Category Archives: Backpacking

Vientiane, Laos to Udon Thani to Chiang Mai, Thailand

Backpacking, Laos, Thailand, Travel, , ,

4/12 – As we prepared to move from Laos to Thailand, we researched our options. From Vientiane, we could get to Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand on a 15 hour bus ride, or we could take a short bus ride over the Friendship Bridge to Udon Thani and catch a $50.00 flight to arrive in Chiang Mai in an hour. We’re kind of over the long, bumpy bus experience at this point, so we opted to fly for a change.

Our hotel offered to sell us a bus ticket for 60000 kip, but they were only 22000 if purchased directly from the bus station, so we tuk-tukked over to catch the 11:30am bus. By 11:40, I was starting to fret, but a friendly Vietnamese man told me not to worry, as all schedules in Laos are only approximate suggestions. Waiting around gave us time to talk with a young Korean, and a male nurse from France on a mountain holiday. Sure enough, the bus came eventually, and we all got on it. Here is the very crowded bus station – you can see a manicurist painting the fingernails of a woman waiting for her bus. She got a pedicure too! image

The bus took us to the border so we could process out of Laos, then the short drive to where we processed into Thailand. Remembering our experience in China when the bus left without us, we were at the front of the customs line and never let the bus out of our sight! No worries – the driver’s assistant counted noses each time before the bus closed its doors.

As soon as we crossed the border, things looked a lot more westernized, with paved roads, gas stations, car lots, billboards and 7 Elevens on every corner. I wonder if they have Slurpees here?

In less than two hours we arrived at the Udon Thani bus station. As most of us were going to the airport, Jim asked if we could all share a taxi, and the Vietnamese man took charge and bargained for a tuk-tuk that would take four of us and our bags for 30 baht each. New currency again – 1 baht is worth three cents, 100 baht about three dollars. As he spoke Thai, he was a much better bargainer than we would have been – I thought the driver’s original offer of 50 baht ($1.50) each was very reasonable for a five mile ride across town! image

As we rode down the road in the open vehicle, I was suddenly drenched from behind with a bucket of cold water! I gasped in shock, and our Vietnamese friend remarked that tomorrow was the start of the Thai New Year celebration of Songkran, and we should wrap our valuables in plastic and prepare to get wet for the next three days. He said we would be doused repeatedly with water to wash away the old year and wish us luck and prosperity in the new year. Oh boy!

At the Udon Thani airport, there was a small Buddha shrine, and we watched as passengers approached to pray and pour water over the Buddha. image

This ritual is the basis for the Songkran celebration – large statues of the Buddha were once carried in procession down the street, and people poured water on the statues. At some point, the statues became less important than the water, and now people just pour water on each other.

Before long, our flight was called, and we walked out to board.image

Our flight on Bangkok Air was less than one hour, so I was surprised when the flight attendants came down the aisle with beverages, and astounded when they came down again with a meal! That’s just something Americans aren’t used to! Excellent meal too!

Once we landed in Chiang Mai, a metered taxi (no negotiating needed) took us to the historic part of town where our Western House hotel is located next to a wat and a block from the bustle of the Main Street. Tomorrow we’ll explore!

Vang Vieng to Vientiane

Backpacking, Laos, Travel, , ,

4/7 – Time to brush the Vang Vieng dust off our sandals and get back on the bus. We had a nice conversation with our hotel host this morning, a businessman from Singapore who saw potential in this town and decided to build a hotel and spa for his own retirement here. He was glad when the partying was shut down, as the kids trashed up the town and didn’t spend money except for drinks. He said that a lot of the hotel/hostels that went out of business were very low end, and now real hotels are being built. The China to Thailand train line (no more Bus From Hell) has been promised to be completed within the next five years, and will bring a huge influx of affluent Chinese tourists here. He is sitting on an acorn and biding his time…

This morning we tuk-tukked (can I use that as a verb?) back to the bus station. We had to wait for a group of six very-hungover young adults (?) to make their way onto the cab. They looked extremely green around the gills – evidently doing their part to keep the party spirit alive. We boarded the VIP bus to Vientiane. The bus has air conditioning! We can sit anywhere we want! It’s going to be a good day.image

The scenery was lush green, with little towns and real houses with yards and little fences. We’ve left the very poor country shacks behind, at least what we can see from the main road. After two hours we stopped for a break – ice cream and sinks with soap!image

At 2pm we arrived in the capital city of Vientiane, and 10 minutes later were at our hotel. It’s 100 degrees again. The AC in our room didn’t work, and we asked for a different room. We moved from a room with no AC to a room with poor Wifi. In this climate, AC wins every time!

