Beijing: the seat of Chinese government, home of the Great Wall and the site of the 2008 Olympic Games. The ornate Summer Palace, historical Tiananmen Square and numerous other national treasures. In all, Beijing houses most of China’s tourist-worthy attractions. So, why is it then that only 12 people from the Jia have successfully made it to China’s historical jewel?
The simple answer would be that the Jia has been cursed. Through a series of unfortunate mishaps, accidents and mistakes, numerous members of the Jia have been forced to turn back or alter their plans. Time and time again students have run in to major roadblocks in getting to the capitol city. Our misfortunes did not go unnoticed. People in the Jia began to murmur, and then talk, and eventually the curse of Beijing was born.
The first group out missed the train by 10 minutes and was forced to select another destination. They spent the weekend in the nearby town of Huang Zou (west lake) and had a lovely little adventure.
The second group couldn’t get train tickets because they were sold out — nearly a week and a half in advance. This seems like a pretty mundane problem, but trains to Beijing leave nearly every hour from Shanghai and each seats a staggering number of people. It is very rare for every train to be completely booked.
The third group went to Beijing but managed to miss seeing the Great Wall due to a dishonest tour company. The fourth group was able to get tickets to Beijing but couldn’t find any back to Shanghai. The fifth group finally made it to Shanghai, but ended up sleeping in a McDonalds due to poor planning — yet they did get to see most of the sights, including the Great Wall. This feat alone may make them the most successful thus far and counter balance the part of their trip where they slept in the fast food restaurant.
Finally, the sixth, most recent, group had to abandon their plans due to foul weather. Now we have reached the last available weekend to travel and I still have not been to Beijing. Personally, I was only a part of the fourth and sixth groups. However, other members of the Jia have participated in three or more failed travel attempts.
The first time I tried to go to Beijing was for our four-day weekend. My plan was to see Beijing and then head on to Xi’an where the Terracotta Warriors are. I spent days planning and organizing. I even booked a hostel. (Note: never, ever book lodging before transportation.) We were not able to get tickets for all the legs of our trip and were therefore forced to abandon the plan. Unfortunately, it took us about thirty minutes of arguing with the grumpy ticket agent in broken Chinese to discover this fact. All my planning was for naught. It just goes to show that the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
At first I was disappointed, but I quickly amused myself with attractions in and around Shanghai. Luckily, many other members of our program decided to remain home that weekend so there were plenty of other people to hang out with.
Undeterred by my earlier attempt I tried to go to Beijing again last month. I thought it might be interesting to see the capitol in the fall, when it was cold, but not too cold. Ironically, we ran in to some weather issues and were forced to jump ship again. But luckily, it was before buying tickets or booking a hostel — I had learned my lesson — so it was no real loss.
Finally this past week we rallied. I got my group of travel companions together and marched down to the ticket office yesterday evening. We emerged victorious, with three sets of freshly printed tickets. Last night I booked my hostel with out issue and later this evening I will figure out our touring plans. I’m just praying that everything will work out this time. There are, granted, still a lot of things that could go wrong. But it’s comforting to know that the biggest hurdles — transportation and lodging — are taken care of! Hopefully with careful preparation and tenacity, we can overcome the curse of Beijing! I’ll let you know! Zai Jian from Shanghai!
