(264) Train of Thought

Instead of returning to Fife on a shoogly bus I decided to let the train take the strain. I used to travel between Fife and Paisley every week when I was at, what was then, Paisley College of Technology. That was a three train journey but today it was only two trains and things have definitely moved on a bit since the 80's. Glasgow Queen Street station has been renovated and although I didn't check, I assume the Devil's Elbow pub is long since gone. The Glasgow - Edinburgh route is now electrified and the train I travelled on was swift and comfortable. According to my GPS app we passed Cadder rail depot at 100mph but it didn't feel like that. I know that 100mph is nothing in terms of high speed rail transport but compared to what I was used to it's quite impressive. The Edinburgh Haymarket - Markinch route may be served by more efficient, comfortable and faster trains now but the old DMUs and loco-hauled coaches had one great advantage when it came to a scenic part of the journey and that was opening windows. Back in my student days I travelled with a Walkman cassette player and was in the early stages of discovering the music of Tangerine Dream. I have always associated the album 'Rubycon' with the Glasgow to Edinburgh rail journey and although it's not a favourite album I think the music somehow suited the journey. Once again, that was the soundtrack to accompany the view from the train window as we sped towards Edinburgh, though supplied to my ears this time by technologies and devices that would be bordering on science fiction back in the 1980s.