Did I really make it to Kunming? ;-)

My last day in Sanya was a beatiful one. 30 degrees and the sun was shining. So I went to the beach, a Chinese beach. And that means when the Chinese make something their own, they add tons of kitsch. Yep, floating tyres, airmatrasses, floating bubbles, pedalboats, parasailing, hawaiian outfits... it was all there. I for one have never seen a beach turned into an adult playground like the one in Sanya. It was hilarious. Except maybe the big telelens camera's pointing in my direction... that was more uncomfortable than hilarious. But in the end it was worth it. At night we had a little birthday celebration for one of the other guests at my hostel and we ended up going to the beach at midnight watching the fireworks! A perfect ending to my sunny day!

Friday was the day I was gonna get off the Island. I got that busticket out from Haikou and so all I had to do was go to the East busstation at 6pm where my bus would leave at 7pm. Easy! Or so I tought.

You see, getting to Hainan was very easy. I took a nighttrain in Guangzhou and when we got to the sea, they loaded the whole train on a ferry bringing us across to the Island. Yeah, it was a bit stormy that day, but in the end I didn't have to do anything except stay in bed and get off in Haikou trainstation. I figured that once I get on that bus, it would be smooth sailing like that again. Little did I know! ;-)

Noon in Sanya I decided to already catch a train to Haikou. Way to early, but something told me it's better to be early than late. When I got to the trainstation there were hundreds of people waiting at the ticket office. I see a short line, not sure why nobody is taking that one, but I go. The military agents waiting in that same line just smile at me and one even allows me to go first. I don't know if I'm actually allowed to be in that line, but it saves me a whole lot of waiting! Haha! And when soldiers are okay with it... who will dare to say something! ;-)

It turns out all the trains are full and the one at 4:15 pm is the earliest one I can take. That means I won't get to Haikou till 5:40 pm. That's close, but I figure if I take a taxi everything will be okay. When I arrive in Haikou I'm first out the train, I run downstairs to the taxistand and nope... nobody wants to take me. What is wrong? I can't ask anyone, they can't explain it to me, so there is only one solution: keep trying. I wave my ticket around and taxi after taxi signals me 'no' untill finally one stops and he will take me for 40 yuan. A rip-off, but I have to get there... now! It's 6 pm, so no time to waste. But how do you explain that you are already late when you don't speak a common language. The bastard picks up two more people and drops them off first. I see 6:30 pm on the clock and all kinds of disaster scenarios start popping up in my head. I will be stuck here till tuesday, I'm gonna have to pay hundreds of euros for a planeticket... pfff, just hurry! Hurry? The driver asks to see my ticket again because he's not quit sure where he has to take me. Are you kidding me? I think my heart just skipped a beat... Finally at 6:48 pm he drops me off at a place that could be a busstation. I run to the entrance and see at least 100 people in front of me in a line. No, I'm not gonna make it. A chinese man looks at my ticket and starts talking to me pointing in a different direction and he finally brings me to a policeofficer that points towards a bus parking lot. They both actually look more nervous than me now, yelling and pointing in that direction. So I rush there and start making my way in between the busses. It's like a videogame. The busses are parked so close to each other that sometimes I have to go back 'cos my backpack can't get through. I ask drivers the way showing my ticket and they all point to the front of the busstand. What? All I can come up with is that my bus left and is somewhere in this lot, so I have to look for it, and how do you do that not reading Chinese?! Finally the driver of the first bus points at a small building on the right that has 2 busses parked in front of it. Hallelujah! I think...

No, it's not my bus. So where is my bus? I don't know because they keep explaining me in Chinese, and all I can understand is that I have to wait there. It's 7:05 pm... wait for what? The next bus, tomorrow? There's nothing else to do but to just stay there now, at least so I can calm down a bit and think of a solution. But finally at 7:20 pm they all start laughing and pointing... my bus has arrived! Time to go! Time to go? Really, that easy? Pff, think again!

