Over 96 hours, I saw more of the US than I had ever seen before as I traveled through cities and towns of all sizes, across windswept plains, and through some of the most beautiful mountains imaginable.
But stepping onto my first overnight Amtrak journey, I thought I was a seasoned veteran. Mere hours into the four-day journey, I quickly learned that wasn't the case.
I've taken the train between New York, Boston, and Washington, DC, more times than I can count, and even ventured out of the Northeast Corridor for a few longer journeys. But compared with many other passengers on this trip from coast to coast, I was still a novice in every sense of the word.
My companions on this 96-hour, 10-state journey from New York to Seattle — especially my fellow sleeping-car passengers — were well versed in surviving a multiday trip by rail. Nearly every person I met had been on a sleeper before, and they were prepared to pass the time.
Unfortunately, I was not as ready.
It's the busiest rail terminal in North America, with 16 Amtrak routes as well as commuter rail to upstate New York, New Jersey, and Long Island.
The Empire Builder, as it's known, crosses 10 states, through some of the most beautiful — and desolate — parts of the country. I chose this route over the others simply because it passes through four states I had never seen.
Why does Amtrak love lines so much? I'm not sure. Nevertheless, a friendly staff member began walking us to our platform about 10 minutes before our departure.
James pointed out the luggage rack in the ceiling, which I was thankful to find, given that suitcases barely fit in the small room.
Overnight, we'd pass through upstate New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, before rolling into Chicago the next morning.
It's worth noting here that I was in a single-level Viewliner sleeper. Amtrak operates these on the East Coast because its taller Superliner trains can't fit through the more than century-old tunnels in Baltimore, New York, and other cities.
I headed inside to check out the station.
The rooms, while small, were surprisingly spacious! I was able to fully stretch out my legs onto the second seat (though had I been sharing this room, things would have been quite cramped).
I found an open seat next to Hal, many decades my senior, who was on his way home to Montana from a family reunion in Vermont, and Peggy, also an Amtrak veteran of many more years than I've lived, who was headed to California to visit her son.
There are basically two types of people who ride these long-distance trains, Roger Harris, Amtrak's chief commercial and marketing officer, said in an interview a few days before I set off on this journey.
"They have very, very different characteristics," he said. "People riding coach tend to travel a few hundred miles, while people in sleepers tend to be much more end-to-end. There are people who get on in Albany and get off in Cleveland, or get on in Cleveland and ride to Chicago."
Those intermediate markets, sometimes called "city pairs" by people in the industry, are a big focus for Amtrak going forward.
Both of my companions had been on other cross-country routes and confirmed that I made a good choice with the Empire Builder. Next on my list is the Southwest Chief — their suggestion — to see the Rocky Mountains in all their grandeur.
The food was clearly microwaved (or quickly reheated in some capacity) and wasn't even served on a real plate. The "specialty dessert" was a prepackaged brownie.
"1-800-USA-RAIL!" the lone (and very busy) dining attendant quipped to an unsatisfied passenger. "I didn't make the changes."
"West of the Mississippi, these trains are typically two nights," Harris, the Amtrak executive, said when I asked him whether the changes might expand westward beyond the initial rollout.
"They're typically a 48-hour train to the West Coast," he said, "so the onboard service is a more important part of the journey, and people have more dining events while they're traveling. It's more complicated than on the East Coast, where people generally get on in the evening, have a meal, and then get off in the evening."
I grabbed another breath of fresh air in Syracuse, New York, where we arrived around 10:15 p.m., about an hour behind schedule.
Sleeping aboard a train was surprisingly difficult. The bed was comfortable enough, and the blankets warm, but every train that passed with its whistle blasting caused me to toss and turn. I spent half the night watching stars, something I can't often do in New York.
When we stopped in Toledo, the train was more or less on time. The rest of the morning, however, would throw much of my trip into disarray.
Breakfast was about the same quality as dinner. To be fair, I have a banana and a granola bar each morning — even a microwaved sausage-egg-and-cheese sandwich is an upgrade.
Amtrak stations largely fall into two basic categories: beautifully restored stations built hundreds of years ago, and derelict shacks. Luckily, Chicago's is the former.
Unfortunately for the beautiful station, Amtrak, again, loves lines. I followed the signs to find a snaking line of unhappy travelers leading to the boarding gate.
