You are just blown away....

When you walk into the museum, you walk into a massive display of planning and executing the railroads across California and the West transformed America. Again, this picture DOES NOT do this justice. If you want to learn something, read through as much as you can at the exhibit and try not to gawk at the amazing engine that is part of it.

As an aside, I've been wanting to go this museum for the last several years. It's multiple levels of real trains is mind boggling and the Sefton Collection just caps it.

Marc

CSRM Walking in...

Don't even start to think these pictures can do this museum justice. This is the train you get to see when you walk in the door. This museum is the DEAL of the century (by the way), at $9 a person for admission, it just doesn't get better than this.

They have a little bit of Tom Sefton's collection down near the entrance. You know, the cheap stuff like the original Buddy L stuff in a sandbox, the 2 7/8 Converse Trolley and an original Lionel Station and some O gauge. This is in the foyer of the museum, not the museum itself.

So as far as I'm concerned, I got at least half of my nine bucks worth right in the foyer. By the way, the gift shop isn't bad. That have a decent selection of railroad books. A little pricey but they need to support one of the best museums in the world so I tend to want to cut them some slack. More soon.

Marc

There are museums and then there are "museums"

If you are an art aficionado or devotee, there are museums in every state and in every country you can go to. Almost every one of them will be good and some will be excellent. Others are beyond excellent, you almost have to pinch yourself to believe what you are seeing. The Louvre in Paris, The Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Museum of Modern Art in New York are a few of those kinds of places.

I liken this experience to art because when you see the trains in the California State Railroad Museum, you'll get it like I did. These things are art. It's tempting to think toy trains are art. They are. But they are art imitating life which is (in fact) art. The paint, the color, the metals and smells are just heavenly. I've been to the Vatican, I've been in the Sistine Chapel more than once and this is pretty close to that experience.

The California State Railway Museum is one of those museums where you need to pinch yourself to make sure that either:

A. You aren't sleeping or dreaming.

B. That you haven't left the planet and are now at the Pearly Gates of Railroad Heaven.

C. You want to make sure blood and oxygen flow to all parts of your body is still normal.

I had to walk through this museum twice to absorb it. There is a two hour parking limit down the Streets of Old Sacramento. Just don't do it. You aren't leaving that place in two hours. And even if you do, there are more trains and a Steamboat behind the museum. Just don't. Park in the lot across the street and figure you'll be there at least 4 hours. And bring a camera with a ton of space on your memory card. I took 600 shots without blinking an eye. I brought a really nice Oympus 13.5 megapixel camera and now I kind of wish I brought the Nikon. The town of Old Sacramento wonderful as well. Not quite a religious experience, it still is a place where you can spend (easily) a day walking around, looking at the shops and making friends with some wonderful people. Loved it and I want to go back and ride the riverboat and the trains.

By the way, the museum only offers train rides on the weekend. If I didn't have locked and loaded airline tickets....

So I'll post the pics outside of this little blurb I've written. Blogger (the Google Software) has a tendency to jumble up the text when I insert the pictures, so I'll try to keep my prose short and sweet.

Marc