on entering China from Vietnam

Crossing the Vietnam China border at Dong Dang – Pingxiang is straightforward and normal. People do it all the time.  But when your bus arrives 2 hours late and your driver tries to convince you that its closed and you should stay in a hotel by refusing to drive up it can all be made a bit less amenable that you would think. But convincing person after person that you really do want to get across that night can get you on a bit of a roll. The Vietnamese guard was even happy to see me leave, shaking my hand and pointing in the direction of pitch black sent me on my way.

The unlit 200m walk had a bit of time for doubts to enter, and these were realised when I walked into an empty immigration hall and climbed over 3 gates saying ‘Ni Hao’ loudly enough for people to hear and surely get that I was not attempting the crossing in secret. They were friendly as when they came out but were clearly on their way home and I was the last one to be let across. Again the darkness, and I got vague directions from a guard to go through the gate. The gate is old style Chinese like the one at Tiananmen and well impressive in the dark but eery enough for the wanderer. Next I startle a singing guard, and am living large enough to get a light in my face. Its a curious thing when trying to look like you know what your’e doing actually has that effect, and I am waved on into the dark.

By this stage my bus was halfway on its way to Guangzhou and I hadn’t a notion what would need to be done next. but two people were standing at the bottom of the lane. One a driver for hire, the other as it turned out a driver. The boy points to his BMW and says sure him and his wife will drive me to Nanning (300km) and I can get a train from there. Nae bother.

Highlights of this were a trad Chinese orchestral version of the Raggle Taggle Gypsy at 150 clicks per hour and being told they were going to sell me to the ‘bad’ people.

Lowlight was sitting in an internet cafe in Nanning from 11pm to 5am waiting for the slow train to Guangzhou.