INGENIEUR
The duel gauge railway track . The rail line and platform are not guarded .
reasons for the Chinese train to terminate at Gia Lam station instead of Hanoi city centre is because the old Long Bien steel bridge cannot accommodate the wider gauge rail line .
Back to the station , an agent from the train e-ticket agency was looking for me to exchange the e-voucher sent through email for a physical paper ticket with my name and particulars on it .
The Chinese train finally arrived at 8.40pm with the train attendants , dressed in military-style uniforms , standing guard at the coach entrance . There were a few coaches and each was selfenclosed , with an attendant in charge . The connecting doors to other coaches were locked , perhaps for security reasons as most passengers would be sleeping at night . The attendant was stationed at a room at one end of the coach , acting as his office . Upon entering the coach , the guard exchanged my paper ticket with berth card stating the cabin and bed number .
There were four soft beds in each cabin , two on top and two at the bottom . Each bed was given two pillows , a clean bed sheet and a pair of sleepers wrapped in a plastic bag . The facilities inside the cabin include cloth hangers , a thermos flask , plug points , a table lamp , space for luggage and individual reading lights .
There was a row of wash basins at the end of the coach and a hot water dispenser near the corridor . Chinese travellers like to use the hot water for their instant noodles .
As the train moved away from Gia Lam station at 9.20pm , it passed through the city neighbourhoods with the back of houses close by . One can see the families relaxing in the hall , watching TV or taking their meals . As the train
Table inside the cabin . The plug point next to the table .
Common Wash basin with soap dispenser at the end of each coach .
meandered out of the city , the buffer between the track and the adjacent bushes was very close ; some just about a foot away . No wonder the train could only move at a relatively slow speed and blared the horn at regular intervals .
After four hours , the train reached the border town , Dong Dang , at 2.00am the following day where all passengers had to alight the train , bringing along their luggage for Vietnam ’ s immigration checkpoint and custom clearance . The attendant would knock at the door of each cabin 20 minutes before arrival to remind the passengers to bring along their luggage for border clearance .
The train stopped for an hour before moving on at 2.50am for another 40 minutes to reach Chinese border town , Pingxiang by 4.30am ( Chinese and Vietnamese time is one hour apart ). Again , the passengers had to alight with their luggage for immigration and custom check . Here , the fruits that I bought from the Gia Lam station were all confiscated for crop protection reasons . Again , the train stopped for an hour .
72 VOL 91 JULY-SEPTEMBER 2022