Day 67: Railroad Museum

Thought of the day:  We spent a delightful afternoon in Golden's Colorado Railroad Museum today.  It's definitely one of the most photogenic places I have been to in Colorado.  There are dozens of locomotives on the outdoor display tracks.  A lot of railroad equipments are on display as well.  There were no running trains today but kids had fun going up and down the engines and carts.  I took lots of pictures: the unusual objects, late afternoon light and the historic Table Mountain in the background made interesting images.  And the museum served its purpose well - it made me really want to learn something about the railroad history in this country.  Unfortunately people don't travel by train much any more in the US, even though trains are still popular and practical in other parts of the world.  China depends on the railroads to move people around, especially around holidays.  In college, I used to ride a steam engine train to travel between Beijing and Fuzhou twice a year.  It took two days each way and it was a grueling journey sitting on a hard bench all the way.  Now you can do it in less than a day and probably much more comfortably too.  With China's heavy investments in High Speed Rail infrastructure, perhaps you can do it in only a couple of hours in the near future!  The Swiss use their trains a lot too.  Swiss trains are usually quiet, comfortable and equipped with large view windows.  No matter which part of the world you are in, part of the fun traveling by train should be the journey itself as you get to relax and enjoy the sights along the way.  I hope there will be a revival of rail travel in the US.  It will be good for us and good for the environment.

Photo of the day:

A steam locomotive in Colorado Railroad Museum.