Sigh.
I was reading a blog about China. It had travel tips. Like bringing plastic bags so you can fill them up with water and use them as a stopper for the drainage hole in the middle of the bathroom floor in your hotel room. This will stop the smell. My first reaction was “Oh wow – that is a BRILLIANT idea!” My second reaction was to start laughing hysterical because I am traveling to a place for which I read helpful advice on how to stop your hotel room from smelling like poop.
As if that was not enough, I then read the warning that when you get to Tibet, you will be advised to not shower for 24 hours. You know, for 24 full hours after you just sat on a train for 24 hours. So I bought some dry shampoo to solve part of that problem.
After spending months working on my itinerary, it finally came time to book train tickets. Wait. What do you MEAN there is no train from Xi’an to Lhasa on June 6!??! That schedule is all over the internet. What? It only runs on odd days in June, but it is on even days in May? So why are there schedules for JUNE 6, WHICH IS AN EVEN DAY, all over the internet? UGH. GAH. I need to go June 6!
So my options were: Go one day earlier. This would cost me an extra $140 to be in Tibet a day ahead of my group tour. So, no. My other option was to go one day later, which I cannot since I am joining my group tour the day before!
So now I am going to be leaving Xi’an a day early, going to Xining, and spending a day there. But WAIT. There’s more. Since the train to Lhasa does not originate in Xining, I am likely going to have a hard sleeper (if I can even get a sleeper at all) because the soft ones will be sold out at the train’s origin. You cannot purchase tickets more than 20 days before your travel date. This train line is so long (it is 43 hours from Chengdu) that people buying tickets from Chengdu and various other cities, can buy theirs before I can. Even though we are going to be on the same train, they are leaving a full day earlier than me so their 20 day travel window begins a day before mine.
Did I mention yet that the only reason I am taking the train from Xi’an rather than from Chengdu is that I looked at the schedule and thought “Oh wow, it is only 33 hours from Xi’an instead of the 43 hours from Chengdu, clearly this is the easier option!”
WRONG.
Bonus: Having to leave Xi’an a day earlier means I had to cut out my time at Zhangjiajie. I am really upset about this but I am working on getting over it.
I got a message yesterday from someone who is in Macau right now, who warned me it is currently 100 degrees with 100% humidity. This should give me something new to fixate on. That weather is competing with Chinese children’s split pants for “grossest thing ever.”
In happier news, a few minutes ago I got an email invoice for my just-purchased train tickets to Luoyang to see the Longmen Grottoes!! Image courtesy of Panorimo:
Yep. This is why I am going to China.
On a serious note: if you are a full time traveler OR if you are considering going to China to see a specific place, ignore any UGH GAHHHHHHHHH WHY CHINA WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY’ing I have been doing about traveling there. You will be absolutely fine. Being the former allows you flexibility. Being the latter means you will probably go and stay where you are. There won’t be problems moving around the country because you will not be moving around the country.
But if you are like me and trying to see various spots with a definite end date, you may struggle a bit.
The most exciting thing that has happened since my last update is that I now own the world’s greatest camera bag. This is not an endorsement post, I found it and paid for it myself. I could not even tell you the brand name since it doesn’t seem to have one. I bought it at one of those cheapo “Everything is made in China” stores (irony not intended.)
I had wanted a bag that has a zipper on the back, a zipper for the main part and a flap with a zipper on the front. I don’t know why this is so hard to find. Why do so many bags not have a zipper on the main part? But I found one that has all three!
Inside there are cool features. This will be perfect for holding slot cards in Las Vegas.
LOOK IT EVEN FITS MY NETBOOK INSIDE!
I can put a water bottle on each side on the outside. I am so in love with this bag. I want to buy fifty more because while it is perfect in design, I have a feeling it is not constructed to last forever. But they only had ONE. Sigh.
I will be attempting to post my packing list this weekend. I just love reading packing lists so maybe you do too! I hope I get around to it. I am still doing the “China is so overwhelming I think I will just take a nap” thing.
