All-American road trip — by train




San Francisco Chronicle Arts & Entertainment - Spoken Edition show

Summary: Growing up, I’d always heard that the cross-country road trip is one of the quintessential American experiences — the independence of your own car, the freedom of the open road, the promise just beyond the horizon, etc. But I grew up driving in the Bay Area, which means I associate driving with potholed highways, stressful commutes and the soul-destroying experience of sitting in traffic.