Travelling to Qinghai (青海)
9 June 2019.
This was the day Christine and I would go on our seperate ways. She would be catching a flight back to Singapore whilst I would continue my Overland Journey by taking a bullet train from Urumqi City to Xining, the capital of neighbouring Qinghai Province.
We had noodles for breakfast at the food store next to our Bespoke Bestay Hostel at about 0842 hr. After that, I made a trip to the nearby Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) branch. When we first landed in Urumqi, I had made a trip down to this particular branch to withdraw cash, only to find that my PIN number did not work. As a non-Chinese passport holder, they will need 7 days to process a PIN number reset. Since I would be returning to Urumqi after travelling to Kansas, I thought I would be able to get a new PIN number that day but alas, the ICBC branch would not be open till 1000 hr. As my train to Xining would depart at 1100 hr, I could not afford to wait and decided to leave a thank you note.
Leaving a Thank You note at the main door. 0902 hr.
Urumqi Railway Station. 1025 hr. I had the second class seat this time for the long journey ahead.
Landscape changes en route. The gradual change from a rocky terrain to snow covered peaks of Urumqi to the green gorges as I travelled south towards Qinghai province was interesting itself.
My snacks on the train. I had bought them back at Urumqi Railway Station as food sold on the bullet train itself would be more expensive.
The train pulled into Xining, provincial capital of Qinghai Province on the dot at 2115. From this moment on without Christine, my sturdy travel companion by my side, I will be alone without internet access on Xining’s streets. I had to get to the hostel as quickly as possible. Xining’s provincial Railway Station was huge like other provincial railway centers, I must have walked past countless car rentals and shops that advertised single day tours. The queue for cabs in the basement was horrendously long. The line was snaking through each corner, I could not believe everyone simply waited in line for their turn. There were no cabs in sight at all, the line was not even moving. I had to get a public bus and pulled out my phone for the screenshot I took of my hostel’s address.
Xining Railway Station at 2126 hr. A snaking line for local cabs as pictured in the centre image.
I followed the signs for buses to the city, there were too many of them serving different routes throughout the city but after asking a few strangers, I found my bus, a 1号路. I scanned through the names of the different bus stops 1号路 made which were listed on a board and started panicking as none of those stops seemed recognizable and without internet access, I had no means of checking if I was getting the right bus. I wasn’t the only confused individual. An elderly man started approaching a friendly family about his confusion, they looked at his address on hand and recommended him a stop along the bus route. With neither internet nor a SIM card to call my hostel, I could only ask for their help. They were extremely friendly and pointed out the bus stop I should get off at (1号路在大十字下车) simply by looking at the screenshot address on my phone. “You’ll still have to walk though.” they said. I decided that I had no other choice, I had to first get as close to my hostel as possible. Unfortunately, the eldery man would get off from a different stop, otherwise we could have looked out for each other. Like myself, he seemed unfamiliar with his surroundings and I was worried if he would eventually get to his destination as I was for myself.
I got off at the recommended bus stop. It started to pour. I had no idea how to get to the hostel from here. I was without any maps for guidance. To make matters worse, it was started to pour and everyone who had previously alighted from the bus I was on gathered under the shelter of this bus stop. That was alright, I had the address, I simply had to ask around at this bus stop. I showed another elderly man who was standing at the bus stop the address on my phone, he replied that he can’t see. Reading out the address to him, a lady and her daughter who had also alighted from the bus I was on overhead and approached me, claiming that it would be better to take a cab there. She herself was waiting for a cab with her daughter and suggested for us to move to another area to wait as it was hard to flag down a cab at this bus stop. The rain was relentless, I was adequately clothed but even with the shelter of the bus stop, we were trying to shield ourselves from the cold and fierce splatter of raindrops. I decided to follow the lady and her daughter. We ran out of the bus stop, with the lady in lead. I had never experienced bigger rain. Her daughter and I tried to keep up, she was going rather fast and my backpack was weighing me down. I was drenched and nearly slipped. Finally the ordeal was over, the lady brought us to another bus stop further down across the street. She was right, a cab soon drove by, I flagged it down and waved both mother and daughter in first, in gratitude for their assistance. They expressed their thanks and left with words of assurance. I tried to dry myself, whilst waiting for the next cab to arrive. I was then faced with a rude shock when I realized that the only OPPO phone I had which I depended on for internet access to any broadband service in Mainland China restarted itself again and again. I had observed a similar occurrence before and whilst the rainwater might have been the cause, I knew very well that the phone will be non-functional and would keep on restarting till it’s battery died out. I could not even shut down the phone. What was worse was the realization that even if I got to the hostel, I would not be able to contact anyone online as the only phone I relied on to do so in my two weeks in Xinjiang is now malfunctioning. I still had my main Google phone, which is unspoilt but practically useless in China though it was a saving grace for now as I had previously saved a copy of the hostel’s address on both phones. Even with my malfunctioning OPPO phone, I could still refer to the screenshot of the address on my Google phone.
