One of the things I am looking forward to the most about this journey is extensive travel by rail. On many trips with time restraints, I end up taking more buses than trains for reasons of scheduling, as it is often much easier to go on one of many daily buses. In most countries outside of Europe, the train is often much slower than buses as well, creating a dilemma.
China has a lot of people, and a lot of trains. From all accounts, half the country is always seemingly boarding the same train as you, no matter what your destination and no matter what time. I can deal with this, as the reward of train travel starts when the train pulls out of the station. You can enjoy the scenery more peacefully, many trains are open air, and taking photos on or of trains is about a million times more successful than any taken aboard buses.
The map above shows the various lines in the China rail system, of which I plan to spend about six weeks hopping from town to town. My roommate from Shanghai will probably snicker when I say my Mandarin is improving, but one of my most important goals for this trip is to be able to speak as much with people in China as possible. Mandarin obviously does not guarantee me conversations with everyone, but I think it will give me better insight when talking with some people. I would hate to only have the perspectives of those that have learned English.
I will be writing about these adventures to no end, but to those with an interest now, I recommend checking out Paul Theroux's Riding the Iron Rooster: By Train Through China.
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