Two decades after Hurricane Katrina halted rail service, Amtrak's new Mardi Gras Service links Mobile and New Orleans, offering travellers coastal views and stories of resilience.

We trundled slowly south out of Mobile, skirting the city's twinkling river. Lofty high-rises and concrete highways coated in pink morning light gave way to historic shipyards, lush forests and peaceful river communities. Fishermen in boats and children in gardens waved at the train with excitement, the conductor sounding the horn in response.