fter almost literally dropping into China from Kyrgyzstan, descending
some 9000 vertical feet into Kashgar, we faced one of our stiffest
transportation tests -- a 43 hour bus ride! Kashgar is the only
sizeable city in SW China, and is therefore a major trading hub for
goods travelling between China, Central Asia, India and Pakistan.
Unfortunately for us, the railroad is still working its way across the
vast desert region of Western China and has not yet reached Kashgar.
Though we could have taken the easy way out and flown, we opted for
the experience and adventure of a "sleeper" bus.
he bus is aptly
described by its name. As we stuck our heads in the door, we saw that
the interior was lined on either side with bunk beds, ending with a
two-layered "mosh pit" in the rear. Eyeing the mosh pit, we were
thankful that beds #1 and #2 were pre-assigned to us. Still, after
the driver looked at Dave’s ticket and pointed to the bottom bunk
directly behind his seat, we were surprised when he did the exact same
thing for Jill. It was one of the many times that we were thankful for
each other -- shocked to think that as a solo traveler, either of us
could have looked forward to the ultimate in cross-cultural experiences:
43 hours in bed with a lugie-hacking, chain-smoking local who spoke not
one word of English. Later in our travels we met two guys who did the
same trip, but had a bit more to brag about. They had survived the
mosh pit, complete with several undiapered kids!
he journey itself was not too bad (though 43 hours is probably too much
for anyone), and Dave enjoyed the luxury of stretching out his large
frame while travelling, even on a bed that was four inches too short!
In true third world style, we experienced the absolute power of a bus driver
during a dinner stop. We all filed off the bus and the three drivers
locked the bus as they went off to eat. An hour later the sun had set,
the temperature was dropping, and most of the passengers had been
milling about the bus for a while when one of the drivers finally
appeared to unlock the bus. In a flash he was gone again however,
and we were left waiting in the dark for another 90 minutes while the
drivers finished watching the film they had gotten engrossed in over
dinner. Finally, we arrived in Urumqi tired and bedraggled from the journey.
Sleeper buses allow for some sleep, but maybe not a whole lot of rest!
fter almost literally dropping into China from Kyrgyzstan, descending
some 9000 vertical feet into Kashgar, we faced one of our stiffest
transportation tests -- a 43 hour bus ride! Kashgar is the only
sizeable city in SW China, and is therefore a major trading hub for
goods travelling between China, Central Asia, India and Pakistan.
Unfortunately for us, the railroad is still working its way across the
vast desert region of Western China and has not yet reached Kashgar.
Though we could have taken the easy way out and flown, we opted for
the experience and adventure of a "sleeper" bus.
he bus is aptly
described by its name. As we stuck our heads in the door, we saw that
the interior was lined on either side with bunk beds, ending with a
two-layered "mosh pit" in the rear. Eyeing the mosh pit, we were
thankful that beds #1 and #2 were pre-assigned to us. Still, after
the driver looked at Dave’s ticket and pointed to the bottom bunk
directly behind his seat, we were surprised when he did the exact same
thing for Jill. It was one of the many times that we were thankful for
each other -- shocked to think that as a solo traveler, either of us
could have looked forward to the ultimate in cross-cultural experiences:
43 hours in bed with a lugie-hacking, chain-smoking local who spoke not
one word of English. Later in our travels we met two guys who did the
same trip, but had a bit more to brag about. They had survived the
mosh pit, complete with several undiapered kids!
