Well, today was the day. I was about to travel China alone. Drew is starting school and I have a 11:30 speed train reservation to Beijing. The Westin concierge Juani from Argentina was back from his weekend at the beach and wanted to catch up on everything I did over the weekend. I had breakfast and told him all of the fun things I saw and did in Tianjin. But it was time...Juani got me a cab and off I went to the Tianjin train station.
The train stations in China are just like American airports. Line up, go through security and then to your gate. Drew had recommended that I go first class because I had luggage. The cost to take the train was $69 Kuai (or $11 US dollars). I am glad that I did. The frantic rush through the gate for seating was crazy. Before getting on the train, I heard a young man speaking english and struck up a conversation. His name was Nick and he was an architect student at Pratt University in NJ doing an internship in Tianjin. He was taking the Beijing train for work and was really enjoying his stay. I told him about Drew and the 50 students from UW. I suggested to Nick if he needed some down time with some college students, give Drew a call. It was fun to talk to him!!
The train ride was quick. Tianjin and Beijing are about 60 miles apart. The ride was less than 30 minutes with one stop in Wijung. The landscape between Tianjin and Beijing was half agriculture and half high-rise apartments. Upon arrival the tourist guide, Leo, from Orient Travel, met me and took me to my hotel, Shangri-La, on the west side of Beijing. I unpacked my stuff and went out exploring. For dinner I went to the "hot pot" restaurant down the street and enjoyed the meal. I called it an early evening and knew that 8:00 a.m. would come quick for a day full of sightseeing.
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