Arrived first thing in the morning, after sailing a couple of hours down the river, making way between clusters of coal carrying barges. Everything shrouded in fog haze - just like Stephen Speilberg had got there first to 'authenticate' the river scenery.
At the port together with other passengers to get taxi in to town, but no luck to start with: we'd apparently arrived while the Olympic torch was making its way through Shanghai, so road access was restricted. But got to my hostel in the end - as had all the other young poeple from the boat. These are the Japanese you never meet. The ones who quit their jobs to travel solo across Tibet and Central Asia. More than once. So they became my senpai, and treated me to plenty of train traveling advice over dinner.
