trip to Yangshuo post number one.

It has been a long time, yes, getting a working web site, and the time has been a challenge, especially the former. My computer too has been a challenge pretty much the entire trip. Time for a new one.

To the trip: trains, boats, buses, taxis, bicycles, and uber too, but no airplanes. The trains involved fancy pants bullet trains like the ones below. We were even in car # 8 which happened to be number one in line behind the engine of front car since there does not seem to be an engine. However, what ever magic these use, they do go fast and smooth. And above ground. Elevated tracks nearly always unless in a tunnel which is also pretty standard in the mountains. That is us plus a friend below.

We actually rode in two trains. One a bullet train, the other an overnight sleeper which was a "traditional" old train replete with bumps, clickety clacks, rattles, shakes, jerks and all kinds of noises. Here a clump of us are looking out the window opposite the six stacked by threes beds in the "hard sleeper" that part of us had on the outbound trip. (See Laura's blog for more photos of the hard sleeper).

and here is Lydia in the top bunk of the soft sleeper that we all had on the return. Patt and I had a soft on the outbound trip too.

Reading, playing cards, eating, looking out the windows and talking did not take up all the time.  Getting in an occasional nap was a good thing to do on the bullet train too.  As did Patt and John Paul.

Notice the electronic message board at the back of the car behind Laura in the bullet train. It is keeping track of the speed. 246 KM per hour for those keeping track.  

The waiting room for the sleeper. The train stations are HUGE.  In fact China does HUGE well.  some of the newer train stations we were in are seemingly miles long and wide — no exaggeration - seriously no exaggeration.  Ginormously large.  

This was taken quickly (well what did you expect ) from the bullet train window as we went through / over a small town.  Note the "interstate" is doing the same thing.  Note the tunnel through the mountain.  Note the old train tracks and trains in the lower portion of the photo.  There is a lot here.  In most towns there is building of overhead trains or highways.  Concrete overhead transportation structures are under construction most everywhere you would happen to look.

and one of the prettier farm scenes.  There was a lot of farm/agriculture too, just most not as well tended.  Apparently the rural communities are becoming depopulated of young worker age people leaving the elderly and children as the worker age go to the cities for opportunities.  Can't say I blame them as the farmers I saw were pretty much working alone in a field and bent over at the waste in some form of what looked like pretty hard labor.

More on the Yangshuo trip to come in future posts.