Since several years more and more big public model railroads grow in many cities of Germany. The biggest one is in Hamburg (http://www.miniatur-wunderland.de/) but there are also competetive ones in Berlin (http://www.loxx-berlin.com) and other places. If you google for “modelleisenbahn” you will find numerous links. Some of them are also available in English.

The NCTM website has a nice video about their stuff. It is two hours away. We always chose that location for the two Thomas rides he had (age 3 and 4 bdays). It is around first week of Oct. each year. Tweetsie does their Thomas event in May, I think. Tweetsie also has an amusement park. We chose Tweetsie Rail Days for the 5th birthday. NCTM has TRAINS in a huge roundhouse!
Jonathan is 5 now, and he has been Consumed with trains since 22 months. Locally, we have “George,” the train at the Pavilion, and the Iron Horse at Heritage Park in Simpsonville.

We even bought a scanner to “chase” Nor. Southern and CSX trains. Considering how hard they are to catch with no published schedules, I’m glad that petered out.

When it comes to buying trains, our observation is that Fisher-Price Geo Trax holds their interest for much longer. It grows with the child. At 5, Jonathan is still enthralled with it, and he can build for hours. He got his at 2-1/2, after two different types of lesser built Thomas sets. He could operate Geo Trax much more easily and inexpensively. I think traindad.com offers some analysis and comparison of the types of Thomas and Geo Trax. If you were to go Geo Trax, go on eBay or Craigslist and buy a big set to start. It’s worth asking someone who knows Geo Trax for input, if you do it. The trains have gotten better–from remote that has to go in a station to make noise, to remote no station required, to reverse included. But all the newer stuff will work with the older collection you might buy. The older track is easier to click together.

There is also a die cast Thomas portable station that my friend Michele liked for her little boy. Around $25-30. You could get that and if you get a huge set possibly avoid the less flexible, expensive wooden track option.

I thought your photo of the cars lined up in a train was adorable! Jonathan does similar things!

I’m sure that adults and even older children probably do not enjoy Thomas as much, but he’s still a pretty big hit with my kids, though I think part of the fascination for them is when they act out the stories that they’ve watched. My kids do love to pretend play!

@Vikki – Thanks for your remembrances of trains from your childhood and youth. Our little town didn’t have a round house, as I recall. I think they had sidelines that were loops for turning engines around. My dad worked in the “yards” where they would put trains together, sometimes single cars at a time, sometimes groups of cars. Dad’s work was uniquely with freight trains.

I took a train trip a couple of times as a teen from Appleton (just south of Green Bay) to Milwaukee, WI to visit a friend of mine. What I remember most is the car swaying side to side as it zipped past the countryside and the constant clickety-clack of the tracks.

My grandfather worked for a number of years for the railroad and the depot was just a couple of blocks away from his house. I remember him showing me the local round house when I was little and being amazed that a train could actually be turned inside it. Being a kid, I thought the whole train went in there to turn around — not just the engine. Knowing my grandpa’s sense of humor, I’m sure he was only too happy to let me believe just that.

I believe they were written by a preacher — hence, the reason for many life lessons. (Don’t know where I read that, but it is sticking in my mind.)

Now with 2 more little grandsons nearing 2 years old, we are into Thomas again. We see Cranky Crane everywhere — and they can name all the other characters as well. Compared to all the other children’s programming out there, Thomas is a delight.

(We are also into The Little Engine that Could right now. )

Wish America had the same train system as Europe. We’ve traveled many miles on a Eurail Pass and enjoyed every minute! … well, almost. There was the time from Genoa to Barcelona during Spring Break. A school had booked a couple of berths in the sleeper where Sparky and I were sleeping. One of the chaperons shuffled students in and out all night long trying to give each of them an hour or two of sleep! But hey — it was an experience we won’t ever forget and something to laugh about later!

Happy trains to you!

@Michael – From what I’ve read of the Thomas book and seen in Drew’s video, I would have to agree with Laura’s comment about the various trains’ exhibiting human traits in different difficult situations. There seems to be a gentle admonition to be more patient, less boastful, etc. or a decision on the part of the train to act differently next time he’s faced with a similar dilemma. I share your love for subways. I have the most experience with the subway system in Paris and admire it’s organization and low cost. More recently we have tried and liked MARTA in Atlanta. I love it when public transportation can get you almost anywhere you want to go. But I like my little ‘99 red Ford Ranger too.

@b.j. – I wish I were more motivated to go to the Sav-Mor banana box sale more often. You really need at least two people in your group to get the most from it. The boxes get heavy and you need someone on the sidelines to combine what you’ve found and then to guard the stuff while the other(s) scavenger(s) for more. It really was fun … and kinda scary to see so many people you know from various venues of life.

@Laura – Thanks for the insights about Thomas, especially the link about the ride up in NC. Future visits….

@Nancy – What a great experience and neat memory to share! It’s especially fun when little unexpected adventures happen like that. Thanks for sharing that with us!

@Carrie – Thanks for your reminiscences of trains in your past, some fairly recent. I have great memories of train trips with students who accompanied us to France. Some are nice to have a memories since I wouldn’t want to repeat a few of the experiences!

@Carol – Thanks for sharing Daniel’s love of Thomas with us, including the picture of his irresistible little face. Did you resist his pleas?

@Marilyn – I would have waved from the window had I known! What was your hometown?

I have a great picture of him in the Thomas store in PA begging us to buy the things he has in hand-too funny.

Rob adds the picture Carol sent of Daniel:

As a child my family visited Dad’s Canadian relatives, and took a train. We even got to ride in the sleeper car! About the only thing I remember is climbing a little ladder into a tiny bunk with beige curtains.

I’ve also ridden the train in France with Mr. Loach, and played lots of Rook while riding. . . Our house in the south is within a quarter mile of three tracks. Of course we learned to sleep through their noise. Our place here is far from tracks–I hope it doesn’t take too long to get used to it again when we move back!

And last, but not least, my kids used to love Thomas. I guess they’ve grown out of him.

.-= Carrie’s most recent blog post … A Few Things =-.

@IVman–Our boys always loved Thomas, perhaps especially since one is NAMED Thomas! We heard of a Thomas the Tank Engine train ride in NC once . . . but it appears that they only do it on a limited basis, and it might be over for this year. See http://www.traintraveling.com/events/thomas/south.shtml for the links. Maybe you could get tickets next year. It looks from the site like it runs in Michigan, too.

I lived in a house that used to be an old train station around civil war days or just after. The train literally ran past the back of the house about 3 feet away, and the house shook. Fun memories!

You’re right about being able to sleep through it. funny how I could sleep through a train rumbling by, but not through brother’s snoring…

As for my personal train experiences, I’ve had the privilege of riding some of the more famous subway systems in the world (New York, London, Washington, D.C.). Subways are fascinating to me. I love the convenience they provide and I revel in the challenge of trying to find the fastest route from place to place. They are also full of interesting people. It’s really interesting to me to see people jump on a subway carrying several bags of groceries. That just reminds me that many people ride the subway rather than use their own personal vehicles.

O.P. Taylor’s downtown has many Thomas products and a TV monitor in the back that seems to continually run Thomas videos. It might be a haven for Drew, but he might never want to leave.