We ate a noodle soup supper at the hotel restaurant, and watched an old Eddie Murphy movie – in English with Lao subtitles – on TV. They have CNN, MSNBC and BBC here!

4/8 – We set off while it was still relatively cool in the morning to see the That Dam, or Black Stupa, which is just down the road. I asked Jim if the Dam was a Wat? No, it’s a Dam! Sounded like a weird Asian version of Who’s on First. Legend says that this stupa was once covered in gold, which was stripped off by the Siamese when they invaded in the 1800s, and that a seven-headed naga dragon used to guard the stupa. Although it is weedy and looks neglected, it is the symbol of the city. Here is the front view:image
Here is the back view:image

We saw signs for the Patuxai, Vientiane’s version of Paris’ Arc du Triomphe, built to commemorate the ousting of the French in 1949, so we kept walking several kilometers down a wide boulevard until we spotted it. image

The Americans gave Laos money to build an airport in 1960 (preparing for the Vietnam War, no doubt) and they built this monument instead, so it is also called “the Vertical Runway” (probably only by Americans). image

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Formal gardens surround the monument, and you can climb to the top to see an overview of the city.image

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Now it’s past one, and very hot as we walked back toward our end of town. Even though we stopped to buy cold water, I felt a little woozy, and Jim started looking for a place to sit me down in the shade. We turned a corner, and, like a mirage, what did I see? An air conditioned Swenson’s Ice Cream shop, like the answer to a prayer! Half an hour and one scoop of green tea ice cream later, I was restored.image

Despite how the climate feels to us Westerners, Laotians maintain conservative dress standards with knees and shoulders always covered. In Luang Prabang and Vang Vieng there were signs reminding tourists to cover up, but we haven’t seen the signs here. I wear my long pants anyway.image

For dinner we went to a Vietnamese pho restaurant and I had cool summer rolls. Perfect!

Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng, Laos

Backpacking, Laos, Travel, ,

4/2 – I have not been looking forward to today.  We bought tickets two days ago for the bus up and over the mountains to Vang Vieng, about 7 hours south.  Every blog post we have read calls this the Bus From Hell, and advises against taking it if at all possible.  The roads are so narrow and the turns and switchbacks are so tortuous, that even the strong of stomach are advised to bring barf bags, and those with a tendency toward motion sickness are advised to take the plane.

To make matters worse, Jim and I are both suffering from something we ate yesterday. I’ll spare you the details, but we couldn’t have picked a worse day to be stuck on a bus.
In anticipation, I went to the mini-mart near our guesthouse last night, to see if they carried Dramamine (pills for motion sickness).  “I’m taking the bus to Vang Vieng tomorrow”, I said.  The clerk walked right over to the shelf and gave me the generic Thai equivalent of Dramamine.  I was obviously not the first person with this request!
The tuk-tuk picked us up at 8:30am and took us to the bus station.  We had assigned seats right up front, but the seats were over the wheel well, with no room for our legs.  We moved back a row and hoped that no one would challenge us for our seats.  This would have been unacceptable behavior in China, but here, no one seemed to mind.  30 minutes before departure, we both popped a Dramamine. 

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As I had not gotten much rest the night before, the pill put me right to sleep.  Jim wasn’t so lucky.  Every once in a while, the bus would bounce so jarringly that I would open one eye, observe a hairpin turn, and go back to sleep again. So, sorry to say, no pix out the bus window.  The shocks on the bus were bad, so every bump in the road made the bus bounce twice.  My teeth were rattling in my head. There was no AC, and the temp was in the 90s.
We stopped twice for toilet breaks – best not to describe rural Laotian toilets.  Our promised lunch break didn’t occur until 3:30pm, and I wasn’t hungry in the least.  We arrived in Vang Vieng by 5 in the afternoon, and shared a tuk-tuk into town.
So now we are at the Laos Haven Hotel, showered and rested.  It is a tiny town, compared to Luang Prabang, with only one main street, and not many tourists.  Here is the view out our hotel window, of the main street.image
Traffic on the main street.image

Looks like this will be a nice place to relax!

