Laundry
Eat Fruit/Cheese/Hummus/Bread/Spinach
Wash Plate
Socks
Phone/Wallet/Keys?And for the nighttime:
Cook
Eat
Wash Plate
Knead Dough/Grind Hummus
Face Wash
Face Cream
Paint/Bandage Nails
Foot Cream
Wash Clothes
Tidy Room
Clean Kitchen/Dining TableI met George, the army NASA guy from the Empire Builder train. I told him about my pacifism and we talked a little bit about the problems with the Vietnam war and the draft, and also the treatment of veterans. I shared my perspective on why veterans were treated poorly (indeed, this is something I struggle with and have to try actively to overcome), and shared the Edna St. Vincent Millay poem. I keep running into him everywhere. I saw him again in a Bart Station as well, which is even crazier.
The weather in S.F. is so nice, you can just forget about it. That’s really what it is, you just forget that the weather is good until it’s not. You forget that weather exists because you just have the climate.That being said, although you can the weather is great, the city itself is not as lush as Seattle. The hills surrounding the bay are just brown and ugly year for most of the year, even if Marin County and the redwoods are beautiful.
I am taking the J Transbay to Salesforce Center and then starting the walk. I am basically going according to plan today, nothing too crazy. I will let the North Beach neighborhood be the flex time, and just wander the piers and ferry building. I don’t have much food, except the Jam and Fruits, so I don’t need to be worried about carrying weight since my pack is so light. Tony’s Pizza is right in North Beach, so it was a good lunch. It was just underneath Luigi’s in quality, but still one of the best pizzas I have had. It’s chewier and denser and thinner, definitely better than Lucia’s, not as good as Spumoni Gardens, and still incredible.
the ferry building is just like I remembered. Apparently the Embarcadero view was cut off by a freeway, but after the Loma Prietta earthquake, they tore it down since it was already half destroyed and extremely unpopular. It wasn’t crowded, maybe because it was a morning on a weekday. Same for Pier 39, where I bought my bread for the trip. The seals and sea lions on the pier are very cute. Watching them is super relaxing, I think Pier 39 would be a great place to take a date. Boudin smells so good. and it’s right across from the candy department store, that area is just heaven for the nose. I forgot the warm smell associated with California’s nature in the spring, the redwoods, the grasses. It is super unique. Seattle has a different, more piney smell, but I haven’t smelled quite the same kind of things in other cities.
I need to look up Victorian, Queen Anne style, and Beaux Art style architecture when I get back. San Francisco is very hard to walk around in some parts. It is so insanely steep . The walk up to Lombard Street especially was difficult. I think my legs barely have any fat now around my calves and feel just mostly like muscle. I can also visibly see definition, even though the dryness of my skin from this trip is making it hard to see. I’m going to have Rino legs after this trip, especially after San Francisco. I think I finally started losing my belly fat.
S.F. Chinatown is the Chinese version of Boston’s little Italy. It is overall really vibrant even though it’s just a random Monday’s afternoon. like Seattle, the buildings all feel normal San Francisco as well , which is very cool. I think I am returning at a good point though, I keep forgetting what city I am in. North Beach was probably my favorite, it has the Victorian feel without the poverty or drugs, even if it’s insanely hilly.
It’s so sad how many people are tweaking in S.F. I feel like the number of homeless people is not different from any city, but the ones here are visibly doing drugs/have meth sores/and are collapsed tweaking on the side of the road. And no one can stop it, and the cops seem not to care either. It’s a really great city, especially north towards the wharf and around the St. Peters Cathedral. but it’s also clearly got a drug problem that needs resolution. I will say, I feel much more relaxed in cities now and with travel in general, although I still think that I prefer the slower pace of life of smaller towns.
I saw a guy snorting crack, and another doing heroin, which was certainly interesting and very memorable.
I had a lot of fun hanging out with R.M. and meeting A. We had a pretty tasty Mission Burrito, which was very filling, and delicious Salty Kaya ice cream. It was a very fun evening. We also rode in a Waymo, which was a very new experience. I didn’t realize it could see so much, it is a bit unnerving at first but it clearly drives better than a lot of humans. In fact, Waymo sees substantially more than your average driver. It tends to brake a little harder than me, but is still better overall.
Musik: “Yesterday”, Beatles
Day 25 - May 19 (Tue)
It feels like everything in S.F. is owned by Amazon or Google or some other big tech company. For example (and this is a small example), Whole Foods is everywhere. It highlights the Gilded Age moment we are in historically, with its ever-present monopolies.
