I checked out of my hotel and tried to get a train to Zhengzhou, but the person said a lot of things in Chinese and it didn’t seem like it would work out. I tried a bus instead.
The bus arrived far from the center of the city, so I needed to find another bus to get me to the train station area. The first bus I tried took me the wrong way, so I got off and then got on the right one. I have a friend of a friend who lives in this city who was able to help me too, thankfully.
I arrived and found a cheap guesthouse. I think it is one that is illegal for foreigners to stay in, but I wouldn’t get in trouble for that, only the owner would. Only 20 yuan for a four bed dorm room, but I was the only one in there. It was cold and next to the railroad, but good enough.
At the train station I was having a tough time and the pressure of so many Chinese people behind me as I tried to decide what ticket to buy next. I finally had to just walk out of line and come back later.
I went to the Henan Provincial Museum today, which was free. There were many students there who greeted me. In the lobby the crowd began to grow and grow until 20 or 30 students were surrounding me, joined by their teacher, asking me questions to practice their English and asking my phone number and e-mail.
Later I met with the friend and her boyfriend. We had some Chinese food for dinner, including fish. Actually they ordered only the fish head, but it was from a huge fish and it was pretty good.