During 1961 and part of '62 I commuted from Greensboro to NYC 's Penn Station at least two weeks monthly. I caught the Piedmont Limited northbound on Sunday night in Greensboro at 8:30 p.m. and slept overnight arriving at Penn Station around 6:30 a.m. and crossed the street to check into the Statler-Hilton. Then walked up to our 40th and Broadway office usually having breakfast on the way. Most always awakened to the bump when changing from Southern to Pennsy electric power in D.C.
Returned on Friday night at 6:30 via the Peach Queen arriving back in Greensboro Saturday morning about 8;30 a.m. Efficient and comfortable way to commute to NYC given the air service at the time especially in bad weather. But eventually ended up on the new Eastern Airlines Electras as rail service began to go downhill. Instead of having supper in the Diner I usually went over to 8th avenue, bought a hot loaf of Italian bread with butter crammed in it and some sausages,salad,soda,etc and dined in my traveling bedroom.
Like many others my first overnight train travel came upon entering the military in 1949. To San Diego (Navy) via Southern Ry via new Orleans and SP to California. Took awhile to cross the continent upon discharge when I returned to the states in 1953 as I booked several roads for the "experience" and ended up in St. Louis, Indiana and then Asheville and the Carolina Special down the mountain to Greensboro. (but had to catch the Carolina Trailways bus 
to my hometown of Summerfield--the A&Y had discontinued passenger service to Summerfield in June 1939).
