The Caltrain Holiday Train made its annual ride down the peninsula on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 1 and 2. This year marked the 18th year for the highly anticipated Holiday Train, which is presented by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
The event has been a Bay Area favorite and its popularity grows each year. When the train pulled into the Sunnyvale Caltrain station on Sunday night, hundreds of people lined the platform waiting for the train to arrive. As the train pulled into the station, the train’s whistle blew signaling its imminent arrival and the excitement level of the crowd grew.
Each car in the Holiday Train is adorned with illuminated decorations and each cars’ window was decorated as well. The train doesn’t travel empty as it is filled with special guests including Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, Santa’s elves, the Gingerbread Man and even a penguin. On both days, the train made five stops and at each stop visitors were treated with artificially made snow blowing out at the station platform and music accompanied by The Salvation Army Brass Ensemble. Saturday featured the Masterworks Chorale and Sunday featured the Barbershop Harmony Society.
The train visited San Francisco, Burlingame, Redwood City, Mountain View and Santa Clara on Saturday and San Francisco, Millbrae, San Mateo, Menlo Park and Sunnyvale on Sunday.
Visitors were encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys that were donated to local underserved kids. The event benefited the US Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots and the Salvation Army’s Season of Giving Program, which are designed to help local families.
For more information on the holiday train, visit their webpage www.holiday-train.org. For more information on the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, visit their webpage www.siliconvalleycf.org.