Chinese countryside

Overnight Train to Beijing

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March 25th 2009
I am writing this on the train from Hangzhou to Beijing. It is about 8pm, and we are all drifting into sleep. Had another fit of the giggles in our group as we loaded onto the train and found our sleeping car. Not sure what we had in mind, but it certainly must have been something bigger than this!! We have 4 bunks, an upper and lower on each side of a 2-foot aisle. We loaded ourselves in, co ... read more

Asia » China » Beijing

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For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. A... ... read more