Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Your next decision will be whether to go straight through—
it's a 15-hour trip—or stop for a couple of nights along the way.
For me, that was a no-brainer: I took the extra time and stopped
for the night in Creel and again in Divisadero. There are plenty
of interesting things to see in both places, either on your own or
on a guided tour. At Divisadero, you'll be able to walk right up
to the rim and gaze down into the canyon. (I did, and I couldn't
get over seeing buzzards circling lazily in the air . . . more than a
thousand feet below me.)
El Económico
If you're really adventurous, you might consider taking the sec-
ond-class train that departs every day from each terminus about
an hour after El Primero. It's slower and makes a lot more stops,
but if it's color and a real taste of the country you're after, this
is surely the way to go. Just be advised that if you take this train
over the entire route, you could be arriving at either of the desti-
nations close to midnight. Some basic Spanish would be helpful,
although it's not a necessity.
By the way, most locals refer to this train as El Segundo, obvi-
ously because it's a second-class train. It also has a very unoffi-
cial nickname, El Pollero, which, they will tell you with a good-
natured smile, is translated as “the Chicken Train.” Don't get
the idea that this train is dilapidated and run-down or that every
other passenger has a live chicken under her arm. Yes, it is indeed
a second-class train, but the equipment being used is the same
that comprised what was the first-class train a decade or so ago.
It's just that some of the details you expect to be covered on a
first-class tourist-oriented excursion may be considered unim-
portant for El Segundo passengers. Dirty windows, for example,
are my personal pet peeve when it comes to train travel.
Search WWH ::
Custom Search