Beijing Day 3 - Great Wall of China
I didn't expect to be able to see the Great Wall this time around, given the limited time in Beijing. I also assumed that the Wall would be in the outskirts of Beijing, and would be relatively inaccessible. But my dad's business associates offered to drive us there, and now there was a freeway directly to the Great Wall, so getting there took no longer than half an hour.
Approaching the Great Wall, it was clear why this still remains one of the greatest wonders of the World.
Impressive at a distance
Thousands of years on, and still the wall remains intact. And not only the endurance of the construction, but the sheer difficulty of building it in the first place. Climbing the mountains is already pretty daunting, let alone pulling tons of rock up its slopes using ancient machines. And I was told this is the relatively easy part. At certain sections the mountains are higher and steeper.
Daunting up close
Before arriving here, I didn't know what to expect. Well I was in for a surprise. Climbing the Great Wall was literally a climb. And the first part of the wall was really the steepest. I don't recommend bringing little kids and the elderly here, because it can be extremely steep. Going up there, I wondered if anybody had fallen to their death before. It was quite easy to fall from the steep steps. But I very quickly got those thoughts out of my head.
The first section of the climb
When I started off, I wanted to reach the peak, which I thought was the right-most tower. I made my way up, plotting my way up with photos taken at different sections (go to my flickr site). I took about 1 and a half hours going up, and must have climbed the equivalent of at least 20 stories. And when I finally reached the tower, it still continued upwards along the mountain ridge! I decided to bring the Great Wall adventure to an end, and made my way down, which wasn't that easy, given the steepness of the steps.
After lunch, I pretty much had the time to myself, so I went alone to Wang Fu Jing, did a lot of window shopping. With that, the trip to Beijing pretty much came to an end.
Final thoughts on the trip:
Beijing is a huge place, and I would have loved to spend more time there. The city is pretty modern and growing rapidly, with construction of housing and infrastructure going on everywhere. And as the Olympic date approaches, the city will be even more vibrant. At the same time, Beijing is a city with thousands of years of culture. My only worry is that it that if the growth is uncontrolled, pollution and overcrowding will make it an unpleasant place to visit, and worse, cause the rapid deterioration of these historical sites.
Approaching the Great Wall, it was clear why this still remains one of the greatest wonders of the World.
Impressive at a distance
Thousands of years on, and still the wall remains intact. And not only the endurance of the construction, but the sheer difficulty of building it in the first place. Climbing the mountains is already pretty daunting, let alone pulling tons of rock up its slopes using ancient machines. And I was told this is the relatively easy part. At certain sections the mountains are higher and steeper.
Daunting up close
Before arriving here, I didn't know what to expect. Well I was in for a surprise. Climbing the Great Wall was literally a climb. And the first part of the wall was really the steepest. I don't recommend bringing little kids and the elderly here, because it can be extremely steep. Going up there, I wondered if anybody had fallen to their death before. It was quite easy to fall from the steep steps. But I very quickly got those thoughts out of my head.
The first section of the climb
When I started off, I wanted to reach the peak, which I thought was the right-most tower. I made my way up, plotting my way up with photos taken at different sections (go to my flickr site). I took about 1 and a half hours going up, and must have climbed the equivalent of at least 20 stories. And when I finally reached the tower, it still continued upwards along the mountain ridge! I decided to bring the Great Wall adventure to an end, and made my way down, which wasn't that easy, given the steepness of the steps.
After lunch, I pretty much had the time to myself, so I went alone to Wang Fu Jing, did a lot of window shopping. With that, the trip to Beijing pretty much came to an end.
Final thoughts on the trip:
Beijing is a huge place, and I would have loved to spend more time there. The city is pretty modern and growing rapidly, with construction of housing and infrastructure going on everywhere. And as the Olympic date approaches, the city will be even more vibrant. At the same time, Beijing is a city with thousands of years of culture. My only worry is that it that if the growth is uncontrolled, pollution and overcrowding will make it an unpleasant place to visit, and worse, cause the rapid deterioration of these historical sites.
posted by Kevin at 11:03 PM
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