A Big Adventure

9this happened on) 6th November 2010, The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall Of China

We were up and ready for our trip to the great wall by 8:30am, so we had a quick breakfast in the lobby of pancakes and cappuccino.

We hooked up with our tour guide Michael at 9am. Michael seemed ok and spoke good English but was already trying to persuade me not to go to the part of the wall we wanted to go, namely, Badaling. He said the traffic was bad. I had heard that some tour guides don’t want to go there because of tolls and other such things, so I pressed him and said that we wanted to go there and were willing to suffer the traffic.

There was some traffic along the way but nothing to be really concerned about. Our journey took around an hour and a half, only a little longer than usual. The traffic getting into the Badaling car park was, however, something to behold with the usual Chinese pushing and shoving and lack of courtesy. With a little give and take things would have made everything run more smoothly.

We queued for the cable car and started to catch glimpses of the wall… breathtaking. What you have to understand about this Badaling section is that it’s high, very high and in fact the highest, which can be visited. It basically runs up and down the ridge of a mountain. So you access it by cable car, and then it’s steep, very steep.

Once on the wall I just could not believe it, it was one of those moments when you have to pinch yourself to be sure it’s not a dream. The weather was perfect, the tourists were pushing and shoving, but it didn’t matter.

We made our way up a very steep section of the wall, it was really hard work and quite precarious, but gave fabulous views of other sections of the wall along the mountaintop. Reaching the top we took the ubiquitous pictures, caught our breath and started down the other side.

Realizing that every step we took downwards, and would have to be fought back we did not go too far before we turned back. This is truly an amazing part of the wall and named the hero section quite aptly, however, I warn anyone of a nervous disposition, scared of heights, or simply unfit like us, not to attempt it and try something easier. That said, we both agreed that this was a perfect day in our lives.

It is seven years to the day that my father died and I’m sure that he would have been very happy to see us tick off a big item from our own bucket list.

Tired, we trekked back down, the driver was waiting for us and we sped off back to Beijing.
In discussion with the tour guide we decided to visit the Ming Tombs, but first we would stop to visit a jade factory and jeweler followed by lunch.
This was typically touristy, but we did get to see people working on jade, cutting it and so forth. A Chinese lady gave us a very comprehensive guided tour, some of which we understood through her thick accent.

We found the jade rather expensive and could not understand why they had used 14k gold on some of the expensive pieces. Eventually Tes opted for a traditional jade bangle in a lovely soft purple.

Lunch:
The only guidance we were allowed to give for lunch was which meat, and how spicy, the rest was decided for us.

-       Some kind of cold sliced beef
-       Some kind of pickled cabbage
-       Mushroom and Pitchai
-       Mini spring rolls with bean paste
-       Beijing boiled beef dumplings with vinegar
-       Pork strips with strips of vegetable in a spicy oily sauce (similar to that which we had on the train)
-       Kung Pau Chicken, with dried chilies etc
-       Rice
-       Spicy Tomato Soup
-       Fresh Fruit

Washed down with a little beer and Chinese Tea

Needless to say we had no chance of finishing all of this, and most of it was close to inedible, however the Kung Pau chicken was very good, even though it left me wondering how you could get perfectly square pieces of chicken. I guess this is what you get in a package. Sadly I noticed some other tourists enjoying some much better looking dishes like broccoli with Garlic and Sweet & Sour Pork.

In spite of our meal we felt refreshed and sped off to the tombs. We only visited one tomb, out of the 13 tombs, which lie in the area. However this is the only tomb where you can go inside and see the coffins and artifacts. Our guide explained that some of the stuff was real such as the thrones and others reproduced on account of them rotting away, such as the red treasure chests.

More steps, 150 down into the bowels of the earth, 27 meters to be exact. The coffins and throwns were impressive but did not compare to anything in the Forbidden City, however, the sheer size of the tomb left a strong impression, with massive 5 ton doors. You could see the pillars, which fell and shut the doors permanently from the inside. All in all a totally opposite feeling to that of the heights of the great wall, and I would be lying if I said it was equal, but none the less not to be missed if one is in Beijing.

Perhaps as significant is the museum beside the tombs, which holds many of the treasures and artifacts found within. Solid Gold plates and jugs, a Jade Belt, Gold and silk robes, head dresses and shoes of the first and second wife of the emperor.

We made our way back through the traffic to our hotel. We arrived around 5:30pm very tired after having climbed so many steps. We had a snooze and then eat dinner in the Hotel, again, however this time it was their famous Peking Duck restaurant and it did not disappoint:

-       Half Peking Duck with all the trimmings
-       Whole deep fried grouper in sweet & sour sauce
-       Asparagus in Garlic
-       Deep fried tofu in spicy sauce
All washed down with Chinese beer
This time I can honestly say every dish was excellent. The duck was succulent crispy and not too fatty, the fish was fresh, crispy and the sauce light; the asparagus crunchy with a punch of garlic and the tofu was light and crispy with a tangy sauce. Probably our best meal to date, and the waitresses were charming.

Off to bed and a deep sleep.

Going to The Great Wall by Cable Car