The Qinghai - Tibet Railway - A Path To The Sky (Part One)

Episode 3

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Tibetan Plateau has long been referred as "The Third Pole of the World". It has an extreme high altitude at an average of 5,000 meters above the sea level. It also has very harsh climates one could only find in the polar regions...............

OK, That was the beginning I wrote for the first draft of this story. Moments before I was about to publish it, Blogger accidentally erased everything off the face of the earth- never to be seen again. Now I have to start from scratch, and I couldn't really remember how I told the story in the last draft. I guess I'll tell it from a little different perspective........

A Snow Capped Peak and A Tibetan Settlement

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PART 1: EARTH


I was sitting alone in my compartment looking at whatever was outside of the window. There was a good reason why I couldn't remember, because I wasn't paying any attention to whatever was outside of the window. At that moment, I just felt excitement - exciting  over what was about to happen the next day when I arrive in Lhasa, and what I was going to see on the way to the capital city of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

The Xining Railway Station, Where the Qinghai-Tibet Railway Begins

Inside the Xining Train Station

The compartment door opened, a man in his late 40s came in. He greeted me and attempted to put his luggage in the overhead bin. The bin was very narrow and even I had problem putting my own backpack in just a little earlier - so I helped him. As the train began to move,  we sat down and began to chat. It turned out that we owned the same model of camera, wore the exactly same type and brand of sunglasses, and of course, sharing the same compartment. That was how I met Mr. Cui, a friend still today from Qingdao in Shandong Province and it was his first time taking the train as well as visiting Tibet. 

Sceneries Near Xining

However, Tibet was not the reason why he took the train. He was in the middle of an overland journey to Nepal and Tibet was just a transit stop. Yet the only reason why he decided to take the train was because of a song called Path To The Sky, which he really liked.

"Have you heard of the song before?" Mr. Cui asked me.

Sheeps On The Rolling Hills of Qinghai

Of Course I had. Path To The Sky was a very popular folk song composed by a Chinese government musician praising the construction of the railway. The railway to some extent was both an engineering marvel and a propaganda tool: On one hand, it went through some of the most treacherous landscapes, which included hundreds of kilometers in uninhabited areas in high altitude and permafrost. On the other hand, it strengthened China's control over Tibet and accelerated Tibet's integration with the rest of China economically, culturally, and politically. 

Sheeps And The Qilian Mountains

Without any notice, Qinghai Lake, China's largest lake suddenly appeared in front of our eyes. Along the shore, the old Mongolian shepherds still lived the way many generations before them had lived, with the exception that they now have the helps of modern technologies their ancestors wouldn't even imagine. The sheeps still ran freely under the big sky, on the rolling hills covered with lush green carpets.  To the north, the towering Qilian Mountains stood like a curtain that protected the lake from the ferocious sandstorms  coming from the Gobi Desert. 

The Qilian Mountains

With beautiful sceneries like these, I began to wonder: Was I in heaven, on earth, or heaven on earth?

Qinghai Lake

Soon I convinced myself that I was on earth. I could tell that in the eyes of the shepherds there were uncertainties: uncertain about where their traditions would lead them to; uncertain about the technologies that could both help them economically but destroy their traditions culturally. As for the sheep, they simply minded their own business by grazing the grass they only saw in front of their eyes - being totally clueless about the future of their lives and the fate that they couldn't control. 

A Shepherd, A House, And Qinghai Lake

Heaven supposed to be perfect, eternal place with no doubts and pains, isn't it?

Unfortunately I only know a little about heaven. I've never seen it myself. But one day I'd like to be there, and I'm still finding a way to the only way to reach there. But I do know about the Earth, because I live there, and I feel it every single day.

A Buddhist Temple, A Prayer Flag Pole, And Qinghai Lake

Qinghai Lake was like one drop of the Earth's tear: it contained all the happy and sad stories we did not know. It reflected every single move of the shadowy clouds in the sky and in our hearts; when the shadowy clouds themselves continued to creep in step by step, thinking that they were unnoticed. It cried out for the pain the Earth had to endure - caused not by the Earth itself, but the sins and desires of ours. 

Horses On The Shore Of Qinghai Lake

The train arrived in Delingha five hours later. Many of the chain smokers on the train, including Mr. Cui himself, had long waited for this quick 10 minute stop to quench their bodies' needs for nicotine. Delingha was made famous by a Chinese poet named Haizi in his poem Sister, Tonight I'm in Delingha . Many people traveled to this city just because of the poem. However,  in reality Delingha was just a lonely industrial base in the middle of the desert, exactly like how Haizi described in the poem. Did it mean that  people fail to see the fact that it was a city of nothing and emptiness before they came here, or was it because they still chose to come even after they knew all about the city's loneliness and emptiness? 

A Power Plant Near Delingha

Prayer Flags Seen From The Delingha Railway Station

A Scene In The Qaidam Basin

A Scene In The Qaidam Basin

After leaving Delingha, Earth fully unraveled its ruthlessness as we were exposed to some bold and lifeless landscapes. Qaidam Basin was one of China's most important centers for the energy industry. Underneath the barren landscape lied some of the most sought after natural resources an emerging superpower like China craves all the time. Amid the endless dirt outside the train window, there were ruins standing like monuments reminding passer-bys of the history that nobody knew- Why were they there? And How did they perish? 

Ruins In The Qaidam Basin

In the evening, the train arrived in Golmud, Qinghai's second largest city and the center of the Qaidam Basin. Only 60 years ago Golmud was consisted of only a few Mongolian Gers with no permanent residents. Today, the Golmud I saw was a sizable city and the gateway to Tibet. It was at the Golmud train station where I met my future group mate Cheryl, a well-traveled New Yorker who lived in Hong Kong at that time.
  

Golmud Railway Station, Elevation 2829 Meters.

Passengers Leaving The Golmud Station

Back on the train, Mr. Cui said to me:

"I heard the train will pass through the Hoh Xil National Nature Reserve. There are a lot of wildlives there you can't find anywhere else. Too bad! It looks like that we will cross the region over night. It's such a pity that I would probably miss the only chance in my life to see such mysterious place!" 

After the train left Golmud, pressurized oxygen was pumped into the compartments through the central air conditioning system to relieve the lack of oxygen in high altitude areas. This will help passengers to acclimatize better for the journey, but health complications could still happen as it did not simply provide enough oxygen to catch up with the same level in cities like Xining.

Passengers Taking A Break At The Golmud Train Station

Before going to bed, Mr. Cui took out some anti-high altitude sickness pills called Hongjingtian and took some himself. He asked me whether I brought any anti-high altitude sickness drugs for myself. I told him that I didn't. He then offered me his pills, but I told him that I would only take them if I ever felt sick.

"Buddy, Listen to me. If you don't take these pills, it's going to be really dangerous! When you feel sick, all is going to be too late!"

I thanked Mr. Cui for his concerns, but nonetheless declined his offers. He told me that if I ever needed him, I could wake him up anytime. 

Wind Farms In The Qaidam Basin

Ready to go to bed, I turned my iPod on shuffle mode. The first song that came up was Backstreet Boys' I Want It That Way. I was a little amused by the song, as Mr. Cui didn't really get to see all these wild animals in his once in a lifetime train journey to Tibet.

A Mining Facility In The Qaidam Basin

As the train racing fast in the darkness, I fell asleep. In my dreams I could only hear two types of sounds: the noise of the train and the dead silence of Hoh Xil.

(To Be Continued In Part 2)