Monday, September 17, 2012

With no time to spare

Getting on the train in Beijing was not a problem.  We arrived in plenty of time and Glen even found a way for us to go onto the platform earlier than most of the rest of the crowd.  Getting on in Zhengzhou was another story.  Because of traffic problems we made it to the train station just a few minutes before our departure time.  CL did a great job in maneuvering us through some tough roads.  We got into the terminal with enough time but apparently the train was late getting in because when our departure time arrived we were still in the terminal.  I was able to ask several other passengers to make sure we weren’t waiting behind another train’s passengers.  Finally, a few minutes after our scheduled departure time, they let everyone go through to the platform.  It was a big crowd!  We, of course, were dragging our entire luggage to sustain us for almost three months of traveling behind us including descending three flights of stairs.  One kind man grabbed the bag Barbara was trying to carry down the stairs and went all the way with us to our seats.  They were trying to get the train off just as quickly as they could without thought of people like us.  We just barely got on and quickly worked to stuff our belongings in the overhead area.  We were very thankful that the space above our seats was completely empty.  The train took off before we had even sat down.  

We did enjoy the trip once we began to cool off.  The train to Xi’an reaches speeds up to 285 km/h!  It only took two hours.  The northern train station in Xi’an is HUGE and brand new.  We soon saw our dear friend, XL, coming to meet us!  Another successful connection on our sabbatical journey.

Glen made sure we got on the train in Beijing

 Bullet train 

Xi’an Northern Train Station


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