An amazing giant silver butterfly! That’s the toll gate between Ningxia and Gansu. A huge wave of achievement and excitement rolls through me as I pass.
The outskirts of the capital of Lanzhou is a dirty mixture of grey brickwork one the way in but it doesn’t dampen my expectations of what it’s going to be like to finally be there. I’ve always assumed that Lanzhou consists of waterways lined with willow trees while locals take it easy in the warm evening air but as per usual my hopes are quickly dashed.
The way on is across the river though the bridge is already virtually static with Saturday rush hour traffic. It curves round to the right forming three lanes you are unable to move out of. Unable to escape, I’m forced to take the Land Cruiser smack bang into the centre of town. Not quite the vehicle of choice when it comes to heavy duty intercity navigation that’s for sure.
I admit to having ditched the old method of using my eyes and a dash of common sense to find somewhere to stay early on in this excursion, having switched to using Trip Advisor and then the GPS to lazily get to the destination of choice. There are times though when one pays the price for such reliance on technology. The GPS routinely directs me into wasteland, through fruit and veg markets, pedestrian areas, up one way streets and towards large buildings that aren’t on the map. Through Lanzhou centra,l it’s blank robotic voice continues to tell me to u-turn and go into the busiest areas for maximum mind melt. Certainly painful driving in such a large motor
After fifteen intolerable minutes I happily shut the GPS up, deciding to just get out of the area as soon as possible pulling the first right at the next big junction. There are now three main factors that will determine the nature of this interesting driving soirée:
1: Lanzhou is the capital city of the Gansu Province population 3.5 million and as we already know it’s Saturday early evening rush hour traffic.
2: Lanzhou is sandwiched in between mountains in the north and south squeezing the traffic to run two ways through a valley.
3: At this moment the new underground rail system is under construction though unlike Beijing which is built in small stages, in Lanzhou it’s being built all at once. Nice planning there! Miles of road from east to west have been torn up forming temporary lanes causing traffic pandemonium.
Passing a female traffic police officer, she smiles and waves me across the intersection. I pull another right to get out of the queue. The turn sends me into a flyover and back to the same intersection where the same officer smiles at me and waves me across again. On and on, stuck in traffic that goes from static to 2mph whilst immersed in swarms of pedestrians, bikes, mopeds, motorbikes and motorized carts. It’s a sensory overload thats really wearing as you focus to the max on trying not to run into anyone, especially having already driven for seven hours.
At some point the jeep is unable to move, hemmed in by people going in every direction and a stream of lane jumping traffic moving across my bow going back the way I came. How come there aren’t multiple accidents all over the place? That’s what I want to know.
With no other options I inch forward forcing the traffic to a standstill with multiple horns sounding off from irritated drivers and, finding a gap in the temporary barriers at last there’s some space and a way on into a narrow back street area. With at last a modicum of breathing space I park up, resurrect the GPS and set it up for a hotel at least a couple of miles away. Taking on water, I crack open the blueberry travel sweets for a sugar hit, turn the keys in the ignition and we’re off again.
Maybe it’s just down to tiredness but I have however unknowingly made a single glaring error. This is not to look at the route as a whole but just follow the map a few streets ahead and I soon find out that the way on is predictably all the way back past the centre of town and out the other side, AAAAAAGH. Passing the traffic police woman she laughs as I go by for the third time. Should have got her number. Love the hat!
At last the GPS tells me “You have arrived”. Burnt out and utterly drained I climb out of the cab. Such a relief to be outside. Turns out though that the Sapphire Hotel is five stars and the only room they have left is a massive 1,800 RMB a night. That’s about 200 pounds or 270 dollars. Talk about out of place or what; the Land Cruiser is utterly filthy and the parking valet looks decidedly uncomfortable. Climbing back inside I summon the energy for another round.
Best bit of driving I’ve ever done!
Categories: China, Chinese Provinces, Cross China Road Trip, On the Road
Just Turn Left 
My goodness, I could feel the frustration as you are driving in circles. I would have had an Anxiety attack or paid the large sum for the room I hope the rest of your trip was smoother.
