I made the decision just 10 minutes before leaving home, so no travel plan during the trip...

Stuffs with me include:
* a map of China - RMB$ 10 (US$ 1 = RMB$ 8.2)
* a railway train guide - RMB$ 4
* a book (prentice hall's computer networks) - for reading on the train
* an e-dict, for reading aid
* a SONY DCR-PC115E digital video camera
* a USB cable for the camera, for transfer photos in an Internet cafe
* a Panasonic ED-GD88 mobile telephone
* money, certainly...

I left my home city by railway train ride 4432 at 2006-04-21 20:16 local time (UTC+08:00). I had a hard sleeper (RMB$ 77) for the 515-kilometer trip and arrived in Datong at 05:07.

Image #1: Datong railway station


I left Datong by ride 2141 at 2006-04-22 05:33 on a hard sleeper. I purchase the ticket on the train, so it cost me RMB$ 85 (the normal price was RMB$ 80) for the 285-kilometer ride. The ticket price was much higher since the train is air-conditioned. The train is crowded, so when I saw another train to the same direction at Hohhot railway station, I decided to go with that one. The train depart from Hohhot at 10:30, for a 676-kilometer trip to Yinchuan. It arrived at Yinchuan at 20:07. I had a hard seat and the ticket took me RMB$ 47.

Image #2: The train of ride L265 from Hohhot to Yinchuan


Image #3: Wuhai railway station, 150 kilometers to Yinchuan. The station is in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, so you can see both Chinese and Mongolian text.


Image #4: Yellow River along the railway near Wuhai


Image #5: Sunset near Yinchuan, at 19:28 UTC+08:00


Image #6: Yinchuan railway station


I left Yinchuan in the morning on the next day by ride K43 at 06:56 for a 419-kilometer trip and arrived at Wuwei railway station at 13:54.

Image #7: Wuwei railway station


Image #8: The railway station square of Wuwei


The next stop would be Jinchang. I was going to see this city because I believe it will be one of the favorite site to see the 2008-08-01 total solar eclipse. But I changed my decision after visiting this city, and decide to go to Altai to see the eclipse in 2008.

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Jinchang railway station located at Hexibao town, 74 kilometers away from Wuwei railway station, and about 20 kilometers away from Jinchang city, so I have to pay RMB$ 2 yuan to take a bus for there. Jinchang is a small city and has about 400 thousand of population.

Image #9: The train at Jinchang railway station, April 23 16:02 UTC+08


Image #10: Jinchang railway station


Image #11: A shopping street in Jinchang


Image #12: Jinchang city square


I left Jinchang for Liuyuan railway station in the evening, and arrived in Liuyuan in the morning on April 24. Liuyuan is a small town, about 130 kilometers away from Dunhuang. A passenger railway to Dunhuang is completed but not open until the next month, so travelers have to take a taxi from Liuyuan to Dunhuang, a four-passenger car cost RMB$ 30 to cross the desert. Dunhuang is tourist destination, for its Mogao Caves and other places. You can read more about Mogao Caves by Googling or on Wikipedia. The station in Liuyuan is about 1800 meters above the sea level, but Dunhuang is only 1100 meters above, the car covers the 130-kilometer long trip in about an hour.

Image #13: The road from Dunhuang to Mogao Caves, where about 20 kilometers southeast to downtown Dunhuang. A taxi cost RMB$ 70 from downtown Dunhuang to Mogao Caves site, the driver waits for you there for hours and take you back to Dunhuang


Image #14: Notice to the Visitors, Mogao Caves


Image #15: The Mogao Grottoes


Image #16:

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Image #17: Dunhuang city


Image #18: The road from Dunhuang to railway station in Liuyuan


I purchased a railway train ticket to Urumqi, about 825 kilometers away from Liuyuan, and arrived at Urumqi railway station at 08:20 UTC+08:00 on April 25. Urumqi is a large city, and the most distant city from sea in the world.

Image #19: Urumqi railway station


In the evening on April 25, I decided to go to Alashankou, a small town near the border of Kazakstan. It is about 476 kilometers away from Urumqi, and only one train a day. I purchased the train ride 5801 departed from Urumqi railway station at 21:59 and arrived at Alashankou at 08:50 on April 26. I had a hard sleeper, which cost me RMB$ 108.

Image #20: Inside the train to Alashankou


Image #21: Ebi-Nor Lake (Aibihu) railway station


Image #22: Bole railway station


Image #23: The train


Image #24: Sunrise at Ebi-Nor Lake

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Alashankou is at 45.2 degrees north 82.6 degrees east, 34 degrees west to Beijing, but all the country use Beijing time, or UTC+08:00, so the sunrise was at 07:40 in the morning. I arrived at Alashankou railway station at 08:50, the station is about 3 or 4 kilometers away from the border.

Image #25:


Image #26: The border


Image #27: The railway to Kazakstan


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Image #31: Alashankou


Image #32:


I arrived home this morning. The total distance traveled was 8315 kilometers, took 9 days from April 21 to April 30, the price of the tickets was RMB$ 1028 (~US$ 125), or 0.1236 yuan per kilometer.

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