I am writing this piece on a train. Next to me, a man is sitting reading and the man opposite me is studying. Across the aisle, another man has his feet up and is reading a newspaper. Behind me a grandfather is playing with his small grandson. Everyone seems content. A train attendant has just arrived with hot water to fill up passengers' tea jars.

I love trains. In fact, I would say they are my favourite form of long-distance transport. In an aeroplane, you can't see much out the window and they are really cramped. Boats make me feel a little queasy. Buses are often bumpy and slow. Also, they often don't have toilets, which in my book are essential.

There's nothing worse than being stuck in the middle of nowhere on a bus and needing to go. Trains however, sway gently through the landscape and lull one into a pleasant reverie.

There's something of an "olden days" glamour about a train. Even now, platforms are similar to all the railway scenes from famous black and white films like "Brief Encounter". Passengers saying goodbye to loved ones, the hiss and woosh of the trains, whistles blowing and luggage everywhere.

I am especially fond of sleeper trains. My experience of sleeper trains spans the globe from Finland to Australia. In Finland, the sleeper was very funky 70s orange and modular with lots of bits that folded out and down and turned into other things in a very cunning fashion.

Thai sleepers are the most comfortable. During the day, they are big wide single seats and at night nice-looking attendants come round and with a few flicks of the wrist, "voila" - bed. There's a privacy curtain for every passenger and in the morning, you can buy coffee and it comes in a pink cup and saucer.

In my experience, Chinese trains are the most punctual. If a Chinese train is due to leave at 3:47pm, at 3:47pm it slides out of the station. They arrive on time at the other end as well.

Then there are all the added bonuses like diner cars. Recently, I was in Peru and I caught the train from Cusco to Puno (near the Bolivian border). Without a doubt, this was the most luxurious form of transport I have ever taken. Our carriage was equipped with armchairs instead of standard seats.

We were served a three course lunch on china, with real cutlery and thick white tablecloths. In the bar, we lounged and drank cocktails while a group of musicians entertained us with Andean music. An observation car at the end of the train enabled us to fully appreciate the awesome beauty of the snow-capped mountains. Returning to my toilet obsession, the toilets on this train were fitted out in dark wood and marble. Even in first class on an aeroplane, you don't get a marble sink.

When I leave China next year, I am planning to take the Trans-Siberian express to Moscow. Six days chugging through the north of the world in a locomotive. Bliss.

elysesingleton@yahoo.co.uk