From Chicago to SoCal

BrandonJXN · #1 Posted **Oct 22, 2018, 10:14 PM**

So after living in Chicago for 5 years and experiencing everything that city had to offer (from the Cubs winning the World Series and the Polar Vortex), last November, I took a 41 hour Amtrak train ride from Chicago to Riverside, California. Taking a train across the country was something incredible. The amount of space in the west is surreal. New Mexico is one of the most unbelievably beautiful places I've ever seen in my life. So this will be a vibrant display of my last summer in Chicago to my first summer back in SoCal and everything inbetween. And there is a lot. Please to enjoy.

Thank you for viewing.

ChrisLA · #2 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 3:33 AM**

Thanks for the tour, really enjoyed the photos.

BrandonJXN · #3 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 2:40 PM**

For reference, here was the train route.

mrnyc · #4 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 3:40 PM**

wow now this is an insta-awesome type thread.

i like the look of it and the contrasts.

inspiring.

jg6544 · #5 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 4:23 PM**

Nice thread. I wonder how you'll find life in LA after living in Chicago.

rgarri4 · #6 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 4:57 PM**

This is awesome! Thanks for sharing.

BrandonJXN · #7 Posted **Oct 23, 2018, 6:33 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by jg6544

Nice thread. I wonder how you'll find life in LA after living in Chicago.

Well I'm from SoCal so it's all still familiar and new at the same time.

EastSideHBG · #8 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 3:17 PM**

Great pics! I agree with you about NM and it is also delightfully weird, I have had some crazy experiences there and it's like being on another planet at times.

Boisebro · #9 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 3:33 PM**

great pics -- thanks for posting these.

I did the same Amtrak trip in 1989, so these photos really take me back. after spending time in L.A., I continued by taking the Coast Starlight up to San Fran and eventually Seattle, then headed back on the now-defunct Pioneer from Seattle through Boise, Salt Lake, Denver and back to Chicago.

best trip I ever took. nothing like taking the train to see some amazing parts of the country.

mrnyc · #10 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 3:52 PM**

^that sounds great, although i really enjoyed driving up and down 101 and that is hard to beat as its the rivieria of the americas.

xzmattzx · #11 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 7:23 PM**

A lot of those are very nice, in an artistic, retro, avant garde kind of way.

Sun Belt · #12 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 9:58 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

Great pics! I agree with you about NM and it is also delightfully weird, I have had some crazy experiences there and it's like being on another planet at times.

My all time favorite state is Utah.

That said, I've only been to 42/50 states. This could change as I continue to explore.

LA21st · #13 Posted **Oct 24, 2018, 10:01 PM**

I've taken this trip too. Some of the best Mexican food I ever was from a street vendor near the Albuerque train station.

BrandonJXN · #14 Posted **Oct 31, 2018, 2:38 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by LA21st

I've taken this trip too. Some of the best Mexican food I ever was from a street vendor near the Albuerque train station.

We had an hour stop at ABQ and at the train station, I had 2 tacos with one of those famous New Mexican chili peppers. NM rivals SoCal in the Mexican food department.

Centropolis · #15 Posted **Oct 31, 2018, 4:02 PM**

ah the southwest chief.

quite a thread!

geomorph · #16 Posted **Feb 5, 2019, 12:26 AM**

Thank you for this megathread of chromatic images along the journey!