Pouring rain that chills one to the bones. 2213 hr.
With the state of my OPPO phone, fear was starting to sink itself into me and I simply wanted to get to the hostel as soon as possible. There was a lot to think through, my spoilt OPPO phone might mean that I would have to cut short my journey in China if I still could not purchase a SIM card here in Xining. Even with a local SIM there was still the fear that it would not work on my Google phone. All along, I always could rely on WIFI with my OPPO phone, but with it now spoilt, I would be contactless.
I managed to flag down a cab which took me to the address. I grew increasingly alert, a growing sense of fear within me as the cab cruised down a narrow, seemingly dark alleyway. “Your hostel’s here.” the cab driver said, stopping in the middle of seemingly empty building.
“I don’t see anything.” I said. He took a look at my address and drove around the alleyway, pointing out each building numbers as we pass. We came to the same building again. Indeed, the building number corresponded to the one I had on my phone. I paid the cab driver and alighted. The glass doors of the building seemed to be auto locked. There was a lift lobby inside, it seemed nothing like a hostel. It wasn’t long before I spotted the words, “LETE HOSTEL” on the side wall. It was rather big, just that it had been hidden from view in the direction my cab was approaching the building from. The door would not budge. The noise I made alerted a security guard who emerged from their rest area to unlock the door. I was instructed to take the lifts to the 15th floor. This was the first time I had come across a hostel located in a residential block. I was fearing what I was about to see when the lift doors opened.
I pressed the doorbell. Nothing happened. I pushed open the door, hoping I have finally reached my destination. A young man in green shirt that bore the name of the hostel looked up from the reception area. He processed my registration in silence.
“It’s pouring outside isn’t it?” he asked. I appreciated that he did not comment on my drenched appearance.
“Yes, it rained out of a sudden.” I replied.
He handed me the key to my dormitory. “Sorry, would it be possible to use your computer to contact my family?” I blurted out. That was my only chance. He looked at me and the two phones in my hand. “My Chinese OPPO phone was spoilt in the rain just now.” I explained. “And my other phone, it’s Google, it doesn’t work in China.”
“You can use my phone. Do you have Instagram or Facebook? You can message your parents with my account.”
I stared at him in total disbelief. I was only intending to send an email to my parents with his computer and had not expected such a gesture. I almost broke down as he handed me his phone and I typed my messages. I retired for the night, glad that this heart stopping day was finally over but I had things to face up to the next day.
Message to my mum.
Settling down for the night in the four bed dorm, 0022 hr. I was the only guest that day in this room.
10 June 2019.
This day was supposedly my planned sightseeing day in Xining. Instead, I started the day early by hunting for a mobile repair shop. I was cautious with my route, I had to track every direction I turned towards and each bus I took so that I could get back to the hostel at the end of the day. In any case, I had also taken out the hostel’s name card with its address on it. I visited two local repair stores with no avail. My OPPO phone had already exhausted its battery power but when connected to a charging outlet, was still restarting itself over and over again automatically. At the same time, I also asked to buy a local SIM card at every mobile shop I saw. Like in Xinjiang, I was turned down repeatedly, the shop owners stated that they could only sell the cards to registered Chinese ID card holders.
