As of late, I’m suspending or toning down updates on Facebook, Twitter and Weibo, but the situation is a little different here on my official page. I own the entire “system” here (I don’t “own” Facebook, for example, but I do own this blog), so things are posted in full compliance with requirements as defined and hence I can still update here.

Let me just say that I’m happy to be giving the Chinese province of Shan-hsi a first visit by train. This will be the first time for me to head to the “coal province” and its provincial capital, T’ai-yüan. The trip from Peking (West) to T’ai-yüan will take 2 hours 30 minutes with a sole midway stop at Shikiachwang’s new train hub. The new HSR now offers you direct services to Hsi-an as well as major routes on the new Peking-Canton HSR route, with extended services to Shumchum.

The crossing today will go through the whole of the 28 km tunnel through the Taihang Mountains. While it isn’t as impressive in length as Japan’s Seikan or the Swiss St Gotthard Base Tunnel, it’s still the longest in the country. It’s amazing how some people here in China can just make a decision to drill a tunnel through the mountains, and make it just work — boom.

The deep freeze of North China is still with us — the Ta-Ning Reservoir just southwest of the main freeway toll gate in the southwestern suburbs is still frozen solid — but it’s loads better than what we had in Ha-erh-pin some time back. There, you had 20°C indoors, but a freezing -20°C outdoors! My nose had a bit of trouble in those arctic temps already…