In some ways, a lot of S.F. feels like a huge historical district because of its Victorian era buildings. It is really gorgeous overall, since the buildings are not only colorful and architecturally interesting, but also have a lot of the exterior ornamentation which makes even ordinary houses look more upscale. There was a very similar style in Dorchester in Boston as well, but here it feels more like a city than Dorchester since the walls are all attached. Dorchester had separated houses and felt comparatively suburban (because it is), but was still very nice, and would be great to live in. The houses are all very vibrant colors, but aren’t as jarring as an India because they sort of form tapestry in their consistent architecture, and the colors on a single house tend to be well-chosen. It also has random historical shops scattered throughout, since the city hasn’t really expanded its borders, so I saw the pinball collection at Free Gold Watch, which was very cool.
San Francisco definitely is greener than New York and infinitely greener than Manhattan, but at the same time still often has a manufactured feeling throughout the city compared to the natural “city in the forest” feeling of Seattle. San Francisco is much much quieter though. I can barely hear the sound of the cars inside the Golden Gate Park. Golden Gate Park is very pretty. I think I like it more than Central Park, since it feels so much more natural. There’s more flowers and it’s just a much calmer and relaxing place overall. It is also slightly bigger. Both parks are great, but I feel more genuinely in a forest than in a curation of a forest.
The De Young Museum is nice too. It isn’t on the same level as the Met, but it’s on the same level as the Harvard Museums, which is still really fun to explore. I especially appreciated their explanations of the time periods and movements in the exhibits rather than assuming prior knowledge. I particularly liked the story around Greek Slave by Hiram Powers.
I walked from Golden Gate Park to Baker Beach though Central Richmond. Central Richmond is actually really nice. there are less Victorians, but it still is colorful and had an idyllic calm. When I went to Baker Beach, I was not expecting nude ppl, so it was pretty amusing. The views of the ocean, Marin County, and the Golden Gate Bridge were really lovely though, as was the hike to the bridge. The weather was great, so there was a decent amount of people, all wearing bikinis and sunbathing and playing sports.
The Golden Gate Bridge was much cooler in person, I didn’t realize how much it had been retrofitted, or that it’s style was Art Deco. It is kind of funny to me that after living in San Francisco for 10 years, I never once went across the bidge.I’m really glad I did it all.
I’m taking the bus to R.M.‘s place back, but overall this part of SF is super beautiful. I wish we visited here more, we could have just used Bart when I was younger.
A funny older man got on the bus, and I offered my seat, and he said that’s fine, he’s only 27. I told him he didn’t look a day over 25 and he said that it’s over when ppl start calling you “Mr.”, which I found really funny.
It was a good day, I think SF is really unique and can actually rival Chicago and Manhattan, even if they have slightly different vibes.
It is definitely a friendly place to live in, even if the cost of living is comparable to Manhattan. If they fix the cost of living, reduce the monopolies, and are able to manage the drug problem a bit better, it would easily be one of, if not the best city in the United States.
I did shopping and had some great Turkish food with R.M. It was similar to Mediterranean food, but was slightly different. I bought my groceries (Sauerkraut, Jam, Bread, Protein bars, Dried Fruit) so I should be ready to go for the trip.
Musik: “I Wanna Hold Your Hand”, the Beatles
Day 26 - May 20 (Wed)
I didn’t sleep super well last night since the pillow fell from the cot. I think that this trip has taught me that the majority of my issues with sleep are not from weight like I previously thought, but my pillow. I overall prefer a firmer cooling pillow, like the one I mentioned with M.A. Apparently this pillow is pretty solid, and is adjustable https://tinyurl.com/3tkbec9h. I also need to invest in good moisturizer and make sure I use it every day. My skin has been drying out so fast on this trip, my legs and elbows especially. It is becoming uncomfortable, like how it once was on my hands. O’Keefe’s is still the best brand, and it heals so so quickly. It is expensive, but the cult following is completely reasonable. I myself will join this cult. I think I will start with their Skin Repair lotion and then once I use the first bottle, switch to the normal body lotion.
Ravi Mama told me about an interesting coffee product called an Aero Press, which may be the easiest way for me to make coffee if the Meeting House doesn’t have a coffee maker.
After seeing so many cities, although I do like them all in their own way, I don’t think I am cut out for the impersonality of the city, even if visiting it is probably really really fun. And in a way knowing that, having seen everything, I am looking forward to experiencing life in Lafayette. It will be a different pace, but I think it will suit me well.
