Overnight from Datong to Xi'an

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I took the hard sleeper from Datong to Xi'an - a trip of 16.5 hours. I ended up in a really old train car, maybe it was added because of demand. Hard to describe - the bunk was a thinly foam covered peice of painted plywood. I ended up on the middle bunk again, so had to climb some thin metal rails to get into bed.
The route was a milk run - we stopped every hour or so in some small village to drop people off/pick up passengers. The consierge for our car would come through to yell at people that they were supposed to get off and flash his light to show new passengers to their seats. Someone over rode their stop and an lengthy arguement ensued. The men in the bunks around me kept talking late into the night. Not the best night for rest!
I spent some time with some young travellers from the UK. They took the Trans Siberian across Russia for three weeks. I am spending the next two days in Xian with them.
Although I regularily butcher the Mandarin language, I am remembering more of what I learned so long ago. It has been handy - when I watch how lost the UK travellers are without basic Mandarin.

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