Pearost: Chinese sleeper busses
The Chinese are renowned for inventing torture-devices. I experienced one such device - a Chinese Sleeper bus from Erenhot (Erlian) to Beijing. It was a bus with bunk beds that were too small for me to lie down in, and to increase capacity, there were even people packed sleeping in the aisles. I’ve already written about it previously in more detail (see the bit about China).
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Thu 29 May 2008, 15:29, 7 replies)

^THIS
hell yeah.
*shudder*
*flashbacks*
*shudder*
( crackhouseceilidhband Fuck off back to Mumsnet, Thu 29 May 2008, 15:31, closed)

.
There was certainly a lot of shuddering going on. Some of us were nearly thrown off our beds.

On which routes did you take the dreaded sleeper bus of doom?
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Thu 29 May 2008, 15:33, closed)

same
Erlian to Beijing. (Train from UB to Erlian.)

Locked toilet, no air con, heating on full, 1 stop, broken down bus, overcrowding, short bunks, dirty sheets...

I had sleeping pills and Chinggis vodka and I'm surprised I stopped necking all of them.
( crackhouseceilidhband Fuck off back to Mumsnet, Thu 29 May 2008, 15:40, closed)

.
What time of year did you go? I went at the start of August so it was hot anyway. Can't remember whether or not there was air-conditioning (the air around Erlian is fairly dry and I didn't get to Beijing until early morning). I didn't even have any sheets to speak of whatsoever (although I was way beyond caring about sheets by then) but at least the bus didn't break down.

In UB, I saw a picture of the bus in the ticket-office (tip: if you are doing the Trans-Mongolian, book in advance so you do the entire UB-Beijing part by train) and it looked comfortable. The reality however was completely different.
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Thu 29 May 2008, 15:51, closed)

bus!
I caught it a couple of months back, and I thought it was really rahter nice - comfy beds, nice views of the Great Wall, etc. It certainly kicks the Trans-Siberian's ass. But I'll save that story for later...

The only bad thing about that bus, as I recall, was the vile, degenerate, don't-care-if-it's-cultural-imperialism-it's-disgusting Chinese habit of hawking up fleghm loudly and constantly, then spitting it onto the floor. The driver was the worst - barking and hacking and retching up what looked like black slugs into a bucket for the whole nine hours. Disgrossterous.
(jennymnemonic, Thu 29 May 2008, 17:54, closed)

^^
Are you a midget by any chance? I’m 6 foot myself and too tall for the ‘beds’. Also, my bus only passed the great wall during the night when I had miraculously fallen asleep.

At least the Westerners were all herded to the back of the bus so I didn’t have to put up with the Chinese spitting until I got out. That infernal “GHHHHOACKKK PFT!” sound haunts me to this day!
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Fri 30 May 2008, 12:27, closed)

^ This ^
How any culture can consider hawking up phlegm a socially acceptable thing to do is beyond me. Even when sitting opposite me in a restaurant FFS

I LOVED the Chinese sleeper buses though & I'm 6'. Pop 2 Valium & gaze out of he window in a diazipam-haze until you nod off. Beats the hell out of Asian-sized seats on overnight buses designed for someone with a 6" shorter inside-leg
(Veni Vidi Lurki had attitude constipation on, Sat 31 May 2008, 18:26, closed)