Introduction:

I’m continuing to write about the sights and sounds from my 2018 trip back home. By the time I wrote this article, more than half a year had already passed since these events happened. No choice—there’s less and less time that I can truly control these days. Still, the work has to get done; leaving something half-finished is not Lizi’s style. To borrow a train fan’s line: delays can be huge, but service can’t just be canceled!

Picking up where we left off, for Lizi’s Hong Kong Airlines economy-class experience on the way back home and the HKG Plaza Premium Lounge experience, please see “Lizi’s 2019 trip back to China — a bumpy stream of random thoughts.”

A ride on the old Beijing–Tianjin line, one more time:

After holding it in for almost a month, I checked my status online and found that my visa status had changed from AP to Issued—overjoyed! First, I’d make a trip to the capital to pick up my visa, then head back to Tianjin for a few days.

When I was going to Beijing, I originally wanted to try the old star performer, the Beijing–Shanghai express T110. But when I checked 12306, there were no tickets left—not even standing-room tickets for me... I practically spat out a mouthful of old blood! No choice, I switched to the Taizhou train, T216.

All northbound trains from the old Beijing–Shanghai line board at Tianjin West Station (left). Seeing SS9G, that kind of “premium” locomotive, hauling a 25,000-series express is truly a sight you see less and less these days; I really don’t know whether I’ll still get to see it next time I come back home.

Before boarding, as usual, I snapped a photo of the destination board (right). Not easy—the blue city-name pinyin for the express train was actually correct!

After picking up my passport, I grabbed some KFC to fill my stomach and rushed back to Beijing Station to head to Tianjin. This time I chose the fast-number, slow-speed train Beijing–Jiamusi K349.

After entering the station, I noticed that the one on the left was none other than the T39 I had ridden just a month earlier—history really is full of coincidences (upper left)! As usual, I took a photo of the Beijing–Jiamusi K349 destination board, only to find that the colors were painted wrong again (upper right)! The pinyin there should be red for a fast train—why did you paint it green? But then again, thinking about it in a darker way, that green pinyin seems to be saying: “We’re exactly the fast-number, slow-speed train—a fast train number with local-train stops!”

K trains with 25G stock are limited to 120 km/h, but the highest speed I measured was only 113 km/h. Considering GPS speed fluctuations, I think the train crew simply set the cruise speed at 110 km/h (lower left)! That kind of speed would surely drive modern riders crazy, but for an old-school train fan like Lizi, it barely passes!

By the way, that’s also my usual driving speed on U.S. freeways—70 mph. I’m very chicken, afraid of tickets (one ticket would take months of mileage-churning to earn back)! So I never give the cops any chance!

It stopped once in Langfang. Not only did it get thoroughly passed by the Shijiazhuang North–Shalingzi West Y train while meeting on a siding in Langfang, it also got a red signal before passing Tianjin North and entering Tianjin Station, which caused a delay... Don’t ask me how I know; at this speed I’d be exhausted just driving it. We can imagine a conversation between K349’s locomotive crew and the Tianjin Station dispatcher.

K349 locomotive crew: Electric passenger train K349 approaching Tianjin Station...

Tianjin Station dispatcher: Electric passenger train K349, the entry signal at Tianjin Station isn’t cleared yet. Slow down, slow down! (in Tianjin dialect)

K349 locomotive crew: Electric passenger train K349, entry signal at Tianjin Station isn’t cleared. Driver understands... slowing down...

Two minutes later... why is it still red...

Tianjin Station dispatcher: Electric passenger train K349, the entry signal at Tianjin Station isn’t cleared. K349 locomotive, slow down even more... 5 km/h! 5 km/h! (still in Tianjin dialect)

K349 locomotive crew: 5 km/h? You might as well tell me to get out and push!

Hahaha!


After all that trouble, it took nearly two hours to reach Tianjin Station (lower right).

Back to my high-school days:

Just as I was about to leave the station, I heard the announcement that train Z11 was about to arrive! This is a flagship train that has been in service for 69 years—same age as the motherland—so I absolutely had to wait :mrgreen:

A Legendary Train - A Lifetime Memory!

The Harmony “shaky three times” (HXD3D) hauled the 25T consist into the station right on time, with not a hint of delay (left). In today’s world where EMUs and high-speed trains run everywhere, these old-school trains have gradually faded from view, but the “Hero Train” 11/12 still retains its charm! Just like Beijing–Shanghai 13/14, 21/22, 103/104, 109/110; Beijing–Hangzhou 31/32; Beijing–Nanjing 65/66. These trains may have been discontinued, or may have become increasingly shabby, but they will live forever in the hearts of train fans!

The city-name pinyin on Z11’s board was also correct—blue for both express and through trains, thumbs up (right)!

My memory drifted back 15 years, to my high-school days—after school I would always see T11 pass on time through Tianjin Xiaoshulin Tunnel (back then this train was still a T, running between Beijing and Shenyang North, with double-decker blue SK cars)...

As someone who grew up beside the third line of the Jingshan Railway, from steam to diesel and then to electric... the railway has carried far, far too many of my memories... By the time I typed this far, tears had already moistened my eyes, and I could no longer keep writing... :cry: :cry: my youth...

I really want to go back to my high-school days again... :cry: :cry:

............let me take a break and then keep writing............

PEK Terminal 2 PPS lounge experience:

Time flew by, and in just a few days it was time to say goodbye. Once I leave, who knows when I’ll be able to come back home again...