Whoever was scanning tickets at the platform entrance was directing people to the wrong doors, a conductor said, adding to the confusion.
This leg of my journey — like most trains west of Chicago — was on what Amtrak calls a Superliner. These taller, double-level train cars offer quite the view (and can carry many more passengers).
The attendant later said these rooms are bookable two weeks out from a trip if they're still empty. I got this instead of a coach seat because the bedroom wasn't booked. Whew.
The accessible bedrooms are one of two accommodations that take up the entire width of a train car. I also had my own toilet inside, while other travelers had to venture down the hall to shared restrooms.
This was conflicting enough in the first room, but now I also had to choose which side of the train to look out! Admittedly, sitting on the toilet wasn't as comfortable, so I mostly stuck to the side with actual chairs.
As the sun began to set, we rolled into Milwaukee, our second stop and the first outside the Chicago metro area.
It was immediately clear from the tablecloths and Amtrak-emblazoned cutlery that Peggy was right: This meal would be much better than the one on the previous train.
Each passenger fills out this form, which appears to have general categories for menu items, like "poultry entree" or "healthy menu option." I assume these let the company track what's being ordered, while allowing for some flexibility.
"They've said computers are coming for the entire 12 years I've worked here," the waiter said when I asked whether the forms were eventually scanned into a computer or somehow tallied.
There were a lot more choices on this train too. But alcohol, unfortunately, was not included in my reservation.
Out the window, we caught brief glimpses of the Mississippi River. Two of my tablemates, Thomas and Mimi, from Switzerland, were very confused about how we were crossing the famous river this far north, so we pulled out a map and discussed geography.
In a sugar coma, I settled back into my cabin as we rolled into our last smoke break of the day in St. Paul, Minnesota.
As Harris, the Amtrak executive, mentioned, Minneapolis is one of the big hubs along this long journey. I saw plenty of people disembarking and plenty more boarding as we set off for North Dakota and the rest of the West.
These pancakes were some of the best I've ever had: perfectly fluffy, slightly crisp around the edges, and not dry to the point that they merely soak up syrup like sponges. It's no surprise that they were out of pancakes the next morning — that'll teach me to sleep late.
At this meal, I was pleasantly surprised to meet people younger than me. Two women from Pittsburgh were headed to Seattle, where one had just accepted an internship at Boeing. We talked about planes for a bit before parting ways.
Seats were in high demand here, but after a few minutes of pacing back and forth, I managed to snag a seat.
Downstairs, there were snacks for sale by Miss Oliver, the lounge-car attendant. When making announcements, she sang little jingles for us. I was partial to her Tina Turner cover.
Once again, I took the time to stretch my legs with the smokers. Across the street, a small coffee trailer was open and eager to see us. A conductor said they rely on the daily train arrivals for business and are prepared every time.
The landscape out here, mere miles from the Canadian border, is dotted with dozens — if not hundreds — of small farming towns.
Malta, Montana, saw 3,570 passengers in 2018, with most of those coming from Chicago.
We must have passed at least a dozen small homages to America's railroad history at stations throughout the journey. Here, in Havre, Montana, a beautifully restored locomotive from the Great Northern Railway sits next to the station.
Now defunct, the railway was the northernmost transcontinental route in the country, carrying the original Empire Builder train in 1929.
I again sat next to Thomas and Mimi, who told me about their travels aboard the Orient Express from Milan to Istanbul, as well as on the Trans-Siberian Railway across Russia. Those trains are now next on my list.
Wenatchee, apparently, is the apple-production capital of the United States, producing six of every 10 apples grown in the country each year.
These dumbwaiters carry food for hundreds of meals every day from the full kitchen and grill on the lower level to the upper deck, where they're served to hungry passengers.
I shed a small tear as I spied the Olympic Mountains peeking above the sound. We were so close I could almost taste it.
"Have you ever arrived on time?" I heard a fellow passenger ask a crew member as we departed. They just shook their head.
Google Maps says this journey would have taken just 42 hours to drive, compared with my 96 hours on a train.
Sure, it took a little bit longer. But if I had the time to do it, I'd cross the country by train every time.
As Peggy, my first dinner companion, said the first night, "you just can't see anything from 30,000 feet."
Some 3,000 miles later, she couldn't have been more right.