First, this morning, we were picked up at 6:00 am and head out to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. (When I get back to the USA, I will upload photos). We got there so early that we practically had the place to ourselves at first. It was awesome. We were so excited that the closer we got, we could see the Wall off in the distance. Once we purchased our tickets, we set off...or rather up...toward the Wall.
Steps, steps, and more steps.
We knew we had to walk up toward the Great Wall. We can see it off in the distance. So we started up the steps at a brisk pace. Soon after, we realized that the steps kept going...and our group started to separate--some were in much better shape and could keep up the pace...others (including me) were needing to stop frequently just to catch our breath. (Do any of you know "Thousand Steps" in Bonaire? It's a little like that...times about 10). Got to a landing and were able to rest a bit...and kept going. The steps up kept going...and going... going. It wasn't straight up so we couldn't see the distance up to the Wall itself. The excitement quickly waned and we started to just count each each step up as a small victory. However, with each step, we could see that we were indeed, getting closer to the Great Wall.
Finally...there it was...right in front of us! The Great Wall. A few more steps...and we were one it! The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall is one of the sections that was built during the Ming Dynasty. It is made of stone and brick, is wide and has guard posts paced at regular intervals. The one thing about the Great Wall, is it is built across the tops of mountains. So...there's a lot of climbing up and down just to go along the wall. You need to climb steps to get up to the guard posts, and along the wall, a lot of the walkways are either ramped, or small steps have been built go to go up an incline. One thing we joked about--the Great Wall is definitely NOT ADA (American with Disabilities Act) compliant! ;-)
One thing that you realize when you're up on the Great Wall is that it keeps on going...and going...and going...(it would be great to film an Energizer commercial with the bunny walking along the Great Wall...but they'd have to find a flat stretch that doesn't include steps)! :-) You can look off in the distance and see the Wall as it stretches over the tops of the mountains...as far as the eye can see. It's mind-boggling to consider the incredible feat it was to build this wall...and how many millions of people and how many years it must have taken to build this awesome feat of engineering.
Engagements and Small World Moments
One really cool event that occurred during our tour was that one couple that was in our tour group and workshop got engaged while on the Great Wall! How cool is that? He apparently planned this--he brought the ring with him and everything! So...恭喜, 恭喜 gong xi, gong xi, to the happy couple! (Congratulations, and many happy wishes)!
Also, in our group are two teachers from Utah. As we we encountered a few others (not from our group) on the Wall, we met two other Americans on the Great Wall. It turned out that they also were Chinese teachers from Utah! Amazingly enough, the teachers from our group were not acquainted with the teachers that we met on the Wall, one of them actually works only about 30 miles from one of the teachers in our group! It took being half a world away to meet someone that works only 30 minutes away from their home. Pretty amazing!
(Another possible small world moment was at the Summer Palace--when a young lady came out of a doorway in one of the buildings. She and I looked at each other with a look of tentative recognition. Then she said, "老師好" (lao shi hao)! At first I thought she might have been one of the teachers in our workshop, but she was with a young man...then I realized that she must be one of the International students at our school. It was just wild to run into someone in a place so different (and far) from where you're used to seeing them!
Summer Palace/Stone Boat
We went to visit 頤和園(yi2 he2 yuan2) or the Summer Palace. It was the palace built by (or for) the Dowager Empress Ci Xi (Tzu Hsi) 慈禧太后 during the Qing Dynasty. When we first went in, we were in a courtyard area, with a main building opposite us, and side buildings to the right and left. There were sculptures all around. We thought that was it...until we walked through to the next section...and the next....and the next...the buildings just kept on going! Then we got to the water's edge, and asked where a certain gate was where we were to meet our driver. We were told to continue straight to the end and then turn right. It turns out that we walked through something called the "Long Corridor," which is kind of an ornately decorate breezeway. It was definitely appropriately named! We kept walking...and walking...and walking...and we still couldn't see to the end of the corridor. Then we finally reached the end of the Long Corridor, turned right, and started heading north, towards the gate we were to reach our van. As we walked up, we found the famous Stone Boat. It was something that the Dowager Empress was supposed to have built from funds that were pilfered from the Navy Budget. In fact, the entire Summer Palace was reported to have been built under the Empress’ directions instead of improving the military infrastructure, which ultimately led to the demise of the Qing Dynasty. (Empress Orchid and The Last Empress, both books by Anchee Min provide a more sympathetic perspective of the Dowager Empress, if you’re interested).
Amazing Race Moments, and Beihai Park
We were supposed to be meeting our van at 2:10 after touring the Summer Palace. While we didn’t dawdle anywhere in the Summer Palace grounds and did keep moving at a brisk pace, we realized that we had not yet reached the van, even though our watches read 2:10. We began to run towards the gate, since we didn’t want to be late (we were threatened with having to buy dinner for everyone if we were late). As we were running, I had a feeling that this was what the teams felt like in the TV Show Amazing Race. We did make it to the van at 2:15, and were the last “team to arrive.” Fortunately, this was not an elimination round, so we were still able to continue with the tour with the group. ;-)
We had a second “Amazing Race Moment” when we arrived at the Forbidden City. Our driver dropped us off at a side gate for the Forbidden City, but we could not buy tickets or enter there. We needed to go around the inside of the moat and up and outside the south corner of the Forbidden City to reach the ticket office. We were told that the ticket office closed at 4, and it was about 3:25 so we began walking—briskly, but we didn’t run. Then our driver came running up to us to tell us we needed to hurry, as the ticket office closed at 3:30 instead. So, we began to run for all we could (though it was somewhat difficult for some of us who had sore legs from climbing the Great Wall in the morning)! It definitely felt we were in an episode of “Amazing Race”!
The fastest of our group ran all the way in to the ticket office, and reached it at the moment the man who ran the ticket window closed down. He would not sell us tickets for anything! It was a big disappointment. However, our driver, not to be deterred, made some inquiries as to which scenic attractions were still open. He was quite creative and clever, and talked us into Beihai Park, which is one of the largest Chinese gardens. It definitely was a beautiful, scenic place to be. However, by this time we were tired and hungry, so we may not have enjoyed it as much as we could have. We took a few more pictures (though by this time all the Chinese gates began to look the same, as did the tile-roofed buildings)!
Beijing Duck
We ate at the most famous Beijing Duck restaurant in Beijing. http://beijing.etours.cn/food/ The food was yummy, and we took pictures of all the food! This restaurant also prepared and served all the parts of the duck, down to the gizzards, hearts, intestines, and head. They also took the bones and made soup. We also got to watch the chefs carve the ducks, and at the end of the meal, they gave us special cards that had the ID tag for the ducks we had just eaten. It was an interesting experience, to be sure-- and one that we’ve been told one must try when going to Beijing.
Well, that was a very full day…and even got to Skype my family and send them some of the pictures from my day! Still catching up…until tomorrow…