Monday on the F-train, on my way back from Tekserve, a Englishman asked me how far it was to Coney Island.

"Is it worth the trip?" he asked.

"Absolutely," I said. In the next few years it’s going to change a lot. You really should see it before it’s all destroyed."

The man had a camera around his neck so I figured he wanted to take pictures. We talked a bit. He wanted to know other "off the beaten path" destinations for sightseeing.

Williamsburg. Dumbo. Brooklyn Heights. I told him to catch Doug Aitken’s outdoor film installation at MOMA, Sleepwalkers. Harlem. 

Turns out he’s on a grand trip after being laid off from his job in IT. "I’ve been working 17 years straight and I wanted to do something interesting before looking for another job."

We talked a bit. He’s rethinking everything and getting out of the computer business. He doesn’t know what he wants to do next. This guy wasn’t young but he’s facing the future with a very open mind.

For starters, he got a special off-peak Amtrak ticket only available to non-American travelers. For 30 days he can take Amtrak anywhere. He’s going to Florida, New Orleans, Tuscon, San Diego, San Francisco.

From San Francisco he’s going to New Zealand. Then he goes back to London to look for a job.

"I’ll be out of money then," he said.

Inspiring. I love the idea of a train trip across America. "I’m sitting in a railway station got a ticket for my destination…"

To Look  for America. And himself. Sounds very exciting to me.