Luang Prabang, Laos – a Wat and the Night Market

Backpacking, Laos, Travel, , ,

3/25 – We awoke to the sound of birds outside our window.  The ceiling fan circled overhead.  What a peaceful, easy feeling – we’re not in China anymore!  Yay!  We were too tired to attempt supper last night, so we got dressed and set out this morning to explore Luang Prabang.  The day is overcast and in the 80s – perfect tropical weather.  Flowers abound.  Our guesthouse is quiet, with tables outside.  There are signs reminding us to remove our shoes before climbing the stairs or entering a room.  image

Our quiet little street ends at the Mekong River, a flashback name for those who remember the Vietnam war.  We walk to the main street, where a row of food stand vendors vie for our business.  Sabaidi!  the women call – hello!  They offer all kinds of baguette sandwiches, crepes and coffee – the former French colonial influence is evident.  There are lots of young European backpackers and Chinese tourists here.   We see our Chinese friends from the bus, and sit down to have a chicken avocado baguette and a fresh fruit smoothie.  It’s been a month since I’ve had bread – it tastes so good!  The currency here is the kip, and 10,000 kip equal about $1.25.  To make it easy on my brain, I start removing four zeros to calculate prices.  Food and fruit are very reasonable here – $3.00 total for the smoothie and the sandwich. Fortified, we cross the street to check out the nearest Buddhist temple.  Luang Prabang is home to 33 temples or wats, and support of the monks is very important to the people here. IMG_8305

   After an afternoon nap, we head back out to find some supper.  There are all types of eateries here – Thai, Lao, French, Chinese, and even a Spanish tapas place – from white tablecloth restaurants to street stands.  We find a little cafe and order chicken with basil and rice, and the local beer, Beerlao.  We are given forks – it feels strange to not have chopsticks… Every evening at 5pm, the main street is closed to traffic, and the night market sets up – hundreds of vendors selling everything from clothing, toys, silks, jewelry, artwork of all sorts, to pastry, fresh fruit and spring rolls. Very laid back, no pressure.  Bargaining mandatory.  Here are Buddhas painted on turtle shells.

A relaxing first day – we like it here!

Boten, Laos to Luang Prabang, Laos

Backpacking, Laos, Travel, ,

3/24 – the story continues from previous post, 15 hours into our bus ride:

We walked into the golden stupa at Boten, which welcomed us to Laos.  We had to fill out forms and purchase visas here, which was no trouble.  Bring a passport photo, and the equivalent of $35.00.  Other blogs indicated that we would have to pay in US dollars, but we had no trouble paying in yuan.  We then had to stand in line to get through Customs.

When we emerged, I couldn’t see anyone else from our bus, but we could still see the big blue bus on the line of vehicles going through the border crossing.  There were plenty of people standing around, so we stood too.  After a while, the bus to Ventiane that had been behind us pulled up, and most of the people started getting on.  A taxi driver approached us and tried to usher us into his taxi.  No, no, we said, we don’t need a taxi.  We’re waiting for our bus.  With little English, he indicated we should get in his taxi to get to our bus.  Now I was worried.  Where were the other people from our bus?  We walked back across the border, and the big blue thing we mistook for our bus was actually a big blue truck.  Oh no!  The bus left without us!

We went back to where the people were boarding the other bus.  One man had a phone, and called someone, and handed me the phone.  A female, in stilted English, said our bus was 8 kilometers down the road, and we had to take a taxi to catch up.  That explains the insistence of the taxi driver – our bus driver must have sent him when he realized we were not on board.  But where was he now?  When we refused to get in his taxi, he had gone.  We were stranded!  We looked up and down the street, but there were no other taxis to be found.  Then the Ventiane bus pulled up and opened its doors.  The driver indicated that we could hop on.  He would take us to our bus!  We sat on the front step for a 10 minute ride down the road, and breathed a sigh of relief when we spotted Big Blue in front of a thatch covered eatery.  We thanked the driver and ran back to our bus, where our driver was looking a little worried.  We agreed not to let the bus out of our sight again!image

 

