We had clunked through forests, both dead and alive, past lakes and around giant northern Ontario boulders for more than 14 hours. It seemed like a never ending wilderness where the only humans we'd seen wore baseball caps and had almost no teeth. We were beginning to wonder if it would stay this way until we reached Vancouver.
 
Elenka and I, along with our amigos Jim and Mary from Scarborough, Ontario, had booked passage on the 'Canadian', a four-night, three-day train trip between Toronto and Vancouver. I studied the facial expressions of my three travel-partners from time-to-time. They appeared to have that same Columbus-sailing-off-the-edge-of-the-earth look on their faces that I felt. Forgers that we were though, we rolled on, soon into Manitoba. Then to its capital city - Winnipeg. I'd never met a Winnipegger, or for that matter anyone from Manitoba, and I was looking forward to the opportunity. 
 
It was just before seven on Saturday morning when we arrived in Winnipeg and after a couple of hours of walking the streets we still hadn't met anyone from this central Canadian city. We'd arranged breakfast with Elenka's sister, Judka and the brother-in-law, David from Almonte, Ontario, who oddly, happened to be staying in a hotel in Winnipeg just down the street from the train station. Judka and David said they were there for an anniversary event, but this journey had developed a Twilight Zone feel to it long before Manitoba and by now I was just going through the motions with a nervous smile, half expecting Winnie the Pooh to show up at our table in an apron with a pot of coffee. 


Did we breakfast with Judka and David? We must have, there are photos. Saskatchewan was far different than Elenka or I had expected. We had though we would find flatness with just the occasional string of wired hydro and telephone poles on a vacant plain. Instead we found wildlife basking on countless ponds and even the odd shrubbery here and there. We met no people here either.
 
All the way through Alberta we kept our identities secret, frightened that the real Westerners would discover we were from Toronto and treat us badly. Elenka kept a low profile by looking out the window and taking photographs. I hid under the brim of my new train engineer's cap. 
 
Jim, Mary and all the other Torontonian's aboard the train seemed oblivious to the dangers of the West. Still, by the time we arrived in Jasper, just east of British Columbia, Elenka and I were nervous wrecks. As fate would have it though, we were in for a reprieve. A tour group of eighty Indians from Kenya climbed aboard in Jasper. It took the pressure off us completely. I even befriended a number of them during the final leg, telling them stories of Rajasthan and Kerala, places they knew of but had never visited as we hurtled through the mountains of British Columbia. 
 
The Nuts and Bolts of the Canadian: The least expensive sleeper-class accommodation on the Canadian ($650 each) upper/lower berths (2 people) is in my opinion also the best. In the space where we lived and slept for four days there were just the four of us plus Jean and Gisele, a wonderful couple from Ottawa. During the day each person gets their own two person bench-seat, which might more appropriately be called a luxurious love-seat, if the feeling is there. At night the seating area transforms into the biggest and most comfortable upper and lower sleeping space you'll find on any train. Don't tell Jim and Mary, but you can actually fit two people in one bed.
 
Jean and and Gisele - or at least Jean - found the food not quite up to snuff. That is understandable, though. They're French and have a higher standard. We four others found it impeccable. Add to that the nicest, friendliest staff you'll find anywhere and you've got a winner. Best to go for this sooner than later. Goods things don't last long.    
 
Make sure you're awake through the British Columbia portion. Snow topped peaks, raging rivers and thunderous waterfalls are in abundance throughout.