Hop the Light Rail to Folsom Historic District From Midtown Sacramento

When my husband suggested we pop over to Midtown to hop the Light Rail to Folsom on Sunday, I was a bit less than enthusiastic about the idea. The first thing that sprang to my lips were unkind and unfair words about sharing space with stinky people. My sole experience with Light Rail was a long time ago, from Midtown to the California State Fair, and let’s just say that I fully support funding for public transportation but even my cat’s litter boxes are less foul.

Of course, if my husband had first suggested that I install the game app Ingress on my iPhone, my level of enthusiasm would have edged up a notch. It would have drawn my attention away from the dude who was bugging strangers to ask if they’ve gone to church and then bouncing back and forth, repeatedly, in his seat.

The light rail runs parallel to Folsom Boulevard, all the way from Midtown Sacramento to the end of the line where the historic shops in Folsom are located. We could have just as easily driven from Land Park to Folsom, but then we could not have played Ingress. Our eyes would have been on the road and not our iPhone screens. To be fair, Ingress is a game that you’re supposed to play walking around Sacramento, but riding the Light Rail to Folsom from Midtown moved me from a Level I to a Level II fairly quickly.

There are Ingress portals all over Sacramento, which you can hack and blow up and swipe. You have to choose immediately upon signing up whether you want to be Enlightened or the Resistance. I’m a rebel, so picking a side was an easy decision.

Upon arrival on the Light Rail to Folsom, it’s just a short hop, skip and a jump to the shops in the historic district. Rows upon rows of clothing, jewelry, wine tasting rooms, bars, restaurants, antiques and specialty shops. I can see how the Light Rail to Folsom would be a popular mode of transportation for kids in their 20s desiring a night out to pub crawl.

I wasn’t planning on doing any holiday shopping but when you’re in Rome, you know. It’s not like I didn’t have a credit card stashed in my wristlet. Since I will be out of the country in the South Pacific this holiday season, it was as good a time as any to shop for friends and family. We stopped for lunch at the Hop Sing Palace, one of those Chinese restaurants that seems wedged in a certain time period, unchanged for decades, plushy booths, pink napkins, skinny Singapore Sling cocktail glasses, and the cuisine alone is worth the trip to Folsom.

I recommend the Light Rail to Folsom as a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon. There is even an ice-skating rink, which was melting in the Folsom summer sun. Plus, if you’re not interested in shopping, eating and drinking, or watching ice skaters, you can also walk through the adjacent neighborhood and admire the homes in Folsom in the historic district. For more information on homes in Folsom, call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.