Frontrunner Fun

We've had this trip planned for a while now...a jaunt to SLC on the Frontrunner, using TRAX, and the bus system to get around.  Our family van has been out of commission for months now, so I finally enlisted the help of our friend Chelsea Good to get us off on the first leg and bring us home at the end of the day.  Coordinating seven people on mass transit is quite a feat.  Add rain, car issues, and construction in downtown SLC, and, well, the day is sure to be unforgettable!  First of all, we nearly missed the train on the way down.  (James decided we should have a backpack with us and some waters at the last minute.)  But, the girls were standing there and the conducter was kind enough to hold the train for a few minutes while James figured out purchasing tickets.  The ride in the train was amazing -- so smooth you could have napped (Samuel did), and it was hard to tell we were traveling so fast until we reached a section of the freeway running parallel to us where we were flying past the cars.  So much fun.  When we reached our destination, I realized I hadn't printed the map or schedule before leaving the house.  We felt a little lost trying to figure out what to do next.  The TRAX sitting at the station was destined for Sandy, which seemed to be the wrong direction, but was actually the train we needed to be on next.  Thankfully, we figured that out just in time.  We squeezed into seats and held on to loops of rope dangling from the ceiling, wide-eyed and laughing.  Some of the veterans to mass transit noted our first trip and gave us a few pointers about staying off of TRAX after dark.  Isn't it nice that people are so friendly?!

Later in the day, after we realized we'd been walking downtown for four hours, we attempted to get a snack.  Problem was, the only food place we could find was chuck full of breaded choices.  That meant exited a resteraunt before ordering, hopping TRAX, and hoping we didn't miss the Frontrunner home. 

We didn't.

We sat on the train for 40 minutes waiting for it to turn around and head north again.  Why the train needs 40 minutes to get going in the opposite direction I will never know.  Thank heaven for a cell phone and Chelsea Good.