苔丝·汉弗莱斯

It was once Japan that was famous for its high-speed train network， introducing the world to its Shinkansen， or bullet trains， way back in 1964. But while Japan is still a leader in rail technology， it is now China that holds the crown of high-speed train capital of the world.

In the decade or so since China put into operation its first high-speed passenger trains， the country has constructed more than 22，000 kilometres of high-speed rail track to create the longest network on Earth. In 2017， the country launched the world’s fastest high-speed train， known as ‘Fuxing’1， which travels at up to 350 kilometres per hour， reducing travel time between Beijing and Shanghai to four and a half hours.

Now， China’s high-speed trains—officially defined as passenger trains that travel at speeds of 250–350 kilometres per hour—take travellers to almost all of the country’s provinces. With Inner Mongolia’s first high-speed line opening in July 2017， only Tibet and Ningxia currently lack high-speed trains. But with plans for the continued expansion of the network it won’t be long until they too are serviced by high-speed lines.

All this makes for a super-fast， and relatively inexpensive way， to cover this country’s vast distances. If you’re in the mood for a speedy look at the Middle Kingdom， here are some of our picks for the most epic high-speed rail journeys in China.

The Shangri-La Train

Currently the longest high-speed rail route in the world and taking less than 11 hours to travel more than 2700km on the quickest service， the Beijing to Kunming train is a truly epic high-speed train journey.

Travelling from China’s capital， Beijing， the train wends its way south through heavily industrial Hebei province into harsh， dusty Henan， sliced in two by the mighty Yellow River， before pushing on west through Hunan， into the karst2 landscapes of Guizhou and on to Kunming， capital of China’s most south-westerly province， Yunnan. The train is named in honour of one of Yunnan’s most famous cities， mythical Shangri-La， nestled high up in the province’s mountainous north and due to get its own connecting high-speed line soon.

To break up the journey， be sure to stop off at Zhengzhou， which is within easy reach of Luoyang city and the nearby Longmen Grottoes， one of China’s three major ancient Buddhist rock art galleries. Also near Zhengzhou is the Shaolin Temple， where Chinese kung fu is said to have originated.

The Panda Train

Taking between 12 and 13 hours to travel 1690km， this train zips3 along from an ancient Chinese capital to the panda capital of the world.

Beginning at Nanjing， a city of both proud and tragic history， it hurtles4 through the Yangzi basin， into the megacity region of Chongqing， gateway between eastern and southwestern China. From here， it pushes on into the mountainous heartland of Sichuan to arrive at Chengdu， home to the world-famous Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base.

En route， the train passes through Yichang. It’s here you can stop off for a glimpse of the massive Three Gorges Dam， or hop on a cruise boat up the Yangzi River to Chongqing.

The Silk Road Train

The first high-speed train to extend out into China’s vast western regions connects the 1776 kilometres between Ürümqi， capital of Xinjiang， and Lanzhou， capital of Gansu， in a little under 12 hours. The train follows the ancient Silk Road via the oasis town of Turpan， geographically the lowest place in China at 154m below sea level. From here， it travels through some of the harshest terrain in all of the country to Jiayuguan， home of the western end of the Great Wall.

It then races southwest through the Hexi Corridor at Zhangye， worth a stop to view the otherworldly rainbow rocks at Danxia National Geopark5， and across the Qilian Mountains， where the track soars to 3607 metres above sea level， making it the highest high-speed rail track in the world.

After slurping6 down some of Lanzhou’s famous hand-pulled lamian noodles， hop back on the train and travel on the newly opened Lanzhou to Xi’an line to complete your Silk Road journey by visiting the famed Army of the Terracotta Warriors.

The Coastal Train

Covering the journey through China’s southern seaboard7 through Zhejiang， Fujian and Guangdong provinces， the 1623km-long Shanghai to Hong Kong line takes around 12 hours to connect two of Asia’s most electric megacities.

