Of Trains!!

I got to unleash my inner child last night! And it was such fun!!I like trains.I always have. I used to have a clockwork Hornby set. Until my older brother sold it. I think he bought a bike with the proceeds. It would be worth a fortune now.Anyway, last night I had reason to head into the Auckland CBD. And I decided, owing to a few people of my acquaintance in recent weeks talking about and using trains, to catch the train from Kingsland.Well.Why the hell have I not done this before??I am obviously so conditioned to drive my car everywhere. So conditioned to be happy starting and stopping and starting and stopping and finding a park and paying $4 to $8 for the privilege to do so.I was initially a little disturbed at the lack of patronage whilst wearing my ratepayer hat, but that passed pretty quickly.I made new friends. These guys.Apparently they’re not entirely used to engaging in conversation about trains, stations, destinations, ticket options and value for money. But they did let me take their photo!I also noted that it wasn’t a particularly complicated journey. I managed to get around OK. For your reference, this is London...This is Auckland...And it was so exciting! (see? you should note my previous comment about my inner child!!)So in summary...Taxi to CBD from my place. Approximately 15 mins and $20 each way. Can drink.Car to CBD from my place. Approximately 15 mins, traffic, $4-$8 parking (if you can find one). Can’t drink.Train to CBD from my place. 15 mins. $1.36 each way. Can drink.It’s fair to say I will be exploiting my fellow Aucklanders largesse in the future!- Simon