I meet my 'group'; 6 giggling girls, 12 giggling boys, 2 women, 6 men and me, the tourist! Yep, they all have to laugh and have a closer look at me before we can proceed. Ha! We get a ticket and in group we have to leave the bus. It turns out this is not a busstation, but the ferry terminal. And so I skipped all checkpoints and stuff, but everything is okay, I can join them now. At least now I know why they were all laughing when I finally arrived! They tought I got lost because I didn't get on where they got on. Silly tourist! ;-)

We have to board the ferry on foot and then on the mainland the bus will pick us up again. Okay, let's go then. And we're off to the ferry... passport check first... me holding up the line because I'm the only one with a 'weird' passport, and then we reach the waiting room. Yep, the biggest waiting room I've ever seen in my life. I'm not kidding, there is sitting space for at least 1200 people and the people standing must be at least the same amount. WHAT??? They all go first and then we go, they tell us that we might have to wait an hour or two, but it turns into 4,5 hours. It isn't till midnight that we can go!

It's just crazy. Nobody seems to be bothered by this, they are extremely patient and every time a ferry leaves, the passengers have to stand in 2 straight lines. Like in the playground in school, and everybody does it. Talk about obedience!! Unbelieveable!

Me, I've got 3 guardian Angels. 3 men in their fourties are watching out for me. They call me when it's time to move, they point me to a seat on the ferry, they show me where I can smoke... no, we don't 'speak but there's a whole lot of 'communication' going on!

2 am we reach the other side and my eyes are heavy. We wait for the bus and of course ours is the one that gets stuck with the bottom on the boat... it's too close to the ground and they have to use extra boards to elevate it. There's a crowd looking at the dent, but I can't be bothered. Please, let me get on the bus and go go go!!! I sleep the whole way through and at 9 am we reach Nanning.

Cold, raining, even less English signs than before... what to do?! Well, first of all I'm getting my ticket to Kunming, leaving as soon as possible. I get a taxi and this time they are so sweet. I always show my destination in Chinese in the Lonely Planet and here it takes 3 of them to tell each other where to go, even the police gets involved! Well, it's not every day that you can get up close to a Westerner here! :-D

And then the trainstation. I wait in line, only 45 minutes and when I ask 'today' 'kunming'... she tells me '100 yuan' 'standing'... WHAT? That's 12 hours of standing! I want to get to Kunming, but standing up for 12 hours? No way, so I start waving and somehow she gets my point and says I can still go 'first class'. For 288 yuan! Oh yeah, give me that ticket!

My God, only 6 more hours and I'll be on that train to Kunming. I spend the day walking around in Nanning, finally buying a warm jacket. The eskimo-look is in fashion right now and when I bump into a real bargain, only 10 euro, I finally look just like them. Or well, a bit more like them. Nanning is sweet. Twice people come up to me to "Welcome in China! Hope you have nice time!" And no, they are not selling anything or want something from me. They could be spies for the Party... who knows, letting me know they are following me?! Ha! I don't care. How many countries have you been to where the people in the street come up to you to welcome you in their country?! How many?! No, none!! Only in China! And while I'm waiting for the train this familly starts feeding me mandarins and dried meat, which I decline, but they are so sweet. When I put on my backpack grandma is the first one to help me. She's 1.5 meter, bent from working too hard, at least 75 years old... but she helps me with my backpack! Adorable! ;-)

The trainride is smooth and earlier than expected I arrive in Kunming. It's 5 in the morning and all I have to do is go to the hostel. Eeeuh, it's dark and cold and early. So I have something to eat first and when it's 6:15 am I finally take a taxi to the hostel. Or at least, I was really close. The taxi dropped me off in the street but no hostel in sight. I start asking to the nightguards and in a fancy hotel, but no one seems to know this hostel. Goddamned! It's cold, I'm tired, this is a bit creepy. So I decide to rest in a breakfast restaurant and wait for the sun to rise. Finally at 8 o'clock I find it. I was so close all morning, but that little corner is the one I didn't turn... Well, I'm here, finally and... they're full?! Pfff, I just can't be bothered right now. First breakfast and coffee! When I ask them to call another hostel, they find me a bed! Now, I can relax! I have arrived in Kunming! I'm not hurt, not robbed, I'm still alive... a bit tired and full of stories, but I feel very good! Once again I made it without Chinese and the Chinese did nothing less than show me respect, take care of me and help me in any way they can!!