Heading south from colossal8 Shanghai， via Hangzhou and its beautiful West Lake， the train passes through the lush， semitropical9 coastal stretches of southern Zhejiang into Fujian province. Here， it stops at provincial capital Fuzhou before travelling onwards to the old port town of Xiamen， home to some of China’s nicest city beaches and within reach of the Fujian Tulou10 （Hakka earthen roundhouses）.

The train then passes through the hilly southwestern border with Guangdong to China’s technology capital， Shenzhen， from where it’s an easy ride across to vibrant Hong Kong on the MTR11. Now high-speed rail lines have been extended directly into the city itself. Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link （XRL）， a high-speed railway line that connects Beijing and Hong Kong （Kowloon） via Guangzhou and Shenzhen， was fully operated on September 23th， 2018.

The Ice Festival Train

China’s high-speed rail network continues to stretch up into the country’s economically and politically important northeast， or Dongbei as it’s known in China， connecting this rugged mountainous region with the rest of the country.

This train takes around 12 hours to travel the 2400km between Shanghai and Harbin， making it one of the longest rail journeys in China. It travels up through the eastern seaboard provinces of Jiangsu—home to gentile Suzhou and its imperial gardens and canals—and Shandong， birthplace of Confucius. On route， it stops at Tai’an， the jumping-off point12 for Tai Shan， the holiest of China’s five sacred Taoist mountains13.

It then snakes its way along the Bohai Gulf coast， stopping at Beidaihe， a popular resort with one of China’s few beaches， before running through Liaoning and Jilin provinces， terminating in Harbin. The city’s psychedelic14 ice sculpture festival， Harbin Ice & Snow World， is held each year in the sub-zero temperatures of a Dongbei January.

The Island Train

When it opened in 2015， this was the world’s first circular high-speed railway line， whirling around south China’s tropical Hainan island， floating between Guangdong province and northern Vietnam. Some of the line runs parallel with the island’s coastline， giving passengers wonderful views of the South China Sea.

From the island’s steamy capital Haikou， the train runs 650km around the island in about five hours， connecting all the airports on the island. The train also passes through towns such as Wanning， on the island’s east coast， that offer access to some of China’s few surfable beaches. For the best beaches， however， hop off at the resort city of Sanya， at the island’s southern-most tip.

日本曾因发达的高铁网络而闻名，早在1964年，“新干线”（或 叫“子弹头列车”）就为世界熟知。尽管日本在铁路技术方面仍处于领先地位，但在高铁运营方面，中国才是当之无愧的世界第一。

大约10年前，中国第一批客运高铁投入运营;在过去的十多年间，中国已经铺设超过2.2万公里的高铁轨道，总里程居世界第一位。2017年，中国的“复兴号”投入使用，它是世界上运行速度最快的高速列车，时速高达350公里，使北京到上海的时间缩短到4.5小时。

在中国，高铁是指时速在250公里至350公里之间的客运列车。除了个别省份，中国几乎所有的省份都开通了高铁。2017年7月，随着内蒙古第一条高速铁路通车，全国就只剩西藏和宁夏还未开通高铁。但按照计划，高铁网络还会继续扩张，相信这两地很快也会开通高铁。

在辽阔的中国土地上，高铁网络的发展为人们提供了高速且相对经济的出行方式。如果想速览中国风光，我们推薦以下几条最美的高铁线路。

香格里拉之旅

京昆高铁的沿途风景颇为壮观。它全长超过2700公里，是目前世界上里程最长的高铁线路，最快车次运行时间不到11小时。

列车从首都北京出发向南行进，穿过工业重省河北，进入气候干燥、黄土漫漫的河南，雄浑的黄河穿省而过。列车转而向西奔驰，穿过湖南，进入拥有喀斯特地貌的贵州，然后一路奔向中国最西南的省会城市——昆明。列车的名字是为了纪念云南最著名的一座城市——神秘的香格里拉，它坐落于云南省北部山区，很快也会开通第一条高铁线。

