I've been reading a great deal recently about China's plans to develop a 21st century New Silk Road. The idea of the "Belt and Road" initiative is to connect East Asia with Europe, the Middle East and Africa via Central, Southeast and South Asia.

The "Belt" refers to the idea of developing a land route from China to Europe (the "Silk Road Economic Belt"), while the "Road" means a new "Maritime Silk Road," which would reach Europe and East Africa via the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. A key component of the "Belt" project is to massively improve railway infrastructure across Eurasia. China has now become a world leader - perhaps even the world leader - in high-speed railway technology, and so has the know-how and the financial wherewithal to fund and construct new and upgraded railroads right through to London.

This is really exciting for those of us who like to travel by train. The promise is that eventually rail passengers will be able to get from Beijing to London in less than two days, travelling approximately 8,000 kilometers at an average speed of about 200 kilometers per hour.

At the moment, it is already possible to reach Europe from China by train. However, the only way to do it is by crossing Russia.

The so-called "trans-Siberian express" sets out from Beijing, crosses Mongolia, and passes through most of Russia to reach its final destination in Moscow. From there it is possible to transfer to other trains to reach central and western Europe.

But what is really exciting is that it may one day, in the not-too-distant future, also be possible to reach Europe via a new southern route that more closely resembles the path of the ancient Silk Road, via which camel trains used to cross Central Asia.

A glance at the map reveals that it should be feasible to depart from Beijing and, after reaching Urumqi in Xinjiang by the already-existing high-speed connection, continue on via a route through Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. From there the New Silk Railroad would pass into Iran and from there into Turkey, before at long last reaching Europe.

If you think this is far-fetched, think again. Turkey is already building high-speed railroads with Chinese assistance, and, in the wake of President Xi Jinping's recent visit, Iran is likely to seek improvements to its transport infrastructure.

Having already travelled the long and winding railroad to Europe via Mongolia and Russia, I would be very keen to try out another route, if it was to one day come to fruition.

Travelling by high-speed railway would certainly make the journey rewarding, relatively quick and comfortable.

So as far as all the adventurous travellers out there are concerned, let's keep our fingers crossed that China's New Silk Road initiative can deliver new travel experiences and improved freight connections between Asia and Europe, and hopefully within the next decade or so.

The author is a lecturer in international relations with the Jan Masaryk Centre for International Studies at the University of Economics in Prague. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn