Map of China showing departure in Kunming on July 30th with arrival in Xingtai 42 hours later. The train did not stop at my city so I had to double back after cooling my heels in Shijiazhuang for a couple of hours. I even managed to get a soft seat ticket without any dramas which was most unusual as seated tickets of any type between the two cities was previously unheard of and never experienced. The news reported high water levels, floods and imminent floods in some of trhe cities I travelled through but as we went through them when I was asleep I have no idea of the severity. We were not delayed in any way.
This was part of the scene while I waited outside the station . It was extrememly hot but fortunalely I got a spot on a seat under a tree like that in the picture where there was a pleaant breeze. Chinese waiting rooms are uncommonly hot. The beggers were out in force. T hey were common in Kunming too. China is trying, but still lacks many community and social welfare services found in other countries in addition to adequate financial support for those normally covered in western countries.
I’m not sure of the number of kilometers I travelled as google is a bit reluctant to tell me and I don’t have time to delve properly. It would be in the vicinity of 8-9,000km. I do have other photos of the return trip but the internet connection is slow and I need to move on.
