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Images copyright Michael A. Scott. Click to enlarge.
Beijing,
Day 1 | Tiashan | Ji'nan
| Qufu | The Great Wall | Beijing
return
The
Great Wall
We spent the day returning to Beijing from Ji'nan,
a ride of about 6-7 hours (next page). After a night rest, we took
off north to Badaling, a section of the Great Wall. The trip was
about 1-1/2 hours or so. It was a clean modern highway that became
more and more twisty as we entered the mountain range. The scenery
was breathtaking, and then as we round the bend, there was my first
sight of the Wall. It is enough to make you gasp with wonder.
After we drove around to the entrance, we entered a town of souvenir
shops, then walked up to the entrance of the Wall. I am a little
apprehensive looking at the big climb ahead! |
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Here, soldiers are being readied for the climb. I realize later
that this would be a great spot for cardio training... |
| The climb is a challenge, but you are not alone...the path is crowded
with people. Every age and body type are making the climb. I hope
I don't blow a heart valve or something! But what a view, absolutely
stunning. Xing points out the north side's different design from the
south...it is hard to believe that so much energy went in to protection
from northern invaders...it didn't look easy crossing the mountains
in the first place. |
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Every now and then we stop to catch our breath. I ponder the wonder
of this structure...3000km long, centuries of construction, whole
lives taken up by bringing the stones up into these mountains. It
truly is a unique wonder of the world. |
"From the summit you can see far" (written on Tiashan
by an emporer). Everywhere you look, the Wall weaves in and out
among the mountain crests and valleys. Unbelieveable work. |
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Xing and Wendy were the best hosts. It was such
a pleasure being with them...they took great care of me and I am
so grateful for their help. |
We reach the summit. At Badaling, you are stopped at a bricked-up
watchtower at 888m. (A good thing!) I chat with some Americans from
California. Along the way I had met a couple of guys from Toronto
wearing Canadian flags. It was strange to see fellow Canadians at
such an exotic place.
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We stay at the top for about 20 minutes. After the long climb,
I wanted to stay there all day, but we must eventually go, we
have to see Tianamen Square yet.
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Xing and Wendy prod me to go. Luckily there is a cable car back
to the town, though I really did want to walk all the way back!
This picture shows the crowds at the top. It would be quite a bit
different if this was a hot summer day, no doubt. The cool breeze
was a welcome relief.
From the Wall we drove back to Beijing. We took a long winding
road through the mountains, through spectacular scenery. When we
started out, I look back and Wendy and Xing were fast asleep. I
am wide awake, still soaking in the scenery. Our driver plays a
Kenny G CD with Louis Armstrong's "Its a Wonderul World".
Indeed.
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| Next:
Beijing Return |
Pictures were taken by a 5MP Pentax Optio 550, and
were processed with ACDSee v. 3.1, and reduced to 1024X768 by Shortcut's
S-Spline v. 2.2 for the web. Thumbnails were created by S-Spline as
well. |
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