YQB Jour 5 - Vancouver to Quebec: Sitting All the Way

Bonjour from Quebec City! I know I haven`t updated this site in a while, and I hope to catch up this weekend. In this installment, I`ll describe my trip from Vancouver to Quebec. I`ll cover Quebec City in depth in future articles.

Background: I got 5 weeks off from work, and decided to travel across Canada and then learn French in Quebec City for 4 weeks. Also, to spice things up, I will not fly there directly, but will travel overland. That way, I'll get to see the breadth of Canada from ground level. After much planning and changes, my final itinerary was to take a train from Vancouver to Sudbury in Ontario, spend the afternoon and evening there, then take an overnight bus to Ottawa. I will spend one day in Ottawa, tour the city, and take two more trains to Quebec City. This overland trip will take five 24hr periods to complete.

Since the price of a sleeper on the train is TRIPLE that of a seat, I spent my nights sitting in the "Comfort" class. It may actually be comfortable as long as you don`t have to sleep in it. I tried different recline angles, a variety of footrest positions, and an assortment of body contortions. I even walked around the car studying how other people, including the train attendants, sleep, and I still got woken up every few hours throughout the night. Amazingly, I slept better on the greyhound bus! Go figure.

Before you think I regretted taking the train, the seat is really my only complaint. Almost everything else about the train is great. Many of the amazing sceneries I saw can only be seen from the train. Travelling by train also allowed me to appreciate just how broad and varied Canada is. I enjoyed seeing the transition from the Rockies of BC and Alberta to the Prairies to the woods and rocks of Manitoba and Ontario. Canada is a beautiful country, and I feel so privileged to be living in it.







Although we didn't have the best weather, the view was still magnificent. Taking the train is a very relaxing way to travel. Forget about cell phones and emails. Just enjoy the scenery, talk to fellow travellers, read a book, or do absolutely nothing. Schedules become irrelevant. It doesn't matter what time you get up, or eat, or sleep, because everything you need, and everything you can do, are right there on the train. The train also stops at several stations everyday where you can get off, stretch your legs, and maybe even do some power-sightseeing.

Bottom Line: Taking the train is an excellent way to see Canada. However, either be prepared for some discomfort, or fork over the money for a sleeper.