About the GPS. My husband and I wanted to visit Walton’s Mountain in West Virginia. We were almost there and then we hit several miles of constriction. The GPS kept sending us round in circles, turn left, turn right, make a U-turn etc. I think construction screws up the GPS. We or I should say I got so disgusted we went back home to Florida. That was several years ago. I would still like to visit there but I wonder if they have completed the construction in that area. :o)
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Hi there > Yes I feel like I can drive anywhere now. As for the GPS, it’s really mega useful though it does drive you insane at times, like first thing in the morning when it tells you to drive into an area of wasteland LOL. Thanks for dropping by and have an excellent week
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Andy darling.. you just can’t leave it like that.. where did you finally sleep?? how long ago did you write this? where are you now? questions questions questions.. good to “hear” from you
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Hiya Dymoon > Ha ha, Well I walked down the street and found a really cheap hotel. They let me park the jeep down a side alley and then out the front of the lobby the next day LOL. I havent been able to post anything while I’ve been on the road due to bad or no WIFI but have recorded everything. Will be posting on YouTube as well. Always good to hear from you too Dymoon 🙂
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I would much rather read about this than drive it. good luck.
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Yeey Lifecameos. How are you these days. Yes it was an awful experience. Just relieved I never hit anything. The Land Cruiser is a big black battering ram after all LOL
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I’m going well. Good to see the Land Cruiser is doing a great job.
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Glad to hear it:) Have things gone all Christmasy yet where you are? I’m back in Beijing now having returned the LC 😦 I couldn’t post much while I was away due to no or terrible WIFI so need to catch up
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Yes, just starting out with the Christmas stuff here in New Zealand. Far too early !
I hope all is going well for your settling back in. Is the missus used to having you around home again ?
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I can sleep at the drop of a hat but getting there. Oh its all business as usual here. Enjoying getting her meals cooked for her again LOL. So are you feeling festive yet? We miss Christmas here in China
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No,I don’t get festive til mid December. that’s early enough,
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Yikes Andy – I’m not sure I would’ve survived that trip… Did the vehicle survive with no bruises too? Wow! x
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Yes I never hit anything > Quite remarkable though. I got 6 points on my license yesterday though 😦
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Oh no – unbelievable that they even add points to licences from what you’ve described about ‘dangerous driving’… I’m surprised everyone hasn’t lost their licences then…. Poor you!!
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Well you can actually transfer your points to a family member so the wife’s license awaits LOL > she never drives anyway, just tells me how to from the comfort of the passenger seat
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Hahah – how fab! That happens in the UK but not ‘legally’ – great idea… spread the love ( or is that spread the load…)! Back seat drivers – don’t you just love ’em! x
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Speaking of comments taking the scenic route, apparently you did, too — three times with the female traffic police officer! Haha. Ah, I enjoy your travels, and I compliment you on your courage (traffic always leaves me trembling; not many things scarier or frustrating!). I didn’t know you had a Youtube channel. I’ll have to check it out soon!
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Cheers Rose > There’s not much on it yet but touch wood will be able to put some of the trip up there as well as photos here 🙂 Courage > phew I travelled on nervous energy a lot of the time and broke down on more than one occasion truth be told
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Looking forward to seeing more of your adventures, Andy. Sometimes a bit of breaking down needs to happen to remind yourself how strong you are when you get back up again. Take care!
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Hiya Rose > I guess we pick ourselves up because we have to but its still hard work. Going back to bed always helps LOL. Have an ace weekend mate
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Wondered what happened to you, Andy! Now I know, you’ve been “on the road.” Thank God you drove a safe land Cruiser in that horrendous traffic! It is a battering ram vehicle! Look forward to reading more about your travels! Did you get any good sunset or sunrise shots along the way? I could post them on Before Sundown! 💛 Christine
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Hmmmmm I need to think about this sunsets/sunrises. You know I’m not sure that I did hmmmm. BTW I contacted your friend about editing. She couldnt do it so suggested a friend. She couldnt do it but I finally found someone that may be able to do it in January touch wood. 🙂
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Good news about maybe finding an editor! Good thoughts for that! Remember to look for sunsets or sunrises anywhere! 💛 Christine
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Very interesting road report Andy. Thank You. It was interesting to see which car brands there are, because I did not have any idea.
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Ha ha > yes. I like the small cars here. They are so small you dont often get them in other countries. Must do a post about them sometime. Thanks for dropping by
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it amazes me each time i look at the photos you take of the cities in China and how populated they are! Really exciting travel Andy, are you sad it’s over and where would you go next?
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I’ve got a number of destinations but I’m keeping them under my belt for the time being. It turns out that people are suggesting I make my YouTube into a proper travel channel so its quite an exciting idea 🙂
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Thats an awesome suggestion Andy, but lots of work for sure. But your videos are very original and show the real China, not the made up for TV scenes. truly exciting times ahead for you, wishing you success in this as I can see how much it means to you.
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Thanks Singledust. As per usual getting anything off the ground takes time and patients. Spread the word and subscribe if you havent. Your support is really appreciated.
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