From Beijing to Xian

First steps into the world of train

We take a taxi and ask the driver to take us to our hotel and then to the train station. We are stuck in traffic. Dad makes a sign that means that too much time has passed and that the battle is lost. I look at the sky and ask God (yes, what you don’t know is that I’m a believer and one of the most spiritual people in my surroundings), and I ask him if he can arrange things so that we don’t miss out train. And when I tell dad that we’re not going to miss the train he laughs. In the car, he tells me about the different deaths in the family; I like talking about the Iranian part of my family with him. At the hotel, we put the luggage in the taxi and since I’m really hungry dad buys me chips and some of the local ice tea; I find them delicious. Even dad eats some chips and says they’re good; that sure is a first! We get to the station and wait at least five minutes for Liu Jia who, when she arrives, tells us that the train has been delayed. That’s when I look up to the sky and thank God. Dad looks at me, laughs, gives me a high-five and makes a gesture that says “you were right son”. I was happy then because for me he’s not just a father but also a friend and a confidant, and it’s someone with who I’m happy to discuss the world with. After, we go to a restaurant in the station and I order a bowl of soup with noodles. That’s when the real learning begins, to do as the Chinese do. Since I have a large bowl, I put my left hand on my knee and with my other hand I take the chopsticks and tug at the noodles, devour them and drink the broth making lots of noise. There, I passed my exam. When they finish eating, dad and our assistant go for a walk to talk. As for me, I stay to write my text. When they come back, I finish correcting my text. I finish up and hurry to go get our things in a locker, and go to the platform where we are to take our train to Xian. I leave this strange station where people flow as if they were water drops from a faucet. We go towards our train and dad almost falls down the stairs from the weight of our luggage. Finally, we settle into our train compartment and put our things away. I read out loud my text to dad who is happy with the result. After that, I call Jianping’s friend in Xian to let him know that we are arriving tomorrow. Dad tells me we have a 26 hour train journey, but I think we have only 11. We ask the controller who confirms that I am right. Well yes, once again! We’re in the train, we have settled down and with our assistant I begin to review the National Geographic’s map of Iran. I set off to go to the bathroom. It’s quite obvious that it’s an old train: no electric plugs, and the toilets are small with a tiny sink and Turkish style toilets. I’m not really used to it, but I take my toothbrush and tiny travel-size toothpaste to stay minimally clean during the voyage and I sleep fully clothed. Now I am ready to sleep until we arrive around 10:30 the next morning, except if there is a problem but I think everything will go well.