parsing XML through java

hey all...

i am writing an application where i want to pass some data from a client to a server and from there to another server and goes on...

i am thinking of making an XML file to include in there my data and the route from which the data should be submitted to (the servers) and then a result would return to the client....

how do you think should i organize the xml file? how can i write it...how should i send it to the server (with a function sending bytes?) ...how the server will parse it????
many many thanks!

ps. i am looking for a discussion too, more than the exact way of implement it (i would like to have something like that also;p)

panosjava