As if luck would have it, I chanced upon an OPPO service center. Never mind if the mobile repair shops could not fix it, I was going straight to the phone’s manufacturer. I was hopeful as I waited in line. They even had three professional engineers with eye googles working on site, screwing bits and pieces onto the components of customer’s phones. If my OPPO phone could be fixed, I would be able to have access online whenever there’s public WIFI which would give me information about my next destination and allow me contact with my family.
“Where did you buy this model from?” the service lady asked.
“Singapore.” I replied.
“This problem is not uncommon.” she said.
Just as things seemed hopeful, she turned to a group of colleagues. One of them presumably the manager later approached, saying that they could fix it, but only in Guangzhou Province. I couldn’t believe my ears. “You mean there are no available components here?” I was almost pleading. “I’m sorry. It’s because your phone was bought overseas. Only our headquarters in Guangzhou has the available parts to repair international phones.” It didn’t make sense but I somehow was able to take it in stride. Fair enough. They were also at a loss. I thanked them and left.
A futile search around the city for an OPPO phone repair shop and a suitable Chinese SIM card that morning.
By mid afternoon, I was in despair. No retailer would sell me a local SIM card and I could not revive my OPPO phone. My Google phone stayed strong, but was not functional except for picture taking which I was not in the mood for. It could be very well my last day in China, with no means of contacting anyone, I knew my next option was to buy a flight ticket home back to Singapore. I still had something to settle though and whilst it would not help my current situation, I decided to take the chance to get it done whilst I was still in China.
I went to the bank where I had an account in the Mainland. I needed to reset the password on my Chinese bank card as I had carelessly forgotten it after two years of non-usage. I was served almost immediately and was dealt with probably the final straw. For non Mainland Chinese passport holders, the password reset could only be done in 7 days.
I teared up at the thought of not being able to get anything done. Besides feeling upset that I had to cut my trip short, I felt so handicapped – to buy my air ticket home, I need to head back to the hostel and trouble the receptionist to help me check. I could not even do online payments. This wasn’t the ending I wanted to face up to. My emotions must have overwhelmed me for a bank manager soon came up to me. She was a short haired lady in her thirties and in a minute, I told her everything. She listened, growing wide eyed with each passing second. “Oh no, what should we do?” she exclaimed. “Isn’t there anyone you know here?”
I was in a distressed state of mind by this time. Somehow in my confusing narration of events, she must have thought that I had some money in my bank account which password I had forgotten and was tearing because I could not get the money out to buy an air ticket home. The bank manager took it upon herself to help me out, although in actuality, my bank account had nothing to do with my current situation. I had simply wanted to reset the password for future usage. Taking charge, she sussed out that the first thing I needed was a local SIM card. With the new enforcement rules, that would mean I would need to register under a citizen’s ID. She said she would love to help me out but she did not bring her ID card out today. Instead, she called on her assistant, a girl who had served me earlier. It turned out that she was my age and had just started working for the bank after graduation. Her assistant was instructed to bring me to get a local SIM. I knew it wasn’t an easy decision for them. If anything went wrong, they would be held accountable as they were sacrificing their ID card to register a number for a stranger. The bank manager instructed the girl to help me to the best she could, if the retailers really needed her ID card, then maybe they would just have to give up. We left the bank, the girl and I. She was trying to comfort me, insisting that we would be able to find a retailer who would sell me a local SIM. I felt indebted to them for their concern but this time, I did not hold my hopes high.
As we went around the neighbourhood, we tried to connect my Google phone to her hotspot. As usual, it did not work. The first few mobile shops we tried turned us away. In the last mobile shop, someone told us that I could get a SIM card, but only from the headquarters of China Mobile a distance away. The girl started looking for the address of the headquarters and wrote it down for me on paper. She called her manager to inform her of our whereabouts. We were parting here, the headquarters was a bus ride away and she was not able to accompany that far during her office hours. She then searched the directions to the headquarters and wrote them down. I thanked her profusely. She wanted to say something, but stopped herself.
“Why?” I asked.
