‘Amtrak Downeaster’ From Dover, N.H. To Boston, North Station: Not Bad At All, BUT Slow & Expensive!
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We are not strangers to Amtrak. We have taken Amtrak — and even the Acela — from Boston to New York (and back, and even once from Philadelphia) many, many times. But, the ‘Downeaster’ was a mystery — a service that I had never previously considered. Plus, it is strange, it is not something that readily comes to mind because I rarely see ‘Downeaster’ trains in action.
But, this last Sunday, heading to Boston Chinatown for the Lunar New Year celebrations I decided to give the ‘Downeaster’ a spin. It came up as an option when I was Googling bus services. Yes, I normally drive to Boston. I have no problems driving to Boston, though parking can be slightly infuriating. But, I had done a lot of driving in the past month — which had included trips to Boston, Rockland (Maine) and a number of trips to the Portsmouth area. I wanted to sit back and let someone else drive.
Given that there are three of us taking the bus, either from Dover or Concord, would have been cheaper. With the 50% discount I can get as a senior the $28 return-trip fare is definitely fair. But, when you are talking of a family of 3 or 4, even if you can get 50% off on all the tickets, it is expensive. Cheaper to drive, especially on a Sunday when you can park in Boston for ~$11.
But, I wanted to go by train. We haven’t had a proper train trip in 4-years. It was time. It was relaxing. It was nice.
It was not fast. I clocked it using GPS. Was doing around 55mph. 98 minutes from Dover to North Station. In a good day I can drive from home to Downtown Boston in 90 minutes. So, faster speed definitely is not factor.
Nice scenic route. Through tons of undeveloped land. Much more scenic than taking I-93 or I-95. That was a plus.
Good trip. Enjoyed it. I will do it again — mainly just for the love of traveling by train.
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The Picture Of The Day (Google Pixel 4) + 6 Also-Rans — February 4, 2020.
NO post-processing whatsoever.
Taken with my Google Pixel 4 Phone.
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Attribution WILL be enforced.
The also rans:
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Iowa Caucus Results — Disingenuousness By The Democratic Candidates.
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Each and every campaign that was involved in the Iowa caucus yesterday KNOWS what the results are. They are just playing cute and not letting on.
How did they know?
Because they had multiple campaign workers at each and every precinct — with a Campaign ‘Captain’ at each precinct to direct the operations.
Come 10pm (or whatever), last night, each Campaign Captain knew the results and counts for their precinct.
Yes, there are over 1,600 precincts in Iowa. But, that is just arithmetic.
Each Campaign Captain would have called in his/her numbers, for their precinct, to the campaign HQ. Then, it is just a case of adding them all up. Each campaign would have the numbers for the entire precinct. So, they each would have the total number.
So, if nothing else each campaign already knows all the numbers. But they choose not to divulge. Just politics. Just crazy.
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