Climbing, climbing, climbing. Always
vigilant, always alert. On watch for the telltale fingers of smoke
that mark the arrival of Khan and his Mongolian hordes. Life on the
Wall is anything but peaceful, or so my imagination takes me as we
make our way up the steep incline to the fortifications above.
Earlier, after a very good night's
sleep and another full breakfast from the buffet we departed Beijing
on our way to visit the Great Wall of China. It was a 2 hour ride
from the city out to the wall. The Wall's construction began in the
5th century B.C and stretches 5,500 miles across the
Chinese frontier. Designed primarily as a defense from northern
invaders it also served as a way to regulate tariffs on imported
goods.
The drive out of Beijing was very
interesting. Apartment complexes ran for miles and miles, mostly in
groups of 4 or 6 together of identical design. Prior to 1980 it was
rare to find a building with more than one floor, today, what remains
of the building boom of the late 80s and 90s is clearly in decay. As
a result of the urban emigration in search of employment, there is a
tremendous amount of construction going on.
We arrived at the wall at a place
called Badaling. A short walk to the base and moments later we were
actually climbing the ramparts. I have to admit this was a very
exciting moment. Nicolas told us we had about two hours to explore,
adding that we should turn left for the best picture spots. He also
told us to remember to turn left when we returned to get to the bus
“like a good communist.”
I expected a lot of people on the wall
and I was not wrong, although I wouldn't describe it as crowded, it
was nearly impossible to take a picture that didn't feature at least
one tourist. The walk up was strenuous, 888 meters but we all made it
(I guess all the sweeping at curling this year is paying off).
From the Wall we walked down to a
souvenir shop where I bought a T-Shirt declaring “I climbed the
Great Wall of China.” Back on the bus, we headed back to Beijing
for lunch.
Lunch was at a restaurant above a
factory making vases. The tour of the factory was interesting and the
vases were very beautiful. Lunch was similar to the previous day,
Chinese food served in large dishes in the center of the table on a
lazy Susan.
For the afternoon, our next stop on our
tour of Beijing was the Ming Dynasty Tombs where 13 of the 16 Ming
Emperors rest. The location is 50 km north of Beijing tucked in
between three mountain ranges on all sides but the south. This site
was selected for its Feng Shui, preventing the evil northern winds
from disturbing the emperors throughout eternity.
After the Ming Tombs we headed back to
the city for our dinner – Peking Duck!
All that remained of day two was a warm
waiting bed. Tomorrow is our final day in Beijing with a visit of the
Summer Palace.
No comments:
Post a Comment