A Memorable Bus Ride from Shangri-La to Deqin

I admit to harbouring prejudices against the Chinese in China. Blame it on what the media has to say about it. Chinese spitting openly, talking loudly, and generally being rather unhygienic. I have read and experienced some unpleasant behaviours in Singapore, so what more can I expect from my travels in the countryside?

It was actually not all that bad.

People in Shangri-La were exceptionally welcoming, and my first long bus ride was okay. Not all that great, but not exceptionally bad either.

Prelude to this post: My friend and I had to catch this bus from Shangri La to Deqin, where we would transit towards our multi-day hike at Yubeng Village. We stayed in what could have been the best hostel in Shangri-La. A Tibetan-Chinese couple owned the homely inn, with the man looking like the Tibetan version of Gong Yoo. He is a great singer too. Their receptionist was a man in his early thirties who had travelled the entire country.

Dukezhong Old Town 独克宗古城, Shangri La 香格里拉, China - RooWanders — Shangri-La Old Town

Contents

The Station and The Bus

The first bus to Deqin from Shangri-La was to depart at 9.20 AM. We bought our tickets at 9.15 AM. How crazy is that?

The bus driver called for the last passengers – us – from the bus as we ran from the ticket counter.

Zhongdian Station was a small and easy place to navigate.

Our bus was packed! We were the last to arrive and had to share the last row with an elderly couple and a young man. Our backpacks had to come along with us since the side compartments for this tourist bus were full to the brim with old cardboard boxes, ancient luggage and odd-shaped items. I would not have wanted to stow my bags in there either.

We had to fight down the aisle to the last row. Luggage of various sizes filled the aisle, while their owners stuck their feet out to stop their baggage from moving around.

Fortunately for us, we were both skinny fellas who were flexible enough to squeeze through the war zone even with our big backpacks.

Once the last passengers – us – were seated, some passengers started stringing pink raffia strings around the handles of their luggage and sides of the seats. Wow, so much for the evacuation route.

Disinfection Stops

All my long bus or train rides have stories to recount. No doubt about this as well.

Everyone, including the driver, had to step out of the bus to disinfect themselves. A pig pandemic – the African Swine Flu – was raging in China, and the states were trying to stem the spread of the disease. Maybe that’s why pork was unavailable on the menu.

Uniformed men stopped us three times throughout the journey. They made us step onto disinfectant-soaked mats and sprayed the wheels and underbelly of the bus.

That meant everyone had to battle down the packed aisle six times. What madness.

Deqin 德钦县 Bus, China - RooWanders — At Deqin (video screengrab)

Tunnels and Mountains

Most travellers would choose to catch some sleep for long rides. Not for us – especially with the constant need to step out of the bus. The seats at the back were not exactly the most comfortable either.

Everyone perked up from their screens when snow mountains came into view. People tried to capture the mountainscape with their phones. A few whipped out their professional cameras.

The bus cruised from one mountainous bend to another effortlessly. We passed through several tunnels.

An Eye-Opening Toilet

As with long overland routes, there would be at least one toilet break.

I thought I was ready for the toilets in China, but I was wrong!

Squatting toilets are fine with me, but one with no doors, two feet tall partitions and a drain with running water as the place you would do your business was truly eye-opening.

The first thing I saw in the toilet was a half-dressed woman squatting at her cubicle, looking at me. My goodness! I strode to the last cubicle. The last person in the line gets to see whatever the previous occupants have passed. Yikes!