Nothingness

I tested my capacity to sit in one place and stare out of the window at nothingness. Fascinating. Many things about the train were great - the staff, the food, the wine, and the surprisingly comfortable bed, given how small the cabin was. But being on the train wasn't very good for my screwed up legs and foot, and I also evinced my usual tendency to overeat when faced with too much (free) food. Also, the other passengers were surprisingly samey.

Despite that, it was quite an experience. We woke up to bush, with lots of trees, but gradually the trees disappeared until we entered the Nullarbor (literally, no trees). We stopped at Cook, which is basically an abandoned town. That was great for seeing the vastness of the train, which was about 750 metres long. We later stopped at Rawlinna, for drinks (and they do dinner under the stars in warmer weather). A slightly out of focus picture of the train supplied my blip. I was lying down on some random train steps to take the photograph, and several people came over and asked Mr A if I'd fallen over.

I've added a few extras, including the moment we entered Western Australia (much heralded by the train announcer - although his announcements weren't really working in our carriage). I hope they give some impression of the nothingness, and the flatness. Bear that in mind if you look at the pictures of the engine and the back end of the train in the extras (which were taken at Cook).