We got something to eat, although my stomach was in a knot, and got back on the bus.  Now that it was daytime, I wished I could sit up, but lying in my bunk was really the only option.  Tried to take some pix out the window, with limited success.image image

 

We are definitely not in China anymore.  We pass little villages with thatched roof shacks, and children playing in the dirt. Note that the huts are equipped with satellite dishes.image image

We see wild pigs, a water buffalo, goats and chickens in the street.  When the bus stops for a break, the men pee over the cliff on one side, while we women squat behind a big rock on the other.  The road is so narrow that only one vehicle can pass at a time, so we stop whenever there is oncoming traffic.  It’s slow going, and very bumpy where the road is not paved. We read that during the wet season, buses cannot complete this journey. It’s a gray day, and I hope it’s not going to rain!

By mid afternoon, we are stopped more than we are moving. The road is being paved, and we get to watch whole families working at the roadside.image

Somehow, the afternoon passes, and now it is dark. As we approach our destination, the driver stops whenever we get near where someone lives, and he has to get out to retrieve their baggage from the storage area. Then we pass some restaurants, and the bus stops to deliver boxes of supplies. At 9:30pm, 27 hours after we boarded, we finally pull into Luang Prabang. I’m so tired I can hardly see. A Chinese couple from the bus ask if they can share a tuk-tuk with us, and we all pile in. The night air is warm, and there are flowers everywhere. Our guest house is right in the middle of town, and we register and tumble gratefully into a hot shower and a soft bed. We’re here!

Kunming, China to the Laotian Border

Backpacking, China, Laos, Travel, , , , ,

3/23 – Today is our last day in China, and we have some errands to run.  Most important, Jim has to find some more Lipitor.  We’ve had no trouble refilling his prescription in Europe, Türkiye, and the former Soviet countries, but this medicine is prohibitively expensive in China.  Jim’s research indicates that cholesterol medicine is not something widely prescribed here.  After trying several pharmacies, we walked into a hospital and tried the pharmacy there.  They had the generic equivalent of Zocor, a similar drug, so we purchased a month’s worth, standing on three different lines to get registered in the system, pay up front, then collect the pills.  Bureaucracy aside, we probably got them faster then waiting for a pickup at Walgreens, and without a word of language…

We ate lunch, packed up and left our hotel by 3pm, to take the Metro to the South Coach Station for our bus to Laos.  The Metro is brand-sparkly new, with attendants to help you purchase tickets from automated machines, and attendants to help you board the train. This photo courtesy of Google. image
You wait for your train behind a wall with sliding glass doors that don’t open until the train arrives, so no one can accidentally fall onto the tracks. image
The stations are announced both in Chinese and English.  The cars weren’t packed full.  It was a great experience!
Kunming recently built four bus stations located at the four compass points of the city, to spread out the traffic jams that used to occur at the central bus station. If you are traveling south, your bus leaves from the South station. So logical!  Here is Jim waiting for our bus to arrive.image

We boarded our overnight sleeper bus at 6pm for the 400 mile, 24 hour trip south across the Chinese border at Mohan to Luang Prabang, Laos. Some of the buses looked new and posh, but ours looked like it had seen better days, and lots of mud.image

The bus has three rows of double-decker bunks running head-to-toe, and an area in the back where it looks like lots of people are just crammed together.  No toilet on board, but we understand that the bus will stop every few hours.image

Jim and I have bunks on the left aisle, so we can see out the window.  The folks in the middle aren’t so lucky.  We’ve been issued blankets and pillows covered with light blue flannel sheets featuring Snoopy (spelled Snopy – in China, close is good enough…) and Woodstock – this is going to be just like a fun sleepover!  At 5’6″, I fit comfortably in my bunk, with my feet touching the board at Jim’s head.  At 6’3″, Jim looks like a pretzel.  One of our fellow passengers pantomimed that Jim would be better off stretching out on the floor!  Before too long, the rocking of the bus lulled us to sleep.
3/24 – at 2am, the bus stopped, and stayed stopped until 5am.  What’s the use of an all night bus if it’s not going to drive all night?  We’ll never know.  Today is Jim’s birthday.  He said there is no way he would rather spend his day…
At 10am we reached the border at Mohan, and officially left China, then walked up to the golden stupa that welcomed us to Laos.

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This epic saga continues in the next post!

