The visa I hold is good for one year, but I can stay no longer than 90 days at a time. As 90 days approach, I make plans to travel by overnight train to Shenzhen, a city on the border between China and Hong Kong. It is very convenient because the train station is right at the border and takes less than ten minutes to walk from the train to customs. Usually I continue on down into Hong Kong to enjoy the day before I return to the train station to catch the overnight train back. It is twelve hours each way and only cost $25 round trip. To fly down and back would cost over $500 and you would miss the pleasure of living and sleeping in close quarters with total strangers of a different culture.
I traveled down with Eric and Julia. They walked with me from the train station to the building where customs is located and waited for me to go through customs and return. Since I had always gone on to Hong Kong, I didn’t realize that once you pass through customs you must take the train going to Hong Kong and get off at the first stop, cross over to the other side and buy a ticket back to Shenzhen. When you get off on the other side of the train you are at the entry side of customs into China. Your visa is stamped as you leave China; the train ride takes you out of China; the return train brings you back into China and you get your visa stamped again. The total process took about one hour.
In the basement of the train station is a modern subway into Shenzhen. We rode it to the end, which is at a bus terminal. We got on bus number 70 and got off near Julia’s apartment. We dropped her things off and walked to a hotel and checked in Eric. He changed clothes for his interview for a new job and then we went to the street and got bus number 80 to go to where his appointment was scheduled. We were early and it was time for lunch so we ate lunch. After lunch he went for his interview and time of filling out all the required forms and a short training session. It would take him all afternoon so Julia and I took a bus to the ocean front to sit, talk and relax together. This may be the last time I will see her and she wanted some time alone with me. It was a great time.
The water was not very clean today. Dirty from over a week of heavy rain in the area.
At the end of the afternoon we gathered at the subway station for the ride back to the train station. I went to wait for my train and they left for an evening together.
The trip back was great. I met this three year old girl who was learning English and immediately adopted me as grandpa. We had a great time together.
The trip is over and the visa is stamped and I just got a text message saying that another of my students just got his visa. That is three out of six with three to go. Please remember Jiajing (Emmy) as her interview is 7 pm Texas time on Tuesday June 24th.
I traveled down with Eric and Julia. They walked with me from the train station to the building where customs is located and waited for me to go through customs and return. Since I had always gone on to Hong Kong, I didn’t realize that once you pass through customs you must take the train going to Hong Kong and get off at the first stop, cross over to the other side and buy a ticket back to Shenzhen. When you get off on the other side of the train you are at the entry side of customs into China. Your visa is stamped as you leave China; the train ride takes you out of China; the return train brings you back into China and you get your visa stamped again. The total process took about one hour.
In the basement of the train station is a modern subway into Shenzhen. We rode it to the end, which is at a bus terminal. We got on bus number 70 and got off near Julia’s apartment. We dropped her things off and walked to a hotel and checked in Eric. He changed clothes for his interview for a new job and then we went to the street and got bus number 80 to go to where his appointment was scheduled. We were early and it was time for lunch so we ate lunch. After lunch he went for his interview and time of filling out all the required forms and a short training session. It would take him all afternoon so Julia and I took a bus to the ocean front to sit, talk and relax together. This may be the last time I will see her and she wanted some time alone with me. It was a great time.
The water was not very clean today. Dirty from over a week of heavy rain in the area.
At the end of the afternoon we gathered at the subway station for the ride back to the train station. I went to wait for my train and they left for an evening together.
The trip back was great. I met this three year old girl who was learning English and immediately adopted me as grandpa. We had a great time together.
The trip is over and the visa is stamped and I just got a text message saying that another of my students just got his visa. That is three out of six with three to go. Please remember Jiajing (Emmy) as her interview is 7 pm Texas time on Tuesday June 24th.
