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Letter 47
Friday 28.05.10
The morning passes quickly. My train, "dong che", the fast train, leaves
at 10.50. I have to leave from here at 9.30 I`ve planned. But I have to
send mails to the consul and the apprentice to thank them, so it`s 9.40
when I rush out into the street.
I ought to have a taxi in downwards direction, so I have to cross the
road. There`s a zebra crossing not far, but it`s not easy anyway.
When I run the last steps across I hear an unpleasant sound - I lost
something. And when I turn my head to look I see the PDA lying there in
the middle of the street. Because I had to look for the consuls email
address I just put it on top in the bag, which I normally never do.
I succeed stopping the traffic and pick it up in a hurry - puih...!
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| In a modern chinese train... | ...for those that can afford |
It`s not until the station I find out, that the small black stick used for
pressing the screen is gone. I didn`t thinkto look for that, eev!
But can I keep this way, so that`s all I loose on this trip, it`ll be an
improvement from my last trips.
The driveris nice. At first he doesn`t understand where I want to go, even I say
what they told me at Tinas. Chongqing Bei, Chongqing nord. I try to add a
"zhan", station, but the tones come out wrongly it seems. In the end he
pronounces it the correct way. "Dui, dui..." and we`re on our way.
He really does his best with the few english words he knows, and together with
the few chinese I know, we have a kind of conversation. Now I know that this
bridge across the Jialing river is only 9 years old.
This station is quite new and there is actually a special waiting hall for the
D-trains. And there`s room at least when I arrive. There`s soap and electrical
handdryer in the toilet! But I miss the aircon!
My ticket was shown when I entered, later noone sees it. When the doors open we
walk to the train on our own and enter. Never the less some women with big
pickpack have entered the wrong door and are now pushing their way in the wrong
direction - exactly as usual. But the rest of us are cultivated! And there`s
room for your legs.
I have to check the toilet. It`s the chinese style in stainless steel like in
other trains, but you can flush! The automatic water tap isn`t functioning, so I
don`t try the automatic soap dispenser.
It seems possible to get on the train without seat reservation because people
stand up or bring small seats out at the doors. We are just now going exactly
200 km/h, we didn`t all the time. The unstandable Chongqing mist has been
dismissed for Sichuans better - for the day at least - visibility and the
small-hilled landscape is back. I`m almost at home....
First thing is to ask for a high level China Mobile office and after some
troubles I succeed getting the "all-of-China"-card to work by just paying 20
RMB.
Maybe all the trouble is merely a question of getting to the right office? It`s
a matter of who has rights for what, I believe?
Soon after I`m on the phone to KLM. I immidiately feels at home - in Denmark -
terrible music in my ear most of the time. The first one wants exact measures
for the bike, and when I estimate 1 x 0,2 x 2 there`s a problem. The sum of the
three must not exeed 3,00 m. Damn. I manage to get Joe to find a ruler, the
reception can not, so he finds it - in the reception, haha. 167 x 103 x 30 is my
result and I still can let all the air out of the tubes.
The next I talk to tells me it`ll cost me 400 $. That can`t be. It`s 80 euro!
No. Hell. I have to find the KLM website. They have had new rules, but my ticket
is bought before 28.03.10, so I may have it according to the weight scale, which
means 80 euro pr. flight, 40 euro inside of Europe, which means 120 euro in all.
That`s what it costs.
I`m on the phone again, I think it`s the first one again. I give her my measures
and tell her about the rules according to the KLM website. She thinks she better
doubbel check - and this way time passes.
Yes, I`m right. Now she`s sent a request and I have to call again tomorrow, the
office opens at 8, I have asked.
All this took me about 1 1/2 hours.
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| The train was cleaned immidiately | Crowded exit |
The third is to look for a substitute for my small backpack. I have a
small backpack inside the big one, my sleeping bag I`ve only used twice
is inside it. The zipper is broken so the bag needs a replacement. I`ve
been thinking to have one on my back and one tied to the back of the
bike.
After I`ve given up I find one (H20 maybe it`s danish?) for 169 RMB.
It`s a special offer, the original was 450. Others have offered me 15%
discount on the fixed prizes, so this seems reasonable.
So tomorrow I just need to get the elastic strips, phone KLM and
withdraw money for the last time on this trip.