Chengdu to Kunming, China

Backpacking, China, Travel, ,

3/17 – There was nothing else we wanted to see in Chengdu, so we are continuing south to Kunming.  We enjoyed a leisurely morning, as our train doesn’t depart until 15:00 this afternoon. Same hotel breakfast ( I skipped the pickled cabbage and had an extra egg), and an especially good lunch of dumpling soup with leeks and chives.  Jim had a spicier dish comprised mainly of chicken skins.  

We gave ourselves an hour to complete the 10 minute ride to the train station, so, of course, circumstances conspired against us. Background:  hotels in China ask for a cash deposit when you check in, then send a maid up to inventory the room when you check out, to make sure you haven’t stolen anything.  Some hotels have items for sale in the room – razors, decks of cards, cans of soda, beer, and snacks – clearly marked.  Most hotels provide an electric kettle and teacups, bottled water and a variety of tea, gratis.  When we tried to check out of this hotel, we were presented a bill for 40 yuan for the sundries we had used – the tea, the tissues, the bottled water, and what we thought was a complimentary toothbrush.  After almost a month in China, this is the first time we have encountered this.  They also claimed we stole a towel, which others online had reported was a common ploy to extract more money from tourists here.  I shouted and waved my good arm around, gave back the toothbrush and got the damage reduced to 15 yuan ($2.42), but it cost us 15 minutes in the lobby.
We hustled down to the main road, (Jim still lugging both our packs) but had a hard time getting a taxi to stop, and when we finally did, the traffic was bumper-to-bumper all the way to the train station.  Passing through Security, I got pulled over because my passport number was not correct on the train ticket.  The young woman showed me the discrepancy and I just shrugged.  I didn’t type up the ticket – I didn’t even know they were putting our passport numbers on there!  We had to march over to the supervisor, who examined my passport and Chinese visa very carefully and then let us through.  We got to our gate just as our train was being called. Whew!
So now we are on the overnight sleeper to Kunming, in our comfy lower bunks of a soft sleeper with a door that closes, fresh linens (I presume), and a young man and a young woman texting away on their mobiles on the berths above.  The afternoon is warm (mid 70s) and we can actually see the sun as we leave the city.  Here are some views out the train window.

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3/18 – After a bumpy night’s sleep, we arrived in Kunming at 9 am.  The train station is huge, and we have to walk quite a way before we can find a taxi.  Kunming is called Spring City in China, as the weather is always perfect – not too hot and not too cold.  It is a favorite destination for Chinese tourists.  Although there is some smog, the sky is definitely blue!
Jim booked us at a new hotel in the center of the city, which does not appear on any of our maps.  The only clue I have is that one of the exterior pictures of the hotel on the Booking.com website shows a large golden statue of Jesus.  Can’t be too many of those in the middle of Kunming!  Sure enough, we spot the statue, and identify the tall building that must contain our hotel.  It is an insurance company building, in the middle of a construction zone, but we know our hotel is on the 8th floor.  We’re getting pretty good at sleuthing our way around without being able to read the language. 

 

In the afternoon we checked out the options in our neighborhood – fruit shop, plenty of noodle eateries (not big enough to be called restaurants, just a few tables) of the kind we favor, but no market, super or otherwise, which is too bad, as our hotel room has a fridge and a microwave.
We has supper at a nearby eatery that provided a delicious full meal including soup, tea, two vegetables, a meat entree and rice for 15 yuan ($2.42). The proprietor came over after observing me eating with my chopsticks in my left hand, and tried to get me to take a new pair of chopsticks with my right hand.  I thanked her, but was puzzled.  I wonder if I am offending by using my left hand – I know I would be in India, but this is the first time I’ve been approached here.  She could see the sling on my right arm – this was one of the many times a bit more knowledge of the language would have helped!

Xi’an to Chengdu, China

Backpacking, China, Travel, ,

3/15 – Neither of us got much sleep last night, waiting for the alarm to go off at 5am so we could walk back to the station for our early train. Today we ride 14 hours south to Chengdu.

Unfortunately, according to my research last night, we will not be leaving the pollution behind in Xi’an. We both have headaches, coughs and nasal issues from the smog, and are considering whether to keep trying to find a cleaner place in China, or to just get out of the country. We’re leaning toward the latter.

