This was our final night in Shanghai, and I found myself awake at 2 am. Was it the anticipation of boarding our first high-speed train in the morning? No, it was more about adjusting to the time zone change. I gave up on trying to sleep and focused on my notes and photographs. I was still struggling with the mobile version of Lightroom, which insisted on saving everything in the cloud, causing significant delays. Eventually, I opted to use Google Photos for basic edits during the trip and planned to refine everything in Lightroom at home. I really missed my computer. After breakfast, we returned to our room to finish packing. By 9:15 am, we were downstairs, greeted by our friendly guide from our first day. The ride to the station took about forty minutes. I experienced a brief moment of panic as we neared an airport, thinking, "Surely, they know we’re catching a train!" But of course, they did; the train station was right next to it, all part of a large complex that included the Hongqiao International Airport and the Hongqiao Railway Station. I was grateful to have our guide with us for our initial experience with Chinese train travel. At the entrance, we had to step aside to let an officer scan our passports. All train tickets in China are digital and linked to identity documents, which for foreigners are passports. Then we went through security, which was similar to boarding a flight but less cumbersome. We didn’t have to remove anything from our bags before sending them through the scanner. The station was quite impressive; it opened in 2010 and is the terminus for several high-speed trains. Our next step was checking the large electronic board for our gate. The guide took us across the terminal, asking some passengers to move so we could sit together. He communicated our instructions using a translation app and hand gestures, as he didn’t speak English. He pointed out the gate for passengers needing assistance, which also included us since we needed our passports scanned. It was labeled the Kind Help Channel in English, but he referred to it as the “Love Channel.” We later checked Google Translate and saw that it indeed showed that. We bid farewell to our guide, which included a hug. We truly appreciated him and would have happily taken him along through the Love Channel to the train, as he could have accompanied us throughout our journey. We had many wonderful guides in China who spoke English, but he was the sweetest. The station was bustling with people; Chinese trains transport about 13 million passengers daily, and this station sees around three to four hundred thousand passengers each day. We lined up early, and everything seemed to be going smoothly. Then it was time to board, and everyone surged forward. Some people from the side of the Love Channel pushed ahead of us. A group of foreign tourists followed their guide who pushed through without getting scanned. Despite being among the first to line up, we ended up being among the last passengers to pass through the Love Channel. Po went first, and her passport ticket scanned without issue. Mine, however, wouldn’t scan, but the agent gestured for me to go through. I wouldn’t be so lucky in the days to come. We descended to the track level and made our way to the front of the train. Our day trips were all on high-speed trains in first-class carriages located at the end of the trains, but we never knew which end would be ours, sometimes resulting in a long walk. There are three types of high-speed trains in China, classified as G, D, or C. G trains are the fastest, reaching up to 350 kph, D trains go 250 kph, and C trains run at 200 kph. Overall, we would take five high-speed trains: two G and three D. This train was a G, G1924, traveling between Shanghai and Xian, though we were only heading partway to Luoyang. We were the only foreigners in our carriage. We had seen the tour group at the Love Channel, but they must have been in second class. The train accommodated hundreds of passengers, as Chinese trains can hold over 1,000 people. Our carriage was quite comfortable, with seats arranged in pairs. First class wasn’t the best on this train, as there was a business class at the front with large pod-like seats. I contemplated going in but decided against it, taking a photo from outside instead. They served us crackers with two types of snacks and water, a service only provided on our two G trains. Although the ride wasn’t particularly scenic, it was interesting. There were few stretches without people or extensive farmland. We passed windmills, solar panel fields, and atomic power plants, along with massive housing complexes filled with towering buildings. They provided homes for many but weren’t aesthetically pleasing. We arrived at Luoyang station right on time; you could set your watch
It was our final night in Shanghai, and I found myself awake at 2 am. Was it due to the anticipation of boarding our first high-speed train in the morning? No, I was still getting used to the new time zone.