To show dilation in spatial relativity, is it accurate to do a "god's eye view" showing both trains, or is dilation from one perspective alone?

Question

To show dilation in spatial relativity, is it accurate to do a "god's eye view" showing a top down view of both trains, or is dilation from one perspective alone (view from Train A or Train B)?

Answer 1

There is no God's eye view in the sense that there is no special inertial frame of reference. All inertial frames of reference are equally valid.

Each frame will show a dilation from its point of view. Each frame will see a different dilation.

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Time behaves differently than you would expect classically. This leads people to the idea of the Block Universe. In this view, time does not flow. All events, in the past, present, and future simply exist. This is something like knowing that other points continue to exist, even though I am only using the one right here. This might be considered a God's eye view of space time.

The Block Universe is consistent with relativity. But it isn't necessary. There are other valid ways of looking at time. See What is time, does it flow, and if so what defines its direction?, and in particular my answer

Answer 2

It is completely valid to calculate the time dilation of both A and B relative to some specified third reference frame. However, although this quantity is a perfectly valid quantity it is not generally equal to the time dilation of A relative to B’s frame nor the time dilation of B relative to A’s frame.

Answer 3

No, the train thought experiments are designed to show that the time between two events as measured in one train is different from the time between the same two events as measured in the other frame.