The crazy thing is these folks don’t think they’re doing enough damage just breathing – they smoke like chimneys. In the elevator, on the train, in restaurants – no smoking signs are displayed and ignored. While I’m ranting, I’ll tell you something even worse – it seems to be perfectly acceptable here in China to hawk and spit. Loudly. All the time, on the street, indoors, into a trashcan. So gross. Watch where you step.

And while I’m at it, toddlers don’t wear diapers here – their pants have little cutouts so they can squat and poop right on the sidewalk. Although their little tushes are cute, still gross. I think I may be over China…  End of rant – sorry!

We had hard sleeper berths on the train. Jim had a middle and I had a lower berth in the six berth compartment. All full. The lights were still out when we got on the train, and we had to ask for help finding the right berth. Much to my dismay, both our berths had already been slept in and recently vacated. No new linens for us. I sat up for an hour, then succumbed to the lure of the pillow, and laid down to catch up on the sleep I had missed last night. Here is a view out the window when I awoke. I believe the yellow is rape, used in making rape seed oil.image

Chengdu was the last stop at 8:40pm, and everybody got off the train. A short taxi ride, and now we are at our hotel, where some drunken teenagers accosted Jim and let him know he was the tallest person they had ever seen. Sigh. These people need to get out more.

3/16 – A good night’s rest, and a typical Chinese breakfast – spicy Szechuan carrots and pickled cabbage, eggs hard boiled in soy sauce and sweet peanuts. Rolls that looked like marshmallows and tasted like air. No coffee or tea in the mornings, but warm milk.

Today we took a taxi to the Wenshu Buddhist Monastery, a peaceful collection of temples and gardens. image

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We watched monks playing badminton and observed more people praying than we had in Xi’an.

We met an American professor who lives in China, showing his niece and nephew the sights, and a family from Canada traveling with a private guide. Everyone we speak with shares the opinion that what we are doing – traveling solo – just can’t be done.

There are ponds of fish here, and big black frogs and hundreds of turtles.

The skull of a bodhisattva resides here, according to our resources, and Jim asked repeatedly, but the Chinese didn’t understand what he was asking. The Canadians’ guide understood, but told Jim the skull is not on display. Oh well!  A lovely visit.image

In the afternoon, we walked through a street market, selling everything from pig trotters to pigeons.image

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Walking back from supper, there was lots of music in the streets, and we stopped to watch a group of middle-aged women doing a sort of line dance – Chinese Electric Slide!

Xi’an – the Great Wild Goose Pagoda

Backpacking, China, Travel, ,

3/11 – Today we ventured south to visit the Great Wild Goose Pagoda. Jim taught here in Xi’an, and visited the pagoda 30 years ago – I wonder if it’s changed?

For some reason, we had a hard time convincing a taxi to take us there, so we ended up in a three-wheeled tuk-tuk like the ones in India – two stroke engine, soft sides, hard bench, no shock absorbers.  Talk about your wild rides – we went the wrong way down one way streets, flew over speed bumps, and passed buses on the right. My teeth rattled in my head, and I held onto Jim for dear life!

Four miles later, the pagoda came into view.  image

Since Jim had been here, a huge park was built around the pagoda, and it can be accessed by an overhead tram or a little trolley.imageimage

The day was warm and sunny (although gray with smog), and there were plenty of people out.  They sure love to mug it up for the camera – a series of sidewalk statues had folks lined up to take each other’s pictures.

There were several displays surrounding the pagoda, with a variety of Buddhas.image

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Buddha’s mother dreamed of a white elephant, signifying that she would give birth to an enlightened one.image

The birth of the Buddha.image

We only saw a few people praying – most were tourists.image

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The seven story stone pagoda was built to protect the three baskets of sacred scrolls that the monk Xuanzang brought back from India in 628 CE. image

The views from the top – very smoggy.image

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This is a nice city, very modern, and would be a fine place to live if not for the smog. I hope we get to see the sun someday soon!

Xiehe, back to Lanzhou, to Xi’an, China

Backpacking, China, Travel, ,

3/8 – Up early to catch the 8:30 bus back to Lanzhou.

Xiehe has been a magical place!  Unlike our ride up, this morning’s bus was totally packed with no empty seats.

