The Train! The Train!

 We decided to take the train for several reasons.  1.  It was cheaper.  2.  There was a bullet train (which can take 4-5 and a half hours). When not near a city they travel at about 300 kilometers per hour.  3.  There are over 10 trains a day--so lots of choices of when to leave.  4.  The train station is connected with the subway--so we took it to our hotel.  5.  It was nice to see some of the country side.

We basically had NO idea what we were doing--so we guessed (successfully).  The train was super nice (even though we were in second class).  You don't have to check you bags and you can bring your own food aboard--hot water is even provided for tea or noodles.  Of course you have to face hoards of people in a hurry to get on, loud college students, and some interesting smells.  It's a cultural experience.

There is a lot more space between the seats and Ana found lots of friends to play with.  We did need help in Beijing to find our train--thank goodness for a kind English speaking college student.  If we were staying, we would definitely use the train system again!