And finally: Guess what? I had originally wanted a multiple entry visa. But I figured I would never get one as a first time applier, especially in NYC, where we are rumored to have the strictest China Embassy in all of America. So I just applied for a single entry, whatever. Well I noticed this past weekend that despite applying for a single entry, I got a multiple entry visa good for one year from issue! OH NO. So now I am considering going to the Harbin Ice Festival next year. I have always wanted to go. Why not go when doing so does not require me to apply for a second visa? Right? I would only go for a week, rather than an epic trip. But I refuse to decide on this until way later in the year.
What a hassle! But often the things that require the most effort are the most rewarding 🙂 Also, I just Googled Chinese children’s split pants… Yuck!!
Right? I read that they have split pants so they can poop in places (like sidewalks, and train station platforms or held over garbage cans) without worrying about falling into the hole-in-the-ground toilets. Stay classy China!
Haha, yep, they do! I´ve got quite a few photos of those pants, almost bought a pair as a souvenir :)) And yeah, I´ve been to 70 countries so far and China is the only one I don´t want to go back to :)) not trying to scare you but they are gross (and I´m not delicate at all!)
Oh I am aware they are gross. My train in NYC passes through Chinatown in both Manhattan and Brooklyn. I’ve seen things…
I agree with Krista that often the experiences that cause the most hassle are the ones which are most rewarding. Good luck and I look forward to reading all about your adventures there!
Thanks Sarah!
On a bright note, that is an adorable bag!! That’s pretty much exactly what I’m looking for for my new camera. Can I ask where you got it? On a not so bright note – I can’t believe that their poop situation is so… well yeah. And I thought squatting toilets were bad!
Isn’t my bag perfect?? 🙂
I got it at one of the many tiny stores we have in Brooklyn and Queens that are just filled with bags and do not appear to even have a name. I have been to about (literally) 30 of them before finding mine. They only had ONE. I need more!
Split pants? OMG. I am not sure if I want to travel to China…
P.S.: I like your bag. 😉
Sounds like it was a proverbial nightmare! I have never visited Asia so can’t really comment on any of the countries and their individual customs but just from hearsay it goes to show that westerners heading over to the East need to be wary of many issues that may arise.
Exactly. I am going to type out a list of issues so anyone planning a trip can see what they are up against. It isn’t so much that the issues themselves are hard to deal with, as it is that they just keep coming. Every time I think I am set, new issue. I wish I had been better prepared for all of this.
Well I personally can’t wait to read about your trip so I’m either more motivated to visit while I’m in Asia or feel ok with my decision to keep it on the back burner.
Congrats on your perfect bag though! I am still on a search for one for me, but for an SLR. I’ve bought 2 so far: one too big, one too small, off to buy a third tomorrow before I head to Japan.
Have a great trip!!
I have two “too big” camera bags!
I am looking forward to reading about your trip to Japan because I want to see if I regret not going there instead of China!
Have a great time!
Loved this post! When I went to China I was totally in the opposite situation, did no planning whatsoever, just ended up on a random bus after crossing the Mongolian border and hoped it went in the right direction. When I first saw split pants and many other Chinese ‘oddities’, I was a bit shocked… I did love my time there though. Awesome food!
One day I will be free of planning! But for now, if I want to see more of the world while still having a full time job, it makes trips run smoothly if I have things planned before I go.
Love the bag, perfect for traveling!
“I am still doing the China is so overwhelming I’m just going to take a nap thing” OMG, I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who does that! I am also obsessed with bags!
Have a wonder filled trip. Looking forward to reading about it.
Thanks Catherine!
Might have been one hassle too many for me but the split pants reference cracked me up. 33 hours on a train. Wow. Just wow.
Happy travels!
Hilarious post! I know exactly what you mean about needing to go THE DAY YOU NEED TO GO. Many a frightened bus ticket seller has been the victim of my wrath after telling me “there are no more buses today.” I also find China to be overwhelming and I’ve spent a cumulative 3 days there on three separate occasions. I got overwhlemed from my LAYOVER, so I can’t imagine actually visiting. Please report back!
