Friday, December 21, 2007

The Polar Express

A few nights ago, in our pajamas, we boarded "The Polar Express" and headed to the North Pole. After a magical ride that included hot chocolate, a reading of the book, and the conductor punching holes in our tickets, we saw Santa and his elves waving to us from a snow mound at the "North Pole." All the trees were decorated with lights. The sheer glee of the kids on the train was infectious.

We then headed back home. While singing Christmas Carols the kids all let out a shriek when, you guessed it, Santa himself entered our car. He even said, "Ho, ho ho." He handed each of the children a bell and then waved goodbye. We continued to sing carols while the kids all rang their bells. It was a fun and entertaining ride complete with chefs (who both happened to be my daughters) who made jokes, led the songs, and catered to all of the guests. Our kids were fascinated the entire way.

The Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge makes "Polar Express" runs beginning in November and through the whole month of December. The DSNG, a real train that was used back during the railroad era, also runs during the summer months through gorgeous mountains covered in pine trees and occasional sheer cliffs.

What a magical experience to ride a train back in time and become just like one of the kids reveling in Christmas.

2 comments:

Marcia Mickelson said...

How fun!! My kids would love that. We drove to Utah last summer and had to drive through Durango just so they could see the train. We didn't have time to ride it, but we saw it leave that morning. My kids still talk about Durango.

Rebecca Talley said...

Durango seems to be a very popular tourist destination with the train, mountains, rivers, etc. Next time you drive through give me a holler!