Leaving Niagara was almost as traumatic as arriving there. All the passengers were left sitting in the waiting room without any information about our train until just 10 minutes before it left. There was no assistance with baggage, and we had to have our passports checked by a border patrol guard before we were allowed to leave. Then we had a long walk and climb up 4 steps into the train, with no assistance in manhandling our baggage. After about an hour we were in Buffalo with a 10 hour wait. Although,we had planned to go to Utica and only have a 4 hour wait, the guard recommended that we stop off at Buffalo, where we would find plenty to do, and would be able to get our bags looked after. It gave us a chance to go to a shopping mall. The scheduled time of arrival of the train is 1.25 p.m. The bus leaves from the station at 1.23 p.m. so there is no way you can get anywhere without a cab, because the next bus is 3.37 p.m. We still haven’t fathomed out the thinking behind this arrangement. Still, we got a cab, and gave a lift to a young couple who were waiting to go downtown also. It was quite pleasant wandering around the mall, and we took a bus to the Waterfront, but when we got there it started to rain, so we looked at the water, turned around and got back on a bus to return to the station. We still had a 5 hour wait, but reading, cribbage and computer games helped to pass the time. Also, I got into conversation with a couple of travellers. This is one of my favourite activities when I am travelling. I love to hear where people are from, and about their way of life etc.

It was much easier this time getting on to our train to Chicago, with no cases to worry about, as they were all checked on board for us. It was a busy train, but we did manage to get 2 seats together in the coach car, there being no sleepers available, and eventually settled ourselves down. Of course, we had no pillows or blankets, and it was cold, so we just managed to snatch a little sleep during the night. Actually, the train was delayed  arriving at Chicago until midday, and I think we managed more sleep during the morning than we had during the night. There had been a bad derailment of a 30 car freight train on our route, and we had to be detoured, which is what caused the delay.

We eventually arrived in Chicago, and had a lovely afternoon there.  We took a tram tour around the city, and got a good feel for it. We visited the Sears building and took the trip to the top. We went up 103 floors, and the scenery was pretty spectacular. The tower is still the highest in North America even though it has lost it’s highest building in the world status. Chicago station was a lso a very pleasant experience, and we were able to make use of the Amtrak First Class lounge, with free refreshments and baggage store. There was a mild panic for the staff in the lounge at one point when having organised the boarding of a particular train, a member of staff noticed a coat lying on a chair, where one group of passengers had been sitting. They asked around, and decided it must belong to someone on the previous train, so took it away to try to catch up with it’s owner. After about 1/2 hour another passenger started to panic because she thought she had lost her coat. Eventually, passenger and coat were reunited, but it made us ponder the fact that some people do leave their common sense at home when they travel.

We checked our bags through to Memphis, so once again had no problems boarding the train. Our sleeping compartment was bijoux to say the least. Just 2 seats opposite each other, and when the bunks were made up, there was a space of 12″x8″ in which to stand and get undressed or dressed. If the space was used for shoes, then there was nowhere to stand. Bill took the top bunk, very gallantly I thought, and I was in the lower one. The top bunk was 2 feet wide, and the bottom 2′3″! Surprisingly we both slept very well, after a meal in the dining car during which we chatted to a couple from Chicago who also enjoy travelling. So we were able to exchange stories, and ideas for visits. They are en route to New Orleans and then back to Memphis for a week, while we are doing Memphis and then New Orleans, probably! Knowing us we could just as easily end up somewhere totally different by the middle of next week.

So, we have finally arrived in Memphis, and it is exactly as I imagined it to be. Especially the station, which looks as though it has never been modernised. I could just imagine Elvis using it in the early days when he visited Sun Records. We arrived early, at 6 a.m. and took a taxi to our Hotel. Amazingly, the desk clerk checked us in immediately, which we were very grateful for. The room is good, up on the 8th floor, with fridge and microwave, but no coffee maker or room safe. Also, there is no laundry which I expected to use, and the restaurant is closed for refurbishment. I later discovered that the hotel has new owners, and that is why things are not as they say in their website. Also, we chose it to try to be near the station, only to find it is a long way to downtown. Still we walked down the road about 6 blocks to find some breakfast and then found out there is a bus which goes downtown. So we made good use of that and spent the day sightseeing.

Memphis has a tram system which seems pretty efficient, so we took the tram for 50 cents each on the Riverside run. When we got off we visited Beale Street, which is a famous street in Memphis for blues and rock music. We stopped on the sidewalk for a coffee, and just sat and soaked up the atmosphere, plus more people watching. At the front of the restaurant the proprietor was trying to attract customers, and in between, he played his trumpet. Having visited a few souvenir shops and the famous Schwab’s store, which is just like stepping back in time. It is a genuine store, but everything it sells would have been more commonplace in the fifties. We visited Peabody Place, before heading back to Riverside. We walked along to see the monorail which runs over to Mudd Island (a visit for us before we leave Memphis) we returned and caught the Riverboat, for a very interesting trip down the Mississippi. There was a running commentary to listen to while on board, and the man obviously has a lot of knowledge of the history of the Mississippi. He kept our attention for an hour and a half. Ater the boat trip we walked back to Beale Street, and returned to the restaurant where we had had coffee in the morning for dinner.   As we walked along Bill pointed out a plaque on a building which said “In 1897 absolutely nothing happened here”. Not the usual plaque inscription wherever you go.

We sat outside eating our meal with live blues music coming from the patio of the pub across the road called O’Sullivan’s. This was originally the haunt of a notorious gangster named Slinky O’Sullivan in the 20s/30s. Interestingly, most of the building appears to have collapsed and is supported by wooden beams, but they still continue to trade. (For further details see the plaque on the wall).

In Beale Street, inlaid into the pavement there are gold coloured music notes, with the names of the famous and not so famous of the music world. It is easy to miss them, but well worth searching them out.

We walked back to catch the tram to the bus station and saw the statue of Elvis Presley on Elvis Presley Plaza. We managed to negotiate our way around the buses and catch our bus to the hotel.