China! Day 2

Day 2

The next thing we know (literally), it is the morning of Day 2 and we have to wake up at what feels like a very early hour (even though) it's not that early to meet a tour guide and see all that Shanghai has to offer. I've been in 3 times zones in 3 days. Jim took a 14-hour flight that completely reversed his AM and PM. We were at the bars the night before. Add that all together and it becomes a Herculean effort to endure a day-long tour of Shanghai.

When we arrive back at the hotel at 4:30pm, we decide to take a nap. I knew it wasn't a great idea, but I just. couldn't. keep. my. eyes. open. I called the front desk for a 7:30pm wake-up call. "Yes, PM," I confirmed for the confused receptionist. We woke up refreshed and packed a small backpack for our overnight train ride to Beijing. We put the rest of our luggage in storage at the hotel. After last night's Xintiandi mix-up, we asked 3 different people to confirm that our train left from Shanghai's north station.

We arrived to find the train station jam-packed at 9pm. Before boarding, we had just enough time to wander through the shops to get dinner. The only food we could identify was a pack of crackers and a canister of potato chips. We chose the chips and bottled water. A well-balance meal.

People rushed the platform when the train was called. There is no such thing as a line. We joined the crowd and located our sleeper car. It had 2 sets of bunks separated by about a foot and a half. We had the bottom bunks, which means that you have to let your upstairs neighbor use it as a couch until he is ready to go to sleep. Our roommates were 2 Chinese men - one maybe in his 30s and one maybe in his 60s. The younger guy was friendly, spoke passable English, and asked lots of question. He asks Jim, "Is that your girlfriend?" (I'm sitting a foot and a half away). "No, my cousin." The guy doesn't seem to understand that word so Jim says "sister." He responds, "Your sister is very beautiful." Jim later explains, "I think that guy was drunk." Thanks. I decide it is better to sleep fully clothed than to change into the pajamas I've packed.

But of course I use that term loosely since we were wide awake after a 3-hour nap in the middle of the day. "Sleep" basically means "lay in the dark." Around 6am, I'm roused out of my couch/bed by sunlight filtering in in the window and the sound of crunching potato chips.

We pull into the Beijing Railway Station around 7am to find our tour guide waiting for us at the platform. Sweet as.