I am really surprised at how difficult it is to get certain train tickets for China. I felt like every combination I tried, I would get a response that “not if you leave from that station” “not if you want that type of ticket” Meanwhile these were for trains that weren’t even on sale yet at all!
I’m heading to China later this month and can’t wait. I haven’t been before and will only make it to Shanghai on this visit, but I sure am looking forward to it. I won’t get much time to myself but any must-sees you’d recommend?
Hi Paul! Shanghai is my last stop so I won’t be there for a little bit. But the thing I am most excited about is just walking The Bund. Free and beautiful. Win and Win.
It must seem overwhelming at times, but all that preparation will pay off in the end!
That camera bag is awesome! I want one 🙂 I’ll be traveling with a camera backpack to fit my lenses (grumble). I’m glad you got a multiple entry visa for one year, I was considering visiting my brother who lives there, and well… I need to get a visa too. You’ll have to post pictures of Harbin when you go there–we WERE about to go last winter, until we saw the temperature forecast…
Harbin weather is brutal! I used it to console myself when I thought I was getting a single entry visa.
The bag looks great! And guess what, China is going to be awesome, sure about that!
Ah, I hate hearing all those ‘warnings’ about places before you arrive, it makes things seem daunting instead of exciting! What I’ve learnt on the road is I can put up with almost anything, even 48 hours no showers, even smelly hotel rooms or cold water or weird bus timetables or getting robbed – because the good experiences always outweigh the bad! Have a great time on your trip!
I was glad to read the warnings about the shower. It allowed me to be prepared with dry shampoo!
The good experiences will definitely outweigh everything else. Especially if I get through them with cherry scented hair 🙂
Wow with all the hassle its taken to plan the trip I hope it runs smoothly when you embark on your travels. Have fun!
Haha, what a great post. I know exactly what you mean. I have travelled around China three times and it is so frustrating, yet I keep going back! So you can get train tickets online now? That is brilliant. I had to fly between Guilin and Chengdu once because it involved a change of trains, and they wouldn’t sell me the second train until I was physically IN that city. Argh China.
Oh yeah NO you cannot buy train tickets online now. But you can have a ticket broker buy them for you. So you are basically contacting a complete stranger in China and having them go to the train station for you. I love how at this point in the game, this doesn’t even seem weird to me any longer.
I just got my last invoice today. They buy the tickets and email you the confirmation and then you have to go and pick them up. It is borderline nerve wrecking because there is a brand new policy where they go all China about your name needing to be perfect. Which should be fine, because you know, you double check these things. But if the ticket was printed accidentally with your first and last names switched, you cannot pick it up. You also have no control over this. I used a broker I read rave reviews about so I should be safe!
We went to China a couple of years ago, totally unprepared (found a very cheap airline ticket, booked it and just went) and although we almost never ended up where we wanted to go, we had a fantastic time. I’m sure you’ll have a great trip too! 🙂
Thanks Nina!
Sounds like a logistical nightmare! But you most certainly will come back with great stories and I am sure you will have a wonderful time!
PS. Dry shampoo works wonders, I love it
Hey, i hope it all works out – its usually when the plans dont go to plan that the bets experiences happen 😉
Getting to Tibet is a huge struggle. I went last summer and my tour guide had to buy our tickets on the black market. When we finally got our tickets, they were for the wrong day, so we had to start our tour a day late! Stopping in Xining is actually a good idea though. I spent three days there on purpose. Stopping in Xining will definitely reduce your chances of altitude sickness.
I knew nothing about Xining before booking a stay there for Tibet. Once I started Googling, I wished I was able to spend some more time there and do a day trip to Qinghai Lake. There is just so much to go back and see in China!
Haha…you either love China to the beam or hate it to the core 🙂 Being a Chinese, I faced lesser issues when I was in China.
I hated it so much until I got there. Now I am in love. I will probably go back to hate while booking my next trip, then back to love once I get there again…