I am closer to my fitness goals than when I started, even if I am not all the way there yet, so once I get into my normal diet and start working out upper body I should be golden. I am so close, if I just work out consistently and alternate between HIIT/a targeted upper body section, I could get very close to a six-pack by the time I start Ph.D. My calves are definitely quite strong now, I can see and feel a strong difference in my legs between when I started. I have also gotten a much stronger appreciation for salad, which I think I will start eating daily with dinner (at least when I cook at home). As long as I am able to make Feta, between that and Paneer I have a good source of protein (yogurt and cheese), micronutrients (spinach and veggies), fat (olive oil), fruit, carbs (bread), fiber (hummus), all tied together with Balsamic Vinegar of Modena. It is a very fresh, very healthy diet (if I can maintain it).
One thing I have noticed about people who live in small places and in cities (A.M., R.M., etc.) is that because of the limited number of posessions they can reasonably fit in their space, the better those things become, and there is a sense of consciousness about the things you buy rather than typical suburban impulsive decisionmaking, which I think is something I will adopt in life. It is already something I have a natural inclination towards, but I have more evidence of its efficacy and the pressures that may cause such thinking now.
The drive going up from Colfax is absolutely beautiful, going over the overpasses. On the way over, I met a hobo, repent4lent, (someone who hops freight trains to travel), who is heading to Nevada. Of all the people I met on the train, I was not expecting to meet a hobo, but it’s genuinely really cool. He offered to teach me some tricks and legally, I definitely will not learn (for sure). He knows a ton about the different freight trains. Apparently if you get caught the consequences are only a day or two of jail, or a ticket. Some people just give a warning, and its not unheard of for engineer/conductor crews to invite you in. Apparently the hobo community is very into punk and graffiti, and the graffiti you see on the side of train lines is from hobos. There is a tunnel called the MOFFAT tunnel, which is 7 miles long, which I will pass through in a few days. Apparently the tunnels are pretty dangerous if you stop in them, and they are pitch black, plus if you stop you have to deal with diesel fumes. OpenRailwayMap.org and Railmap apparently have maps of everything. From a gear perspective it sounds like what you would expect, just backpacking stuff, but there is definitely a lot of skill required to actually hop. He is extremely knowledgeable about all manner of things related to trains, I think his capacity to memorize information is really big. I hope he gets his radio license and becomes a conductor, I think he would be great at it, since he is a good communicator. I am excited to see his pictures from his freight rail stretch.
We entered the high deserts after Reno, and it is absolutely gorgeous. You can see the mountains surrounding the desert through the blue haze of the air. It is incredibly flat (in fact this is part of the salt flats), which is somehow humbling. I think it would be terrible to live here, but passing through it is gorgeous. The landscape going into the deserts is surreal too. It is clay and iron-rich soil, which makes it extremely red and hostile. All of it is a Martian landscape. The sky in the desert is as blue as I have ever seen it, with clouds behind the mountains on the background of a sky so bright it is almost white. My lips are beginning to chap because of the humidity, and thats within the train car. I haven’t had to open the chapstick this trip, but it’s good that I packed it.
I met a retired couple going to Denver from Fresno, and another from Fremont. The couple and I talked about Steinbeck, and they reccomended I read Travels with Charley. I really should read more steinbeck. The Denver guy was funny, and tried to tell me that Indian philosophy made no assumptions, and then made several assumptions on the nature of reality, which lead to deism, which was quite funny to me. He also told me I didn’t understand consciousness, which was equally amusing. He can think what he wants, but to say that there aren’t any axioms assumed in a philosophy are a bit ridiculous.
I felt a bit constipated/bloated, so today I am going to keep it light and just drink a lot of water and stick to sauerkraut and dried fruit. The elevation change can’t be good, and I ate quite a bit anyways that would help clear me out. We are going to pass Provo, which reminds me I should wish Emery for her wedding. It is a bit surreal that people in my grade are getting married, but I guess its partially cultural, and partially due to our different aspirations in life.
I wasn’t able to update the blog website today because of the internet, so hopefully I have a good chance tomorrow as we get closer to Denver. In general the mountains tend not to have amazing wifi, but Denver begins the transitions into the plains.
Musik: Big Rock Candy Mountain
Day 27 - May 21 (Thu)
I went to sleep around 10, and kept waking up and going back to sleep throughout the night. The periods of sleep were restful, but the overall sleep was somewhat disturbed. I did get a chance to wish Emery when I was in Utah though, which was pretty funny. When I get back, I should do HIIT workout to try to increase my baseline metabolism/improve my heart alongside upper body strength training. I have gotten stronger overall, but I have also been in a calorie deficit simply because it would be hard not to be for a while, which means I am going to have to do some effort to restore my metabolic rate. I still haven’t cleared out, so I will play it safe diet-wise. I am looking forward to getting back to my normal portion-controlled mediterranean diet.
