If any of you are Billy Joel fans and really stuck with him right up through the River of Dreams days, I challenge you to go to the Great Wall and refrain from singing the song "The Great Wall of China." You can't! Its too fun!
Hollis' friend & boss Jose and his family were in Beijing at the same time we were and hosted us on their trip to the Wall. The first day,we went to Mutianyu and practically had the run of the place. We took the chair-lift to the top and hiked east until we couldn't go further. This section of the wall has been well restored and overlooks a beautiful valley. There are hundreds of steps up and down and we were all sweaty and panting even at a leisurely pace. Its hard to imagine the Imperial Army running up and down those same stairs and hoisting boulders over the sides as they fought off attackers. The Wall itself is a thing of beauty. There were originally 7 or more sections protecting various kingdoms and it wasn't until much later that they were connected to make one biggun. Even though the purpose for the structure was military defense, amazing craftsmanship went into the construction and the towers and roofing have beautiful detail work. Nowadays you can ride down on an from Mutianyu on an Alpine Slide - I highly recommend!
That evening we stayed in an amazing house near a section of the Great Wall not listed in the guidebooks. The next morning we climbed up to an area of the Wall called Shuigan that hasn't been restored. Parts were steep and perilous and there were long stretches where brush and trees had grown; nature had been allowed to take over. Because the
trail left from the hotel, we were completely on our own up there. Seeing it that way, without hawkers or other tourists, likely doesn't happen for many people and for us was once in a lifetime.
We really can't thank our hosts, Tichi & Jose, enough. We so enjoyed spending time with them and their girls (see Ed's flickr) and had an unforgettable experience.
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