Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
I reached into my pocket and retrieved a screwed up photocopy of a map that
we had made in Ulaan Baatar.
'So where did you go?' he asked, pointing at the map.
'We came from Erienhot, then we came down here,' I said, dragging my finger
down the only road south from there. 'But where are we now? What is this place
called?' We hadn't been able to read any signs, and our map only had place names
in English.
'Houqi,' he replied. 'So when were you in Erienhot hotel?'
'No, we were not in a hotel. We were in a tent,' I replied.
The translator skipped to the last question on his list. 'Do you have permit to
travel?'
'Permit? We have visas.'
'This town is closed to foreigners, and this road to Beijing from Erienhot is also
closed to foreigners. You can only go on train.'
'Oh, really?'
'Yes. So do you know you have broken Chinese law?' He smiled smugly, closed
his folder and stood to leave. 'Have a good journey,' he said, with a smile as he
walked out.
'Good luck!' I called after him.
The policeman was replaced by a woman who came rushing in with wet, freshly
washed hair and a contagious smile. She couldn't mask her excitement. I immedi-
ately felt comfortable with her in the room, like it was the beginning of a party; she
had such a bouncy energy about her.
'Hello, my name is Xiao Wei. I am the English teacher from the local school.
They have asked me to come and help with some questions that they couldn't ask
before.'
In between questions, we began a casual conversation about our journey and
Australia. We also asked her some questions about China and found out how to
pronounce 'Australia' in Chinese.
At some point we were asked to show the film footage we had shot in China.
The arresting officer squinted at the tiny LCD screen, looking for who knew what
in scenes of a donkey and cart, a few trees, our bikes and a sunset.
Xiao Wei was eventually asked to translate the basic problem. 'So, you under-
stand that our town here is closed to foreigners. And you rode right through our
town,' she said, trying hard not to laugh. 'You broke Chinese law and for this you
must be punished.'
