By Jim Farber

"Dinner in the diner, nothing could be finer" — Glenn Miller, "Chattanooga Choo Choo."

May 10, 1869, was one of the most significant dates in American history, the day the golden spike was driven at Promontory Point, in what was then the Utah Territory, marking the completion of the first transcontinental railroad.

Considerably less remembered is Jan. 12, 1883 — the day a commemorative spike was driven to mark the completion of the second transcontinental railroad — Southern Pacific's route connecting Los Angeles to the Big Easy, New Orleans, Louisiana.

Passenger service began almost immediately, and the train was soon christened the Sunset Limited. It became the pride of the Southern Pacific. Now it is Amtrak's Sunset Limited (Train No. 2) following the same historic route. It leaves Los Angeles Sunday, Wednesday and Friday promptly at 10 p.m. and arrives in New Orleans 48 hours later.

Regrettably, all of the train's signature cars have long since passed away. Gone is the elegant Audubon Dining car with its striking reproductions, the French Quarter Lounge Car with its white wrought-iron accents and the Texas Coffee Shop with its ranch brands burned into the leather walls. Gone is the signature red, orange, black and silver diesel locomotive that was promoted as the "Streamliner With the Southern Accent."

They all may be gone with the wind, but traveling today on Amtrak's Sunset Limited, especially if you book one of the comfortable roomettes or spacious sleeper cars, can remind you why it's still great to take the train.

The Sunset Limited's 2,070-mile route passes through five states: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Louisiana. The lowest point is reached at the Salton Sea in California (202 feet below sea level), the highest when it climbs to 5,074 feet at Paisano, Texas. Its major intermediate stops include Palm Springs, California; Yuma, Maricopa (Phoenix) and Tucson, Arizona; Deming, New Mexico; El Paso, Alpine, San Antonio, Houston and Beaumont, Texas; Lake Charles, Lafayette and New Iberia, Louisiana.

Heading east the landscape segues from the low to high deserts of California and Arizona, through the canyon lands of southwestern Texas, to the heavily forested swamps of Bayou Country in Louisiana. The train completes its journey crossing the Mississippi River and gliding into the station in New Orleans. Sadly, the once grand railway station at the corner of Basin and Canal streets, where the Sunset Limited used to begin and end its journey, was demolished in the 1950s.

Since 1971, when Amtrak began operations as America's national railroad system, the tracks have not always been smooth. The challenge has consistently been to remain economically viable while providing reliable timetables and comfortable on-board services. And while there may no longer be fine china on the tables in the diner, the food (served on very acceptable faux china plastic) was consistently good and cooked to order in the galley, not simply microwaved. The shrimp-crab cakes were a real surprise. (All meals are included with the cost of a roomette or sleeper car reservation.)

Whether it represented the exception or the norm, I can't say. But from the time we boarded the train in Los Angeles until we arrived in the other LA, the service personnel were quite clearly understaffed and overworked, a condition they did not attempt to keep secret. A single female porter had the task of dealing with the needs of two sleeper cars, and both were at capacity. The chief waiter in the diner always seemed pressured. And while none of the staff was ever testy or rude, they were obviously stressed.

The passengers were soon aware that requests such as, "Could you tell me where the towels are for the shower?" or "Can I please get a bottle of water?" that should have been attended to without question, had to be asked for, often more than once. There was apparently no cleaning staff, so by the end of the two-day journey the bathroom facilities were getting pretty ripe.

I was booked into one of the roomettes on the second level of an Amtrak Superliner. It was ample and cozy for one person but would have been cramped for two. My research had prepared me for the best way to make myself at home. In addition to my large suitcase, which was stored, I packed a small travel bag containing changes of clothes, toiletries, electronic devices, headphones and a small bottle of sipping bourbon for the evening and biscotti to enjoy with the pretty good coffee that was brewed in our car each morning.

I brought books but rarely read, preferring to watch the landscape smoothly and almost silently glide by the ample second-floor window. At night I would leave the curtains open so I could enjoy the moon and stars, "feel the wheels rumbling 'neath the floor" accented by the blowing of the engine's horn and the Doppler effect of clanging crossing guards.

People who make the choice to travel by train adopt a very different rhythm from those aboard a plane. On a transcontinental train ride time stretches out as a succession of meals in the diner, visits to the club car and time spent in their compartments. They socialize, find out where people are from and exchange stories, particularly of past train trips. We older travelers reminisced about legendary lines like Southern Pacific's Coast Daylight, the Santa Fe Super Chief, Union Pacific's City of Los Angeles and the New York Central's 20th Century Limited. Comparative experiences about Amtrak lines such as the Empire Builder, Coast Starlight, Southwest Limited and the California Zephyr also made for good conversation.

It's rare to find someone on board who is not a lover of train travel. And over a succession of breakfasts, lunches and dinners we all became a community of the rails. But when the train pulled into New Orleans (an hour late due to a rain-caused detour near Houston) we each grabbed our bags and went our separate ways, 2,070 miles from where we'd begun.

WHEN YOU GO

For complete information: www.amtrak.com

.The Southern Pacific Railroad advertises its Sunset Limited in a brochure from a different era. Photo courtesy of Jim Farber.

Passengers on Amtrak's Sunset Limited enjoy breakfast in the dining car. Photo courtesy of Jim Farber.

Amtrak's Sunset Limited pulls into El Paso, Texas. Photo courtesy of Jim Farber.

Jim Farber is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.