From Alex - Return Trip Home

Our train tickets were for 11:00 AM on the "Express Train" back to Cairo. ETA: 1:00 PM. We left the hotel around 10:00 AM with Hassan the taxi driver. In case you don't remember him, he's mentioned here. Below: A complimentary VW photo for this leg of the trip. The Beetle just passes us along the Corniche, as we wait to turn.


A car you will never see in the U.S.A. This is an Iranian built Peugot. As The Boss Man said, "double bad." Actually, according to Wiki, these are also built in Egypt.


Again, we make our own lanes.


The main station in Alexandria is closed for repair, so there is a detour.


At the temporary waiting area, there are no coffee shops, just kiosks. As usual, people jump between cars to avoid paying the fare.



It was busy when we arrived, but this train pretty much cleared out the station.


Due to repairs, the underground walkway to exit the station is no longer in use. Now you must wait until the tracks clear out to exit. You can see the old brick station behind the yellow barrier wall.

A thumbs up from a passenger.


Another train arrives.


Below, in the right hand corner is the dickhead who hounded VB while she was waiting. (Actually, VB was kind of startled when she found this photo of him.) We originally had our luggage assembled by a light pole when we first arrived, as no benches were available. That's when he moved in, smoking a cigarette, and VB kept a stink eye on him, as she did not want his ashes on her luggage. Then we moved to some nearby benches, and he moved with VB. First he sat two seats over, and when VB got up to take photos, he moved closer. Way too obvious, he kept eyeballing the luggage, which we noticed, messaged each other about, and kept a close (stink) eye on him.

Reflections from a passing train. No more photos after this from the platform, as VB puts her camera in the case (cross ways on her body) because, dickhead here started getting edgy. As Number One Son said, "he looked like he needed a fix." Number One Son was on his ass, like a fly on garbage.


Our train was an "Express Train." These trains make only one stop between Alexandria and Cairo. It takes about two hours for the whole trip. As we started off, the train was breezing along. VB got out her New York Times crossword puzzle book and worked on a crossword. She finished the crossword before we arrived! WTF! Then suddenly the train slowed. It slowed down so much so, VB said, "I can walk faster than this." Getting pretty peeved, VB got up,walked to the back of the train, and asked a few people hanging out between the cars if they knew what happened. An engineer was back there, as well. Apparently something was wrong with the engine. We would stop in a small town, get a new engine car, and be on our way, tentatively arriving in Cairo at 2:30 PM, (Inshallah) God Willing. Below: This boat is almost going as fast as we are (and it's standing still.)

This time the train we had, as one man explained, was a "French Train." They are over forty years old. (Really? Fuck me. Remind VB to not take this particular train again!) The newer one (as seen in previous posts) is referred to as the "Spanish Train (a much younger model.)


We finally arrived at 3:00 PM - two hours late.

Tomorrow - getting home from the train station.

Funkengroovin - To Alex

There are not as many VW photos today as VB usually posts, but there were a few surprises we caught on our way to Alexandria, Egypt. VB admits, she missed three VW Buses, and a man taking a leak on the highway, while she was on the way to the train station. Sometimes she's just not that quick.

(Below): A bright yellow Bus going in the opposite direction.


(Below): Wondering what the hell is hanging off this truck?


(Below): Just a bunch of garbage.




(Below): A VW special order high roof Bus. This one, a friend says, is a medical supply company.


(Below): Red Beetle with a flat.


(Below): Blue Beetle on a bridge, taken from another bridge.


(Below): We rounded our bridges and got a bit closer.


(Below): At the station - a woman waits at a kiosk.


(Below): Something VB wants to do one of these days. Perhaps to Luxor.


(Below): The train arrives. It's an express, taking two hours to get to Alexandria from Cairo.


(Below): Reflections. The window reflects what's happening at the station (to VB's left,) while she takes a photo of another train (to her right.)



(Below): More reflections. (The overhead glass storage area.)


(Below): A tomato truck on the parallel highway. You can see farmers in the background. This whole area from Cairo to Alexandria is fertile and abundant with farms.


(Below): VB was fooling around, taking a photo of the window logo. Then...


as we slowed down near a village we all heard a loud crash. Someone either threw a rock or shot at the train. The windows are double walled. The outside window broke completely. This is what was left of the interior window. The woman wearing the red scarf, seen earlier in the reflections photo, pulled the screen down, and then moved to the other side of the train. This was shot, as we were leaving the train, in Alexandria.


VB is busy entertaining Number One Son, so no news today.

Train Ride To "The City"

When we go to "The City," we usually take the train. We drive to New Haven, park, and ride. But then we found out that we could drive to "The City" and park (all four of us) for less than the train ride. Yes even when gas was sky high, it was still cheaper for at least three people to drive to "The City," instead of taking a Metro North train. We enjoy taking the train, if we can get the express, otherwise, for those of us who live up near the Massachusetts border, stopping at every single small town takes for-ever.

Since it was just The Boss Man and VB the last time, we took the train. We did not consult the online schedules as we usually do, in advance, and had no idea how long we'd wait for the next train from New Haven. The ticket attendant said, "You're just in time. The next train arrives in six minutes." Well, that left VB no time to take photos inside Union Station - perhaps next time.

(Below): This is as good as it gets. Us running through a tunnel on our way to the upper level, outdoor terminal. It's a very shiny tunnel.

Even though Grand Central is pretty cool no commuters really hang out there. So, the next day, VB went back to Grand Central to take pictures (and she did some shopping too.) She wasn't the only one. You are either a passenger running through the terminal on your way somewhere, or a "tourist" taking pictures. The flashes going off in the terminal were continuous. VB did not use her flash, as she was trying to be really inconspicuous, but with camera in hand, it probably didn't work.

A short tour of the train from Union Station to Grand Central.

New Haven

(Below): Union Station in New Haven, Connecticut. It's pretty deserted looking. That's because it was freezing outside, and most of the passengers were waiting on the steps, inside.

(Below): The train approached and everyone inside, ran out, only to be passed up.
The train then reversed a few minutes later, with a garbled announcement on the loud speaker about some sort of technical problem.

(Below): The actual station, perched behind a commuter train.

Inside Grand Central

(Below): Grand Central, as you see it from the Vanderbilt entrance.
The people below VB are taking pictures.

(Below): Another photographer amidst the chaos.

(Below): 42nd Street entrance / exit.

(Below): As seen from the terminal area.

(Below): Ditto.

(Below): The escalator.

(Below): Time table.

Sheltering Under Grand Central’s Ceiling of Stars
"But the number-one attraction, best seen from the staircases you're not supposed to sit on, is the geometrical movements of thousands of New Yorkers crisscrossing the main concourse, proving once and for all that humans are just as good as ants in moving in all directions through huge crowds without bumping into one another. It's great people-watching on a spectacular stage."

(Below): All those people up on the steps are taking pictures, and VB is probably in a few.

Outside Grand Central - Two views.

(Below): That's The Chrysler Building in the background.

(Below): Close up of the Eagle.