Day 12 - Scaling the Wall

Hey Everyone!

We did it.  Chairman Mao Zedong once said that everyone must walk a portion of the Great Wall to be a true hero, and today, we all accomplished it!  After an hour bus ride

 north of Beijing, we entered an area of land filled with steep

 mountains and lush grasslands.  The Great Wall was constructed around 320 B.C.  The construction of the wall was all by hand and spanned three separate dynasties.  While the wall served as a good defense, it was breached twice.  (First in the 13th century by the Mongols and then again by the Manchus in the 17th century)  Although much of the wall has deteriorated because of the weather, there are four main access points to the wall where it's been restored.  We arrived at the most popular one: Badaling.

As we arrived at the entrance, police officers cordoned off the area.  Rumors were flying that the president of Mexico was on his way to see the Great Wall as well.  Unfortunately, his motorcade backlogged tourists and we were at a standstill in line.  I can honestly say I have never experienced anything like it.  We were shoulder to shoulder with people in the hot sun.  I've been on the streets of Beijing and on buses, but this was the worst.  The motorcade blocked the main entrance to the Great Wall so hundreds of us were forced through a small gateway.  

The pushing was intense and I found myself pinned - literally pushed to the point where I could not push away - to the wall.  Someone fell at the entrance as well.  The force of the mob was stronger than I was and many of us were forced into each other as the group pushed.  At the threshold, I was pushed forward and ended up smashing the police officer touching almost

 every part of his body as I was rolled over him.  It was the most intense three minutes I've ever experienced.  In the back of my mind I was thinking if I fell, I would be trampled.  One girl behind me screamed as men literally fell onto her.

I had my camera rolling through all of this.  I've posted below the video in its entirety.  The video is shaky, but what I find interesting is the sound.  It's a little over 1:30, but worth the time.

The rest of the experience was breathtaking!  Every step provided a new vista for incredible picture taking.  At one of the junctions, you could veer right or left.  A couple of us decided to go left because it looked less crowded and started making the hike up.  The incline was so great that you were almost facing the ground as you walked.  For the most part, there were no stairs.  Stairs were only used when the incline was much greater.  A few of us reached the high point.  It was very liberating to see the mountain range and the length of the wall.  Going down the wall was even more challenging.  At some points, we had to run down the slope!  I am so glad we did it, though.  The weather was perfect.  You know how when you see a famous landmark and dream about being there - and then you're actually there?  It was surreal to walk the Great Wall.

After lunch, we headed to the Ming Tombs, the burial site for 13 Ming emperors.  We took a tour of the area and went down into one of the tombs.  This was very interesting and a nice contrast to activities earlier in the day.

For dinner, we went to The Olympic Green and ate just a few steps away from the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube.  After dinner, a friend and I walked over to get some pictures of the buildings.  The building to the right is modeled after a dragon and is directly west of the Bird's Nest.  I'm sure you will see pretty shots of this building during the Olympic coverage.  The tall building represents the head of the dragon, the next three buildings represent the body and the last building represents the tail.

The Bird's Nest is amazing.  You don't truly get a good impression of the building until you get up close.  The framework is so intricate and all of the pieces lock into place.  It's hard to believe 100,000 people can fit inside.  I'm hoping to come back at night to see these buildings lit up.

Here's video of the Great Wall.  This was a really adventurous and awesome day!

P.S. - Someone asked about the pickpocketing here and if it was a problem.  Since I've arrived here in Beijing, I've always kept my wallet in my front pocket.  While this is a little different, it keeps my money closer to me.  I've heard pickpocketing is bad here, but no one in the Missouri group has had any bad luck!

Ted