I haven’t done this on the previous train journies, but I switched to my shorts and just my black t-shirt. I look much less professional, but I am travel-weary enough to not only not care, but to dress like it. People definitely seem much more surprised that I am a grad student.
Utah feels like a hillier, rockier version of the high desert. It is very beautiful, since you can see the different layers of the rocks in the hills.
I met a guy named Brian from Denver who was heading back home from vacation who was one of the most “groovy” people I have met. He is a musician & guitarist and is an A/V technician. We talked about the commonality of recreational drugs in controlled settings in Denver for PTSD research and such, choosing careers based on passion, and the music scene. He reccomended a movie, “Once Upon a Time in the West”. It was super interesting, I don’t know if its really my scene, but I definitely think this type of people are fun to be around. When I walked by him on the train, he gave me the rad sign. He overall seemed very grounded and reasonable too. The car he is sitting in (the one in front of mine), has a broken aircon. It is freezing cold in these mountains, and was an oven in the high desert.
I also met an ex-mormon woman (although she left the faith when she was a child) who was heading into Chicago as well.
I have met someone from rural Maryland, much like the group from the Empire Builder/Coast Starlight. They are surprisingly conservative, but very fun to talk to. I think they remind me that even though we have completely different views on a lot of things, like on LGBTQ folk, I realize that as individuals they want the same thing for society first and foremost. They want people to have livelihoods, to live good lives, to be at peace. And everyone on the train is anti-monopoly, which is ironic given the monopolistic history of the railroads. I met an older lady from Goleta who traveled on the train regularly, and shared her views on how banning books was dumb and lamenting the apparent weakness of the conservation movement in the United States (which I agree with).
This train seems to have a lot of international tourism too. I met someone from Nova Scotia/Alberta who rode the entire VIA rail a few years ago. Apparently there, they make much more rural stops, and will also allow you to request stops anywhere along the rail (in some areas). He told me he once saw a family cross a lake in a canoe to enter the train to a random spot in northern Ontario. They also don’t immediately give righ of way to passenger traffic. I don’t know how safe it is, but it is still phenomenal. He told me a little bit about canadian politeness, and apparently although they are politer when spoken to, they tend to be much more reserved. Canadian culture seems very similar to midwestern culture in many ways. I also met someone from China, who taught me a few commmon phrases, and someone from Johannesberg (I thought it was a bit funny, he seemed quite taken by my age and education). He was a psychiatrist who had attended a conference before going on vacation. That being said, I haven’t met a single rail pass user here.
We passed through Ruby Canyon and the Snake River, and apparently the river rafters which are common in the area have a big history of mooning trains.
It was around then that we passed through the Gore Canyon. That was amazing. The rock formations became much less red, and we began to see mostly granite which had been carved by the rivers. It was almost surreal. Unlike the Cascades, where you mostly look down and out, in the Zephyr you tend to look out up towards the mountains, and to have less mountains towards you which gives a certain sense of peacefulness, since it also serves to highlight the slow motion of the clouds. The scenery also shifted very quickly to fresh newer growth after the Gore Canyon, so I imagine the dirt on top of the granite soil is more hospitable to trees than the clay/iron soil. We also began to see snow capped peaks for a while.
We passed through the MOFFAT tunnel past winter peak and crossed the continental divide, which is one of the longest tunnels in the world. It is completely pitch black, and it feels like we are moving moderately slowly. They locked the cars because of how noxious the diesel fumes are over the course of the 6.2 miles, and the accumulation of dust over time. It’s also over a 100 years old. I can see why the hobo from yesterday was wary of them, it would be terrifying to be outside of a well lit train going through this.
I think today has the most consistently beautiful and interesting scenery I have seen, even if I doubt that the best of the Zephyr rivals the view through the Cascades. They are different types of beauty, but both give a sense of scale, and make you feel almost small. It is incredibly dry in the air this high up, I am constantly using my hand cream. The bloated feeling hasn’t gone away, but I think once I get on a lower-carb diet when I get back, it should be much better. Highly processed carbs like the sourdough I packed are not generally the best for bloating, even if they fill you up and travel well. I love mediterranean food, so I think I will begin making much more mediterranean style dishes with eggplant in addition to my usual diet.