“I wanted to ask for your phone number to make sure everything’s ok but then I realize you don’t have a number.” she said.
“I hope I will be able to get it at the headquarters.”
“I’m sure you will. The headquarters should be the answer.”
I wasn’t sure how to feel as I boarded the bus to the headquarters. The headquarters had two storeys, I decided to try my luck on the first storey. “I don’t think they can sell you a SIM card..” the customer service officer started. I did not have my hopes high anyway. “Maybe you can try upstairs.” she suggested. Stepping on the escalators, I braced myself for the outcome I expected. Perhalps I should save up all this energy to pack my bags and search for an air ticket home at the hostel.
“Hello, can I use my passport to buy a local SIM?” I asked.
Unexpectedly to my greatest amazement, this customer service officer nodded. I held my breath and handed her my passport. It wasn’t time to be joyful yet, I must wait till I get the SIM card working. It felt too good to be true.
In a few minutes, I got my SIM card. Now I had another problem. This customer service officer was not able to help me with it, I could only hope the SIM card would work on my Google phone. Rushing down to the first level, I topped up my card value and made a call to my parents. The call got through. I was so relieved, there was so much to say and I didn’t want to hang up. When I eventually did, I checked the mobile data. That didn’t work. But I was already elated that I could at least make calls to my family with the SIM card. I immmediately made a 200 yuan cash top up so that I would still be able to make calls without the use of mobile data.
Without internet access, I would have problems getting around. Although I could make calls with the new SIM, my Google phone would not connect to Wifis hotspots as usual. I started to look around for a second hand phone shop. Picking up a Vivo phone with a malfunctioning camera for 270 yuan, the shopkeeper made sure my new SIM card worked with the Vivo and gave me a free USB to connect to the charger. I was grateful enough. I was finally online! On Chinese e-space. The Vivo phone was characteristically Chinese, with a ton of unfamiliar apps loaded onto it. It had WeChat, which was good enough for contacting my family.
With all smiles, I turned on the mobile data on the Vivo and directed myself back to the hostel with its map navigation function. Connectivity had never felt so convenient. I may have incurred a ton of expenses on the sideline but it was a much better alternative than buying a plane ticket home when I was barely halfway into my journey. It was around 1800 when I could heave a sigh and relax. My spoilt OPPO phone won’t matter anymore.
Stopped for a bowl of 10 yuan noodles (炸酱面) at 1640 hr.
Celebrated the end of a distressing day with an ice cream cone and tea, both were purchased at a total of 6 yuan. 1754 hr.
“I spent the rest of the day taking a public bus to an Underground Mall (十大字) to shop for a jacket. Managed to find a lightweight one at 69 yuan, which I later learnt that it was not meant for keeping warm, but rather preventing UV rays from penetrating the skin. Once the Undergound Mall closed at 2000 hr, I decided to return back to the hostel for an early night. There was a direct bus from the Underground Mall (十大字公交站) back to the hostel for 1 yuan.
Your parents replied.” the receptionist at the hostel said as I walked in. He was the same young man yesterday who had lent me his phone to contact my parents. “What did they say?” I piqued, looking over at his phone.
That exchange of messages was something I would have never expected from a stranger. I thanked him.
I stayed at the hostel for three nights, instead of the planned 2 nights due to the phone incident when I first arrived in Xinning. An additional night was 60 yuan. Over the next three days I stayed at the hostel, I learnt that he studied in India. That’s how he had instant access to Facebook and Instagram on his phone. He was also extremely helpful, taking time to look up tutorials to help install VPN and Google apps on my Vivo phone. Somehow Chinese phones reject the installation of those banned apps if you try to install them in China. Even with the APK 安装包. He had installed his banned apps whilst in India. Although the efforts proved futile in the end, he had been a great help and I could not thank him enough.
After all the drama, I was more than ready to enjoy the rest of my journey. I signed up for a one day tour to Qinghai Lake (青海湖) where a private driver drove myself and three other participants around for the day.
Received confirmation for my overland train ticket purchase from Bangkok in Thailand to Padang Besar in Malaysia. 0036 hr.