Getting to Zhengzhou

Photo: Filling up before a long train ride from Zhengzhou to Xining (July, 2010).

Low budget travel deep into China and then deeper into her frontiers is a lot of work. So much work, that not only am I having trouble finding the time to write in my journal, but post on this blog. Blogspot seems to be blocked. From China, it's Blockspot. This posting will be done via email through my wife or daughter. I'm writing from Zhengzhou, Henan Province. Zhengzhou is the most populated city in Henan, and Henan the most populated province in China. According to Wikipedia, were Henan its own country, it would rank 12th over all in population, just behind Mexico. But first I should explain how we got here.

On 11 July 2010, Sander and I took a train from Rensselaer-Albany to Penn Station before eating out at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square and visiting the Guggenheim Museum. We then took a cab at breakneck speed to JFK International Airport where Sander got things beeping at airport security. Maybe it was the change in his pocket, or the wire in the necklace his sister had made him, but it got him sent into the isolation chamber, a glass bubble-box in the center of the security area. It was there that the drama began. It was that toe of his. Sander has been fighting an infection in his toe and bandages it daily. Maybe something was packed under his bandage? It had to be scrutinized. It was, and thoroughly. At one point, a guard's nose couldn't get any closer. Eventually, it was determined to be a good toe and, following a few padded swipes for bomb residue, Sander was freed from the chamber and suspicion, and permitted to continue on his journey. But it would not be the last time he would make security guards flinch.

After 15 hours in the air we landed in Seoul, Korea, via Asiana Airlines. The airlines served us Bi Bim Bam, a Korean dish I feel is worthy of a trip to Korea just to explore her cuisine. Following a five-hour layover we flew to Hong Kong where we got our visas to get into China. When we weren't trying to get caught up on our sleep we were walking around Kowloon. At Chunking Mansions we discovered not only an internet cafe but a vibrant community of Indians, Pakistanis, Turks, and Nepalese and loved the diversity, the atmoshpere, the food. It was awesome seeing Asian Indians speaking Cantonese. A Pakistani conversed with Sander in French and said he picks up languages serving meals to people. He spoke four. Eventually, we took the Star Ferry across the harbor, a bus over to Hong Kong Island, to what we thought would be a short ride on a junk. But the boat turned out to be a sampan. We rode it anyway, returned to pick up our visas, and took a train from Kowloon, through the New Territories, over the border from the Hong Kong Special Administration Region to Mainland China, before arring in Guangzhou. While going through customs, I was directed to the front of a new line by the guards. When Sander attempted to join me, another guard caught him, reprimanded him, and sent him to the back of still another line. This got me involved, as well as the guard who had called me over. Eventually, Sander was permitted to join me thanks to the woman holding my passport who over-ruled the guard angry with Sander. The angry guard stood in a silent boil. Because the railway station was not the one serving trains to the rest of the People's Republic, we had to navigate the subway system to the other station west. There we discovered all the seats were booked for days not only to where we wanted to go (Xining, Qinghai Province) but to all the cities in the region. We would have to spend the night.

A man at the Guangzhou railway station who was helpul at times offered to show us to a cheap hotel. This sort of thing was common and we were bombarded by this daily outside Chungking Mansions in Hong Kong. Actually, I sort of felt bad for the way I'd turned many of them away because they were just good people getting a living off commissions (but no more annoying than those clerks in Home Depot). So we followed this guy for what was to be a 10 minute walk. To cut the time down shorter, we hopped on a three-wheeled cart that took off not slowly down the street, but quickly and against traffic in a three lane highway at night making our NYC cab driver look like a Sunday driver. I was terrified. When we approached a safe spot I told the driver that we had had it and we got out. Sander expressed concern over the creepiness of this guide but I insisted we followed him on foot a little longer. But the road was getting smaller and darker and Sander was right. When a taxi came by I flagged it down, opened the door, and we leaped in. Our guide ran over screaming while pounding on the window. Meanwhile, I was yelling at the driver, "Kai che! Kai che!" (Drive! Drive!) The driver, confused, began shouting back because she didn't have a specific destination. "Dao luguan! Dao luguan!" (To a sleazy hotel! To a sleazy hotel!) I continued ... and off we went.

With trains backed up for days, and hotels expensive still, we decided to try flying since domestic airfare is about the same as soft-sleeper trainfare (not that we were planning to soft-sleeper this route). At the airport, all the flights were booked for days to Xining. In fact, all flights were booked to all Xining-surrounding cities for days. Zhengzhou is not near Xining but it is halfway there from Guangzhou. Better still, it's on the north-south and east-west national rail axis. So we booked a flight for Zhengzhou. But at airport security Sander forgot he was packing his Swiss Army knife in his carry on. This perked up the sensors and guards. As one guard pulled it from Sander's bag, I said, "Ta wangle" (He forgot). The guard looked at Sander and smiled, explaining (all in Chinese which took me a few rounds to get) that he could take the knife back to the baggage check in, check in one of our carry-ons, and then come back through this security point to keep the knife and still catch our flight scheduled to leave in 30 minutes. We did just that. But I have been wondering if Sander is purposely trying to get another residue rubbing.

Photo: Zhengzhou Train Station plaza scene of travelers (July, 2010).

Photo: Close-up of travelers at the Zhengzhou Train Station (July, 2010).

Photo: Close-up of travelers at the Zhengzhou Train Station (July, 2010).

Photo: Waiting four hours for a 19-hour hardstand train (July, 2010).

Now we're in Zhengzhou. From here we have a straight shot west to Xining by rail. I tried to book hard-seats today but all seats were taken. I was told tomorrow there would be seats but the price I was quoted seems like there might not be seats, just standing room in the hard-seat area. We'll do what we have to do. Because I didn't realize how much inflation had hit the eastern seaboard, Sander and I need to get away from eastern China and deep into her western frontiers as soon as possible. Today is 16 July 2010. For me, with how I've been sleeping, the days have been a blur and really just one very long exciting day. Low budget travel deep into China and then deeper into her frontiers is a lot of work.