如果想拆分行程，建议在郑州站下车，那儿离洛阳和龙门石窟很近。龙门石窟是中国古代三大佛教石刻艺术宝库之一。中国功夫发源地少林寺也在郑州附近。

熊猫之旅

从古都南京到熊猫之都成都，这列火车在中国的土地上飞驰1690公里，运行时间12—13小时。

南京是一座既经历过辉煌时代也遭遇过悲惨打击的城市，列车从南京出发，沿着长江流域疾驰，进入超大城市重庆。重庆是连通中国东部与西南地区的门户，从这里，列车继续朝着多山的四川腹地前进，最终抵达成都，这里有世界闻名的大熊猫繁育研究基地。

这条线路途经宜昌，你可以在那儿下车，一览雄伟的三峡大坝，或是登上游船，沿着长江直达重庆。

丝路之旅

新疆乌鲁木齐至甘肃兰州的高铁线路是延伸至广袤西部的第一条高铁线，全长1776公里，运行时间近12小时。列车沿着古老的丝绸之路驰骋，经过中国地势最低的“沙漠绿洲”吐鲁番（低于海平面154米），之后穿过中国地势最险的地带，抵达嘉峪关，嘉峪关是长城最西端的关口。

列车朝西南方向奔驰，穿越张掖河西走廊，这里丹霞地质公园超凡脱俗的七彩丘陵值得你稍作停留，一睹美景。之后，列车将穿越整个祁连山脉，铁路线海拔高达3607米，使这条铁路成为世界上海拔最高的高速铁路。

抵达兰州之后，你可以呼哧呼哧地吃上一碗著名的兰州拉面，再回去坐火车，跳上刚开通不久的兰州—西安线列车前往西安，参观中外闻名的秦始皇兵马俑，结束丝绸之路之旅。

沪港沿海之旅

沪港高铁连接亚洲最有活力的两个大都市上海和香港，全长1623米，运行时间约12小时，跨越浙江、福建和廣东三省，基本覆盖中国南部海岸线。

列车从大都市上海出发，经过杭州，那里有景色迷人的西湖，然后沿着海岸线从浙江南部一直行至福建省，沿途布满郁郁葱葱的亚热带植被。列车在省会城市福州稍作停留，然后驶向老港口城市厦门。厦门有中国最漂亮的沙滩，并且离福建土楼景区不远。

之后，列车穿过福建西南部与广东接壤的丘陵地区，到达中国科技之都——深圳。从这儿坐上港铁便能很快抵达活力满满的香港。现在还有了直达香港的高速铁路。广深港高速铁路是京广高速铁路的延伸线，连接广州市、深圳市和香港（九龙），已于2018年9月23日全面开通。

冰雪节之旅

高铁网络继续延伸至占据重要政治经济地位的中国东北地区，将这个崎岖多山的地区与中国其他地区连接起来。

本列车往返于上海和哈尔滨，单程2400公里，运行时间约12小时，是中国目前最长的铁路线路之一。列车从上海出发，穿过东部沿海的江苏，那里有柔美的苏州及其宏伟的园林和运河。之后，它继续往北行至孔子的家乡——山东，在泰安停靠。你可以下车去爬爬泰山，它是中国道教名山五岳之首。

之后，列车沿着渤海湾蜿蜒前进，在拥有美丽沙滩的度假胜地北戴河停留，再出发经过辽宁省和吉林省，抵达终点站哈尔滨。每年，这座东北城市都会在气温零度以下的一月份举办如梦似幻的冰雕艺术节，名曰“哈尔滨冰雪大世界”。

海南环岛之旅

海南岛是中国南部的一个热带岛屿，位于广东省和越南北部之间。海南环岛铁路于2015年正式投入运营，是当时世界上首条环形高速铁路。本线路的一部分与海南岛海岸线平行，乘客在车上便能一览南海的美景。

环岛铁路全长650公里，将岛上所有的机场都连接起来。列车从湿热的省会海口出发，环绕海岛一周，总运行时间约5小时。列车也会经过海岛东岸的万宁市，那里有中国为数不多的可冲浪的海滩。不过，最好的沙滩还是在海南岛最南端的度假城市——三亚。

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖选手）