WORLD FAMOUS BLUE TRAIN, South Africa’s ORIENT EXPRESS

My dad had always been an aficionado of trains and when he realized that he was coming to South Africa for a visit he studied up on the country’s famous Blue Train. This was a train that left Pretoria in the early morning, stopped in Johannesburg to load additional passengers and pulled into Cape Town, early the following day around noon, after travelling throughout the night. In total it was a journey the covered 1600km by rail It was extremely high end, everything was first class including the pricing. It was one of the most exclusive rides in the world. The price, if my memory does not fail was about $1400.00 for each of us. Remember this was 1989!

Each guest had their own private, ensuite compartment. Everything was included in the price; all food, snacks, drinks of any type, cigars and anything else that could be provided by your personal Butler for the trip. Yes! This sounds like just what this cowboy from Alberta needs. Dad loved travel, he could look at scenery all day and together we could talk the leg off a table. My god was it luxurious. My brother had been together with us in Johannesburg, but was getting ready to continue his journey to Australia. He and Deysi came to see us off at the start of our epic adventure.

This journey was first cabin, right from the start. At check-in they already had everything ready for us, knew our names and a little about us, things they were told by Deysi when she bought our tickets. They accompanied us to our train car and waited on the steps of the carriage while we said our goodbyes. The staff averaged about one staff attendant for every two passengers. We loaded and were given separate compartments in the same carriage, about two doors apart.

These cabins were splendid, they came with a small two chair sitting area, a full ensuite toilet and shower compartment, a bed that was at the exact same height as the train widows, so you could lay in bed and look out at Africa passing by your window. Each room included champagne on ice and assorted delicacies for your enjoyment. Ahhhhhh, they had finally recognized royalty. I knew I could get used to this treatment and for sure I was never going to let the girls get a taste of it, I would have never got them back. Dad and I spent the day between the lounge car, reading car, sightseeing car and our rooms, what a magnificent day it was. My dad was living a dream.

Dinner time arrives and our butler comes down the hall and taps on dad’s door, then mine, and announces that, dinner would be served in 1 hour and that we had just enough time to shower, if we chose, and to don jacket and tie for dinner. He also asked if we had any special requests for dinner or would we be eating the set menu. Set menu for us! One hour later, dressed like gentlemen travellers we entered the dining room. Our butler met us and guided us to a table. You have never seen anything like this, the table set against the window, and this window covered floor to ceiling. They had slowed our progress for the dining period so that we could enjoy the views of Africa.

By this time I really felt that we were special and could not wait to dig in. Well “dig in” might be a bit rowdy for the style of eating on this train. They brought us course after course of bread, buns, crackers, butter, clotted cream, soups, salads, tiny tasters of seafood, sweetmeats, thinly sliced “prairie oysters” (no shit, the real deal). Then roast of beef and fish, a sorbet to clean the palate between each course and then coffee, liquors, cigars, cheeses and endless desserts. Dad passed on liquor and smoke. However, he ate a significant chunk of the desserts, along with about a gallon of coffee. He told me that he never knew coffee was supposed to taste like that. None of the courses were big enough to fill you up, however they were endless and by the time, that we “tapped out”, we both were in serious pain. Now for a walk from one end of the train to the other and into bed.

It had been a long day and I was grateful to see the bed. It was about 8:00pm at this time and still significantly hot, inside the cabin. The window by the bed opened and a nice breeze entered my compartment. I pulled back the curtains to let in maximum ventilation, hoisted myself and about 20 extra pounds of dinner up onto the bed, stripped pretty much naked, pulled out a book and let Africa caress me to sleep. It was idyllic. A while later, while in a deep sleep, I am aware of falling into a dream, in which I can hear people talking in a language I did not recognize, loud noises of hustle and bustle, distant whistles, a screech of brakes and a general commotion.

Oh Crap, I spring instantly awake. There we are parked alongside a platform, in what I assumed was a train station, and what seemed like 100’s of people were passing up and down the side of the train, about two feet from where me and my naked body lay. I must have looked like a big white slug laying “on full display” there. Well I can tell you, something like that can get your heart started. I dive for the curtain, but it is stuck and I can’t pull it shut. I’m now in a battle with it. I feel every eye on the platform on me. I jump off the bed and gather some articles of clothes to cover myself with. Once again this was one of those things in my life that took, maybe 5 seconds at the most, but lived in my mind for what seemed like hours!

I laid on my bed for a long time hoping no one knew me or had a camera ready and sent their shot to the newspapers. Thank god for no internet or cell phones at that time! My shame would have went VIRAL. Apparently we had arrived in Kimberly, right smack in the middle of a busy time at the train station, we were stopped, waiting for a couple of trains to pass so we could proceed. The next day we arrived in Cape Town, this train ride, again, was an experience I had never had before, nor since.

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