I have noticed that this route mostly follows small streams. I think that part of it has to do with the water carving out the mountain slowly over time making flat regions that were very convenient for building railroads, and part of it having to do with the amount of water needed to carry use steam powered trains. Denver seems to have a lot of freight traffic, so after the fresh air break, I will likely wait before trying to get some sleep. I am still not hungry, the bread and jam combination seems to be filling enough. I wil also probably be done with my jam by tomorrow, but I am not too concerned because I will only really have one meal on the train before I am back home, and I will also eat the tavern style pizza in Chicago with I. I actually only ended up eating one of the loaves, so I will try not to eat them unless I am actually hungry so that I can bring them to Amma and Appa. But for now it doesn’t look that way. Once we get past Denver, I believe we will descend quite a bit into the midwest, where I will see plenty of the great plains. I am not super concerned about seeing it all, since I am going to see it on the Texas Eagle as well, and it is fairly repetitive (even if it has its beauty). I am tired though, today dragged on. Part of it is that I woke up quite early, but I also think these days without movement can be quite difficult. I am looking forward to finally coming home and getting some rest and eating real food.
I had a cool moment in Denver at Union Station. I had a solid few minutes of people who I had met walking by me and wishing me well. I think that even though I didn’t have many prolonged conversations like on the Empire Builder, it still feels like I connected to people and like we mutually affected the other’s trip, which is the purpose of these sort of conversations anyways.
Day 28 - May 22 (Fri)
I slept poorly, but this time it wasn’t posture. The whole train is freezing cold, I don’t know why. I had to wake up in the middle of the night to put on a jacket and my long sleeved shirt. I had already swithed to pants from shorts in the morning in Utah, since it was probably thirty degrees outside, and passing through the car with the broken A.C. was uncomfortable. Maybe the conductor runs warm and is taking it out on the rest of us.
A woman from Omaha ended up sitting next to me at the middle of the night. I went to the observation car for a bit, and by the time I came back she was awake. She was a very fun person to talk to, she is a zookeeper in the Omaha Zoo, and has traveled a decent amount. She also was really into Snoopy, which was cool. She got me thinking about animal intelligence again. Specifically birds. She said she was afraid of how intelligent the Great Apes were. She explained how they were using tools and could recognize people, and how they had a social structure. I think she found it uncanny. They are such empathetic creatures to me. They are fascinating to watch, I wonder how much they feel and how much other intelligent animals understand humans intuitively, as we understand them. The great apes especially.
Other than that though, it was a quiet morning. I didn’t end up talking to anyone else though.
Once I disboarded at Union Station, I walked to Quincy, had a sandwich, and met with Ibrahim. We walked around to a few stores to find a keychain, and eventually bought one for a novelty shop. It seems like good keychains are always $7, regardless of city (with the exception of NYC, where competition can push them under a dollar). Then we went to Millenium Park. We couldn’t see the bean because I had so much metal in my backpack, and they had security for the weekend, but overall it wasn’t a problem. I brought pepper spray on the trip, but I think it was completely redundant, since I wouldn’t have used it.
The fact that I want to go home now makes me wonder if I will be homesick when I leave. I think the big difference is that grad school will have some sense of routine and normalcy, so I doubt it. That being said, I think it will not bother me as much as for some people.
Quakers in many ways are very close to humanists, as Rina once said about me. Meeting Ibrahim and being here for his evening prayers, I can’t help but think about something I thought about last year, the idea of “making time” for things. I think the value of shared meals, timed prayers, gathering sessions, going to church, are ways of making time for our community and family. In the same way, prayer and silence can be a way of making time for the divine. The abrahamic in particular stand out to me as being very good at this. Between family times, weekly gathering times, etc. I think no matter what you believe, there is a lot to learn from this, since community is one of the most important things. As a student, I want to gather people each week to break bread, a common meal.
When I get home I need to do a bunch of stuff:
Haircut
Print Routine Cards and Laminate?
Recipe Cards
Dentist Appointment/Ask about new extra flouride toothpaste/Hydroxyaptite
Talk to H.C.
Cook
Organize Files
Repair Shoes
Moisturize
Purchase Pumice Stone
Purchase Gauze
Clear Polish
Piano
Pack away useless things
Purchase Comforter
Organize Clothes
Read Research Paper
Meal Prep Components
Clean Phone
Replace (some) toiletries
Clean up Google Drive/Files
Wash Travel GearDay 29 - May 23 (Sat)
I think as I come towards the end of this trip, I have a better sense of what this country is all about, at least, a segment of America.
