It’s about 21:50. We are on about nine stops and one transfer away from Beijing West Train Station and our train leaves at 22:16. Where did time go? How did this happen? Why didn’t I notice? The last time I looked at my phone we were eating Beijing duck and still had about two hours until the train left.
At that point we both knew that we would not make it. As a last resort to make it to the station in time my friend and I decide to exit the metro and try to flag down a taxi. In my mind I knew that even if we did get a taxi right away we would still to make it in time but we had to give it a go, unsuccessfully, of cours
If you would like to read about the events that lead to this moment CLICK HERE.
Defeated, after missing two trains in one day, we went back to the metro station hopeful of finding a quick and simple solution to our carelessness upon arrival to the train station. I have heard from friends that it is possible to trade tickets and that you can even return tickets for the full price. There was still a little bit of hope. Maybe there was even a later train than the one we missed!
“This ticket is no longer valid,” said the lady at the other side of ticket booth window. Turns out that you can exchange tickets and you can return them for full price, you just have to do it before the train’s departure time. Once the train starts to board all of these wonderful alternatives are lost and you are left with a pricy piece of paper, a stack of questions, cancelled plans, watery eyes and a stomachache.
There was no other train leaving for Chengdu that night. The next train left the next morning at 8 o’clock. In reality we would only arrive at Chengdu five hours later than if we wouldn’t have missed the train. The morning train made better time. There was only one problem. Money.
It was the end of the trip and both my friend and I were pretty low on cash. Since we had already bought the return ticket to Chengdu we didn’t really calculate such an expense into our budgets. Between the both of us we had enough money for only one ticket and some instant noodles. I still don’t have a working debit card because of the New Year’s incident and thus, no way of getting more money. My friend’s cards don’t work at either of the two ATMs in the station. It’s the middle of the night and there is no way to have money wired because all of the banks are closed. If we wait until morning when the banks are open the four remaining tickets for the 11:45 train will most likely be gone. The more we delayed the train the later we would get home. I had work Friday afternoon and my friend on Saturday. So there we were, sitting on our luggage, exchanging SIM cards out of dead devices trying to contact people that could help us get money for new train tickets.
It was past one in the morning and we were walking to find either a 24-hour restaurant to spend the night and get Wi-Fi or a different ATM to try the cards, and there they were. They spot foreigners thirty feet away. They speak enough English to drive you crazy before you even know what they are trying to sell you. I truly admire these people. They are out in the most uncomfortable conditions catching up to you on their bicycles while still keeping their one-of-a-kind peddler’s jingle on beat. I had never been a foreigner in another country before I came to China so I have nothing to compare this with but there they were, outside the train station closing in on two fresh targets.
We walked into a hotel across the street from the train station to ask for directions to an ICBC bank nearby but lucky for us there was a China Construction Bank ATM inside the hotel. She tried her cards again while I asked for directions. Thankfully there was no need to look for the other bank. The ATM worked! We had money for the train tickets! We walked back to the station; this time with our eyes watery from cheer.
First, when you realize that under no circumstance will make your train on time, you go to the train station to exchange your ticket. If you are luck and arrive at the ticket window even two minutes before your train is to depart you can most likely get new tickets. You might have to do some rescheduling in compliance with your new arrival time but not much else. If you get to the ticket window after your train is scheduled to board you will probably need to buy a new ticket. If you have the money on hand, Great! If not, you will have a unique, somewhat desolate story with hopefully a happy ending.
And that is how we were able to get new train tickets back to Chengdu. Now, Where did we spend the night? After all, the new train left in about six hours. There’s no real point in renting a hotel room. CLICK HERE to find out.
Me?China?Huh? 