With Emma and Molly through the Taiga

From Toronto, we indulged ourselves with the famous luxury train "Canadian" to Winnipeg. Normally, you fly from Toronto to Winnipeg. Or you skip it entirely... A bus does not operate over this great distance. If you want to avoid flights, the only option left is the "Canadian".

As the rail network is completely poorly developed and there is only one track for long distances that is not designed for high speeds, Rail Canada has taken refuge in the front and made slowness part of the program.

The Canadian offers sleeping cabins, sleeping compartments in dormitories with curtains, and in Economy only seats. However, one cannot endure the long ride of planned 36 hours this way, so we booked a sleeping space that converts into a seat during the day.

When we reached our seating compartment, we thought we had booked the inside without a window seat. That was not the case. Where in Germany 4 people would fit, only 2 sit in the Canadian. So we both had a window seat—unless we wanted to leave it to our luggage. Manspreading and She-bagging are thus foreseen here. The sleeping cabins even offer enough space for cuddling if you did not book upper compartments.

However, one does not spend much time in their seat, as it is mostly occupied by carry-on luggage. Our large backpacks were stowed in the luggage compartment and by the time we got off, they were spat out for us on a luggage carousel like at an airport.

The fact that one does not spend much time in their seat is mainly due to the 4 observation cars (separated by classes) from whose elevated glass domes one can wonderfully overlook the landscape. Otherwise, you can also sit in the common room for social games, unless Bingo or Yoga are taking place there. (The beer tasting and the wine tasting took place, respectively, in the observation car.) Or one simply sits in the lounge or switches to first class in the evening to the elegantly furnished bar.

Additionally, one also spends time in the dining car. The selection of 3-course menus always offers something vegetarian. Vegan poses some challenges for the cook. For example, there is no plant-based milk on board.

The food is of excellent quality, prepared with fresh ingredients on-site. The meals at the elegantly set table are just like the non-alcoholic drinks free of charge. Only those who want alcohol have to pay for it. Alcohol is only free during the respective wine and beer tastings.

Our favorite among the wines was the Beco Noir.

The staff was superb all around. In particular, our train attendant Alvaro (we consciously do not change the name here) was excellent, friendly, attentive, and helpful, functioning here as a kind of butler.

Traveling with the Canadian is like returning to the golden age of train travel, reminiscent of traveling with the Orient Express. Thus, the Canadian also consciously renounces Wi-Fi. And as one also has no mobile data over long distances, you are slowed down, whether you want it or not, and—as our "animator" (she was actually much too good to deserve this title) tasked us—it quickly leads to conversations with other passengers. A common talking point is when someone spots a cell tower and calls out, "We’ve got service." The conversation is then interrupted for a hectic 3 minutes with Google Maps, Messenger, and Wikipedia before it continues through the magnificent landscape, which was our second task from Marceline (again, no reason to change the name). After that, one finds their way back to the conversation or gets lost again in the observation of the scenery of distant stretches of boreal forests and lonely lakes. Ms. Waas saw a whitetail deer, and some passengers saw a black bear and a beaver. The hope of all travelers to spot a moose was not fulfilled. It is not a safari and not a zoo visit, and that is a good thing.

However, one often found themselves back in conversation, and we made various acquaintances, such as an older couple from a suburb of Montreal, particularly the retired teacher Felice* (*name changed) who knew many interesting things to say and show about the geography and flora of Canada (from blueberries to plate tectonics).

Also very nice was the family from Oklahoma, with whom we would never have come into contact outside this destiny group, but who were very warm-hearted and decent people.

The conversations with the somewhat self-assured New Yorker who liked to lecture on the advantages of cannabis and the discussions with Sally*, an immensely likeable and intelligent nurse from Winnipeg, were also interesting; we regret not having her contact details. Our information was requested by the family from Oklahoma, and although Mr. Ärmel was a bit direct and unflattering in his description of Oklahoma, we can surely ring their doorbell there in 10 years and receive an invitation to dinner and a roof over our heads for the night. And thus, we also fulfilled Marceline's third task: to make friends!

Can one find the hair in the soup? No, there was no hair in the food—it was excellent. Only sockets were sorely missed—which led to Mr. Ärmel having to charge his phone unattended once, which was promptly taken by a slightly demented fellow passenger to keep it safe, as he thought he had lost it—resulting in Mr. Ärmel having a few restless hours until Alvaro, with the right instinct, brought the phone back to our table unscathed. He handled all of that professionally and elegantly, much to our delight, and we were able to return to the tranquility of the train, which rolled along at an average speed of 75 km/h. The 20 cars were pulled by two puffing engines. (We, as Lummerlanders, of course, named them Emma and Molly.) And often, the train came to a complete stop when it had to let one of the prioritized freight trains pass. This left even more time for conversations and nature observation, and thus we arrived in Winnipeg more rested than we had ever been after a train ride before. And even though we arrived 2 ½ hours late, this was just a small bonus. Despite a leisurely train ride of good one and a half days, we did not have a chance to read even once on the Canadian. Therefore, we give the Canadian 5 stars: Slowness is the true luxury of our time.