PS: Good thing I checked on a whim, otherwise I wouldn’t have known that AA had already moved its departures to Terminal 2 at PEK; my memory was still stuck on Terminal 3 from eight years ago.

Only after entering PEK Terminal 2 did I realize how cramped it is inside! The international check-in counters are actually inside customs, and escorts are not allowed (upper left)!

After security, I found the terminal itself was also very cramped, and the number of duty-free shops was nowhere near Terminal 3’s scale (upper right). But a small terminal has its advantages too—you don’t have to walk far to find the PPS lounge (below).

Since Lizi is a no-spend, no-status basic member and relies entirely on PPS handouts, I was already prepared to be turned away because the lounge was full.

But that never happened in the end, and I got in very easily! Once inside, I took a few interior shots and found a window seat.

After settling in, I started hunting for food (upper left and upper right)! First I grabbed a bowl of instant noodles to take the edge off. This noodle brand is quite something—it’s literally called “Stir-Fried Vegetables, a Big Chunk” (below)!

After one wave of attack, I took a break and then launched a second wave! I kept wandering around the lounge to see what else looked good (the two pictures above).

Keep those sneaky eyes sharp—guess what I saw? Lizi Chicken (middle)!

As the owner of the classmate-engraved plaque “Jize Xuan,” how could Lizi not eat Lizi Chicken :grin:? Come on, dig in (below)!

American Airlines Boeing 787-9 experience:

After I’d eaten almost everything, someone holding a sign announced that boarding had begun for AA180 from PEK to LAX! Okay, leave the lounge and head to the gate.

First, a photo of Lizi’s ride today—the AA 787-9 (upper left). This is actually Lizi’s first time flying on a 787.

The cabin interior is just like that. The 3-3-3 seat layout in 787 economy is really cramped (top-right and bottom-left photos). That reminds Lizi of a story—back in the day, a classmate flew Hainan Airlines' 787 to the U.S., and Lizi asked, “Eight seats in a row?” The classmate said, “How could that be? Isn’t it always nine seats across?” Lizi immediately said, “What the heck? Who taught them that a 787 can be stuffed with nine seats across?” After checking, Lizi found that aside from a few ANA first-run limited-edition 787 economy cabins with a 2-4-2 layout and eight seats across, all other airlines use nine seats across.

Sigh, that’s like when Emirates came up with the 777’s 3-4-3 layout with ten seats across, and everyone else quickly learned the trick. But then again, the 777’s nine-across 3-3-3 or 2-5-2 economy layouts at least were once widely deployed, and they lasted more than a decade! As for the 787’s eight-across 2-4-2 layout? It didn’t even get a chance to spread widely before being killed in the cradle... speechless...

Bathed in the setting sun, we took off behind Air China’s jet (bottom-right photo).

AA economy-class food is just so-so. But if you look at it another way, airfare is getting cheaper and cheaper these days, so getting food is already pretty good!

Lizi will take another swipe here—I believe that within the next few years we’ll see the day when economy class on China-U.S. routes no longer gets free meals at all. Why? It’s simple—airlines will say: look, look, if an EWR-HNL flight of eleven hours can get away without food, then compared with that, flying to China is only two hours longer. Why provide it? Just tough it out and you’ll be there... As long as there’s one such “instigator” someday, the other airlines will definitely start following suit.

Same old line—things usually get worse the more they’re changed. A good drum doesn’t need beating, while a broken drum gets hammered by everyone! The waves behind in the Yangtze River drive the waves ahead, and when a weasel gives birth, it’s all little hedgehogs—each litter worse than the last!

Lizi brings a non-mainstream shot—the 787 lavatory! It really does feel cramped, a whole size smaller than the 777!

Nothing much to say on the way; we soon arrived at LAX and started descending (top-left photo). After we got to LAX, jet bridges were still in short supply, so we parked at a remote stand and deplaned via stairs, taking the chance to photograph the 787’s engine (top-right photo).

A shuttle bus took us to the terminal; in the picture you can see the LAX shuttle bus yielding to a Southwest 737 :grin: (bottom-left photo).

What was kind of interesting was that our flight that day did not use the TBIT CBP entry point, but instead used Terminal 4. Since Terminal 4 has relatively few flights, we cleared immigration very quickly (bottom-right photo).

Postscript

Every time I read Lizi’s articles, I feel they’re very solid and down-to-earth. Trains always show up in the articles, making you feel that airport lounges and airplanes are just fleeting passersby in Lizi’s life, and only trains—trains running close to the ground—are Lizi’s final destination. Green trains and maroon trains will eventually be replaced by the generous, high-tech high-speed rail, becoming a hometown we can never return to. From now on, when we talk to the kids about trains, we won’t even be able to describe them with “woo~ woo-woo~” anymore; the heavy whistle will eventually be replaced by the sweet, “Welcome aboard the Harmony train set.”

Seeing the economy-class meal photos Lizi posted also reminded me of the economy-class flights I took on several previous round trips between China and the U.S. The cramped 3-4-3 seats, the unidentified smell lingering in the cabin, the cries of babies and snores coming from all around, and the flickering screens on the seatbacks in front—all of it has quietly been buried in some corner of memory, just like youth already gone by. Looking at my wife and daughter sleeping beside me, I can no longer choose the distance of faraway places and the reckless drifting of life without hesitation. I once read a line: if you never picked it up, how can you talk about putting it down? Some things, once picked up, can no longer be put down—not even if you want to.