The Journey home - part one. Zhongshan to Guiyang

Originally I thought that the journey would be the reverse of the journey out which would have been the reverse of the one below:

1. Taxi from Jiangkou to Tongren South Station and pick up my tickets
2. Tongren South Station to Guyyang Station by train
3. Underground, shuttle bus or taxi to Guiyang Longdongbao Airport
4. Guyiang Longdongbao airport to Hangzhou airport by plane
5. Hangzhou airport to Hangzhou East station hoping to get the high speed train here
6. Hangzhou East station to Zhongshan.

However, that was all cancelled and changed.  Now the journey home is split into parts.  Maybe two or three parts, not sure yet!  Today is part 1.  It should be:

1. Zhongshan to Guangzhou South

2. Guangzhou South to Guiyang

3. Two nights in Guiyang.

As usual it will start with a big breakfast.  Then in theory checkout at 10am and taxi to Show station.  Let's see what happens!

Well, I am now in the train to Guiyang! Worked more or less as planned!

Julie meet me at the hotel in the morning

 and helped me to book a didi to Zhongshan Station.  As there aster several Zhongshan stations, Julie checked to see if I was going to the right one.  

I was, and got there pretty early.  I sat aliens a while.  Zhongshan is a small station.  

Zhongshan station

Above is a view of Zhongshan from the station platform.  We were allowed on the platform just five minutes before the train arrived.  I looked at the tracks.  I couldn't see the usual expansion breaks in the rails...maybe there is some.other system.to allow expansion of the rails in hot weather.  Not the best of pictures, but below is what I saw!

Eventually the train came.  So efficient. The ticket tells you the platform and coach number, the platform tells you where to stand for your coach, and the coach doors always open at the rIght place.  No huge mob of people rushing to get on, as everyone knows where they need to stand.  The UK could learn a lot from this!  Soon the train arrived at Guangzhou nan station.  I knew it was spring break, I knew it would be busy, but I didn't expect it to be this busy!  The station wagon perhaps 800 meters long and 400meters wide.  There were gates either side for train boarding purposes. There was a central aisle that had moving people in it but everything else is wall to wall people!  I thought I took a video but can't find it!  Anyway I decided to go to the food court upstairs to have some food in case I I didn't get another chance.  Yes, I had MacDonald's!  As I stood in the balcony amazed at the sea of people below, I noticed another none Chinese person: Rosa from Malawi!  A lovely girl.  We chatted for about half an hour until I had to enter the sea of people.  My gate was right down at the far end of the hall!  I eventually made it to the queuing area for my gate and was swept along with the tide of people towards my gate, only to be stopped by a 'jobsworth' who insisted on seeing my ticket as well as my pasport.  Maybe he was trying to be helpful, but there was no need to see my ticket.  I showed him anyway.  Luckily I had picked one up as my ticket was actually an efficient!  Then off down to the train. Ticket told me where to go, and I got in the train, luggage in the rack and sat down.  A Chinese girl sat next to me.  I introduced myself, spoke a few words and started blogging.  She offered me one of her cakes!  Excellent.

I feel asleep.  I woke up and the train stopped. There was a steady flow of young men in black towards the door: the addicts.

They knew this was a five minute stop.  They'd been on the train just two hours but needed to get off the train for a smoke.  Nearly every male over the age of 12 seems to  smoke in China even....on motorbikes!

Looking out the window of the train, the little hills/mountains were everywhere!  I'm fascinated...what happened geographically to form them?  

Another thing to investigate.  So that's gods, rail expansion and little mountains/hills that I need to find out about!  Oh,while all the mountains/hills were covered in this natural vegetation, many of the little hills/mountains were being step-farmed.  Steps cut into the hills.  Bushes were being cultivated under plastic.  No idea what the crop was!

The temperature, as displayed on the train's display was dropping as we moved North few degrees every stop.  We had started at 26 degrees and Should be ending in Guiyang at about 4 degrees.

Meanwhile the train cannot was continually blurting out one of three messages:

1.  Train information about stations.

2.  A 'jobsworth' voice talking (I think) about security

3.  An awful American voice accompanied by some crass Richard Clayderman music telling me about delicious nutritious food that could be 'pur-chased' in board.

Resistance is futile....

On the way to Guiyang I sent some.money to one of Julie's friends and got them.buy her some flowers.  She's really put herself out for me these last few days!

Back on the train, I should be arriving in Guiyang at about 9pm.  My hotel is about 2k away from.the station.amd situated on the eighth floor  of an apartment block numbered A203.

You would think that would be easy to find....Oh no!  Firstly, I could find no taxi rank at the station...It took me a good ten minutes to find a road and that was a major dual carriageway with railings on both sides and a huge earth mound running up the middle.  Eventually the railings finished and I got to the road.  I took a taxi.  Got ripped off and still couldn't get to my hotel.  I could see it, set about sixty feet above the road, but couldn't find a way to get there!  I asked and looked, looked and asked and eventually found a way via a dingy lift.  My room is OK and the area seems OK, but I don't think I'll do a budget room again.  I'd rather pay twice the price and have a decent hotel!

Julies panda on my bed, stuff unpacked and ready for tomorrow.  Food ordered.  Sorted.  Let's see what tomorrow brings..