The weather was warmer today, and the ridges that were covered with snow just a few days ago now look clear.  Spring is coming!  Some of the mountains reminded me of the Painted Desert out west.  The bus windows were foggy, so couldn’t get better pix.

Back in Lanzhou, we took a taxi across town to the train station, to purchase our next tickets, to Xi’an.  The Lanzhou station ticket hall was totally filled with people standing in lines with only Chinese writing, so we weren’t sure if there was a certain line we needed to be on.  We picked a random line, and, luckily, our ticket lady had some English.  We wanted to get on the early morning train, but it was sold out in all classes, so we ended up on the 12:31 in the second class seats.  The train will get to Xi’an at 20:35.  It will be a long day.

We are staying one night at the 60 Degrees Motel.  What’s wrong with this picture?  And yes, this is the third hotel we’ve been in with clear glass bathrooms – what’s that about?

Here’s the scenic view out our window – can’t wait to be out of this dirty city!

For supper tonight we used our method of pointing to something that someone else is eating, and asking for the same.  This time we got a soup containing tiny boiled eggs (pigeon? quail?), meatballs, tripe, mushrooms, sausage, tofu, leeks, daikon, rice noodles and assorted greens.  A real jackpot in a pot!  I missed having green vegetables when we were in Xiehe – due to the altitude, all they can grow is potatoes (and yaks!  We even had yak yogurt!)

3/9 – Had a leisurely morning, as we didn’t have to get to the train station until 11am. We’re now used to the security procedures – show passport, show ticket, baggage through scanner, pat-down – so it’s just a matter of how interested they are in our packs, and how many people we have to jostle through to get where we are going.

We sat in Waiting Room 4 along with all the other people who will be getting on train Z106. A young man sat down next to us and greeted us in English, and proceeded to tell us his dream of traveling to America one day. Jiang is a 24 year old university student who studies English and wants to work in the travel industry. When our train was called, he picked up my pack (Jim now carries both packs due to my injured arm), and escorted us onto the train. Although his ticket was for a different car, he found a seat near us, and proceeded to talk and talk in thickly accented English. Jim couldn’t understand a word, but I could make out enough to keep the conversation going.

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We talked about his girlfriend, who he will marry next year, his parents, and his home town. He told us what he knew about the Declaration of Independence, Abraham Lincoln – liberator of black persons – and Barack H. Obama. Florida, Hollywood, Yellowstone Park, Washington D.C. Oh my. He told us that there are no parents like us in China – old people are not encouraged to travel, as their children would worry about them. Parents save every penny to give to their children, and wouldn’t dream of squandering their money on travel. Hmmm, glad I’m not Chinese!

At some point during the 8 hour ride, another young man with much better English squeezed over (we were in 2nd class with every seat filled and people standing and sitting in the aisles) and started the whole process over again! I was exhausted from smiling, nodding and trying to look interested, by the time we got to Xi’an. As we head east in China, we will encounter more English speakers, which is definitely a mixed blessing!

Jiang hoisted my pack again, walked us off the train, hugged us and pointed us toward the street where we could find our hotel, before returning to catch his connecting train. What a nice young man!

We booked at the Vienna Hotel, which we figured would surely have its name written in English (or German) on the outside. No such luck! Once again, we walked right by it several times, then walked into each hotel inquiring until we found the right one. The desk clerks had no English, but we didn’t expect any. What we did expect was to be given a room that didn’t already have somebody in it! We tried the electronic key several times, until a man came out to shoo us away from his door. I went back down to the clerk, who giggled to say she didn’t really know the difference between a 4 and a 6 – she had written the wrong room number on the key. Sigh.

3/10 – We stayed in town today, buying our next train tickets to Chengdu (even five days in advance, all the first class tickets were sold out), replenishing our groceries, and resting my arm. Walking down our busy street on our way to dinner, I witnessed my first street crime. I watched a young girl walk up close behind another, unzip the girl’s backpack, and pull out her iPad or tablet. The second girl walked on, oblivious to the theft. I yelled, Hey, drop it! and looked the thief right in the eye, but a boy on a motorbike swooped right up beside, she hopped on, and they took off. I tried to show the girl that her backpack had been opened, but she didn’t understand. At that point I figured I’d better just walk on, or else the girl would think I had opened her backpack. The frustrations of not having the language! I witnessed a crime,and there was nothing I could do…