There is something very american about trains, especially hopping freights, and about a reverence for work and for community. Acceptance is idealized as a virtue, no matter the extent to which it is actually done, and there is a certain universal desire for appreciating beauty. The same for activism and faith. And throughout it, there is also a compassion for one another that moves one to action. Americans want to be principled, and friendly, and active for what they believe in.
There are lots of ugly things which are very american too. For example, war, violence, anger, and pride are just as integrated into the American psyche.
I don’t know if I learned a lot about myself on this trip, although maybe I do go with the flow a bit more, but I definitely learned a lot about this country and what it believes in. I think what I’m struck by is more the dream, and fire for justice, and feeling of collective unity that everyone fundamentally wants the same things for themselves and for their community, and that in that pursuit, there is a special place in our hearts for our friends.
I personally think that measuredness with a calm and principled outlook can guide us through the ills and bring us closer to our dream.
In some way, I think I have become a better listener on this trip.and possibly a better conversationalist. I know better what I want in life from my relationships though. I want a moderate pace, and some element of peace. I want friends who will support me, and have their own passions in life, as I have mine, and for them each to impact the world in their own ways, and understand my emotions, and will challenge me so that I grow, while at the same time accepting me as I am. I want to learn constantly, and to be active in learning and growing. I want to make an impact where I can, and to accept my shortcomings where I cannot. Like Whittier said, “and we will feed the hungry and clothe the poor, and all shall bless us who come round door”. If I had all that I think I would probably not regret anything.
It is interesting how much my attitude towards food changes situationally. Every time I am away from it, it is easy to tell myself what will happen, and then every time I sit down in front of food I feel a sense of anxiety and have to force myself to eat more.
I don’t know why the cornfields are so calming. As I go past Illinois, and as I do think of the hymn, “all things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small”. The sceneries make me wonder what it would be like to live in that place and to lead that life, which is a lot of what cities themselves make me think of.
In line to get into the train, I met a girl someone about my age who was really cool. She was taking the train to visit a friend in Saint Louis, and worked at a nonprofit at the Center for Tech and Civic Life and in election reform. When I got on the train, I met two people who asked me if I had gotten her number, which I thought was pretty funny. She was definitely a cool person, but I feel weird walking up to someone and asking their number, since it makes the conversation feel like a pretense for asking a question, not as taking a genuine interest in the other person. If I see her again, I would, but I probably never will, which is part of the fun.
Day 30 - May 24 (Sun)
Today is the last day. I finally met a pacifist. He was a Jehovah’s witness whose father had converted after WW2 and realizing how terrible it was to kill. He was super well-travelled, and had done multiple rail passes, both on Amtrak and VIA, and even met his wife (sort of) through the rail pass. He definitely had the gift of the gab, but was really interesting to listen to. He worked on the railroad, and then in PennDOT. We comisserated on some of the challenges of travelling, and then exchanged contacts after. When I made it to the train station, Appa picked me up, and we went to get a haircut and beard trim, and bought some sandals. I have also definitely lost weight, I lost about 8lbs and gained a lot of muscle in my legs and shoulders and back (although I lost some in my chest and arms), and this has given me a good platform to work out more over the summer. I think overall, this trip turned out well. I spent the rest of the day cooking and meal prepping according to the new system ../food/mealprep.html, although I still haven’t made the pizza dough. It was relaxed, it was complete. At this point, finishing this trip, I guess I feel a sense of conclusion with the past academic year. It feels like a clean slate of this very long and isolating and educational year, and I am looking forward to spending my last ten weeks with my friends, and then starting the next adventure.
QR Code
Things to Cook/Eat after the Trip
Paneer Banh Mi
Beet Gnocchi w/ Pine Nut, Goat Cheese, Fava Bean, Apple, Basil
Tortellini Salad
Paneer/Mushroom/Spinach Panuozzo Napolitano
Ice Cream (from scratch)
Really nice bread
Feta Cheese
Pretzels
Bagels
Boureka w/ Farmer Cheese/Paneer
Falafel
Chico's Tacos
CCCP Market
Melanzane Pizza
Paneer Capreze Wraps
Grisi Torinesi
Farmer's Cheese
Paneer Piccatta
Frittata
Breadsticks
Cannelloni
Eggplant Parmigiana
Taco with Mushroom, Goat Cheese, Red Pickled Onion
Pesto
Cannoli
Mexiterranian Food?Bibliography
- [1] caliberal, “A map I made showing the Amtrak long-distance routes.” 2023.