Shelli, Steve's Sister called, and offered to take me to the Silver Rail Event Center for a pre opening look and to meet her in the lobby of the Depot Inn & Suites. I grabbed my camera, jacket and backpack before I headed out the door. I met Shelli in the lobby and we walked out to a 1942 Pickup Truck. The first thing we both noticed was this truck was pre defroster years so it made a very interesting ride with a fogged up windshield. We made it safely and my mind went back to when Tom took me through the shell of this former Auto Dealership last December.
These views will show you the inside of the building last December as work was just beginning to start on the Silver Rail Event Center. Back to the present, We parked the truck and walked towards the entrance of the Silver Rail Resort Center.
The main entrance to the Silver Rail Event Center in La Plata, Missouri.
The center is set up to host its first event tomorrow night, the Silver Rail Gala, with 800 paid tickets to attend. I learned if they had the space they could have sold another 800 tickets for the Gala.
Tables are set up for the Silver Rail Gala tomorrow night.
It should be a great event for everyone who will attend.
The stage is made from a bowling alley that Walt Disney used to bowl on in Marceline.
Like the Depot Inn & Suites this building also has a railroad theme.
Railroad pictures adorn the walls of the Silver Rail Event Center.
A look east down the Silver Rail Event Center.
Looking at the east wall of the building.
On the east wall, there is a collection of Carl Morrison pictures.
This picture Carl thinks is his best and he was standing right next to me when he took it on a Nevada Northern Steam Weekend Trip.
This picture was another when Carl was standing next to me showing the Union Pacific Challenger leaving Denver and it put on a fantastic show of steam and sound.
Another view looking at the tables set up for the Silver Rail Gala.
Next I saw food preparation area outside the kitchen in the Silver Rail Event Center.
The front part of the kitchen.
The rear part of the kitchen.
The view from behind the counter in the front part of the kitchen.
There are more railroad pictures in the hall along the kitchen.
His Station is the Men's Restroom Sign.
Her Station is the Women's Restroom Sign.
There is a unique map of the State of Missouri and an area of pictures of La Plata History.
One last picture of a Crossbuck and Red Signal.
This Tri Color Railroad Signal reading proceed to tomorrow night's Silver Rail Gala. With that we all headed back to the Depot Inn & Suites where Barry Howard gave us a preview of the program he would show at the Gala about the Silver Rail Resort. After all this and it is now near the witching hour of midnight, I walked back to Room J and called it a night.
2/23/2008 The next morning I woke up tired but ready to go and met Chris Parker in the lobby and we went to the Red Rooster for breakfast. I had French Toast and Sausage. Chris was going to take Tony, Anton and Jonathan for a drive out in the Amish countryside and I headed to the "Chris Guenzler Million Mile Lookout Point". I love coming back to here and putting up my feet while I wait for trains to come which they did. Four BNSF eastbounds and one westbound with two general merchandise trains passing in front of me. I was soon joined by a father and son and later by a family with two young children.
As always we waited for Amtrak's eastbound Southwest Chief running forty minutes late this morning to show up.
The Trainweb Building, Amtrak and the La Plata Station.
This morning we had many visitors to the "Chris Guenzler Million Mile Lookout Point". I returned to the Depot Inn & Suites and went back to work until near Noon when I took everything I had with me to the Depot Inn Conference Room which would be my home for the rest of my stay in La Plata. The last thing I did in Room J was call Lets Talk Trains, that Internet Radio Show, before I returned the key to the Ticket Counter. My new Toshiba Laptop with the Vista operating system would not shut off. So with no answer on Steve's phone, I called my good friend Bill Compton who suggested ways of shutting it off and we decided that removing the battery would do the trick. I did that and the computer worked fine again. I loved Windows but can not stand Vista. I worked right up to 1:15 PM when I was told to head out to the Exhibition of Amtrak History. I shut the computer off and grabbed the backpack with the cameras along with my jacket and headed out to the rail cars behind the Depot Inn & Suites for the Grand Opening of the Exhibition of Amtrak History.
