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Published: April 4th 2007
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I had two major experiences in Beijing. One was the Great Wall and the other I’ll mention later. A two hour flight from Shanghai and I was in old Peking. Grabbing a taxi from the official and well organised taxi rank saw me at my hostel in about an hour and for a reasonable 105 yuan. It was about 6pm and I decided to look into the organised tours to the Wall. A helpful American couple gave me a few tips about the tour and strongly recommended the one ran by the hostel. All in all it would cost 210 yuan for transport and admission fees along the way. There was a tour leaving at 6.30am - bit early…but then that’s what you come to Beijing for.
The journey there was ok - about 3.5 hours. We were dropped at JinShanLing and the walk along the wall to Simatai was around 10km and would take about 4 hours. Almost immediately the touts appeared - ‘do you need a guide?’ - ‘hmm…not really…it’s a bit tricky to get lost!’. ‘Do you want to take shortcut?’ - ‘…what a good idea, miss out the wall altogether eh!’. Don’t take the
shortcut - I mean it’s the Great Wall of China. As soon as you start the walk it’s just all so bloody amazing. The idea itself is incredible and just awe-inspiring to consider how they ever did it. It’s also damn hard work. Imagine spending 4 hours on a stepping machine and you’re not even close. Certain parts of the wall are steep indeed and with the wind blowing, a bit hairy at times. Vertigo sufferers beware. It’s certainly worth every step as the views of the rugged landscape and craftwork of the wall are simply breathtaking. I’m no historian but the idea of anyone trying to breach that part of the country seems impossible. And yes, you do wonder what it must have been like for the soldiers who manned the wall - they must have had some great games of cards up there.
The touts are ever present along most parts of the wall but they’re not that persistent and actually sell things you might want - t-shirts etc plus coke and water. The latter is a must as, I keep repeating, it was bloody hard work. Those locals must be fit to that all the time
- and some of them looked well past retirement age. I’ll mention more about touts later - I tend to go against all my English instincts and simply ignore the more persistent ones. The weather was very changeable and we experienced low, black clouds, snow and blazing sunshine. The hats and coats were off and on as needed although I was sweating buckets most of the time. I can’t stress enough how magical it was to climb up the near vertical stretches, manoeuvre down paths with treacherously loose stones and ponder the views from the watch-towers.
We did the 10kms with an hour to spare. Across a small bridge over a reservoir and up another steep section was our exit. However, a surprise was in store. We had two choices of reaching the car park. Walk down a stretch - or take the ‘flying fox’ over the dam and down to the bottom where a boat then whisks you to the car park. In for a penny was everyone’s mood and one by one we were attached to the harness and had a fair adrenalin rush for 35 yuan. A fairly spectacular end to a truly unforgettable experience. The
3.5 hour journey back was saw many nodding heads and stiffening legs - but what a day!! The Great Wall of China!
Another must do is of course the Forbidden City. Just across from Tiananmen Square. Allegedly the largest public square in the world - but fairly unremarkable as squares go - Red Square is best in my book. Unfortunately, Mao’s mausoleum was being done up for 6 months so there was no chance of seeing the embalmed balmy one. Onwards to the ‘City’ and boy! are the touts thick on the ground. ‘Hello hello…are you going to the Forbidden City? - I can guide you’ - ‘No’…I said which seemed to phase them as I entered the main gates. ‘Hello…hello…where are you from?’ - ‘Over there’….I pointed. Now some people have said I’m very rude for doing this. But you know, over 20 touts approached me and I really don’t see what the point is of listening to the spiel about stuff I don’t want to buy. A similar con to the Shanghai ‘I’m a student of English and can I practise my English with you at a cafe run by my accomplice where we will threaten you
with violence unless you pay us £200 for the drinks and snacks you didn’t even order’ seems to be going on around the main entrance. I know they are very poor and have to make a living but I’d rather not be the one who pays their salaries. A man with only one hand approached me and I didn’t think twice about giving him some money - at least he was upfront about it. Let me say here that I have found the Chinese people to be extremely helpful and cordial people overall.
Anyhow, it is a vast and sprawling affair with many halls, annexes and exhibitions to explore. I stayed about 4 hours and probably didn’t see all the nooks and crannies. The City is another fascinating site of Beijing though that has one imagining all the goings on that remain forever history’s secrets. To be honest my legs were giving up after the previous days hike on the wall and, as a pretty young girl shouted ‘Hi, I am from Mongolia…..where are you from?’ - ‘Blackpool’, I replied, ‘see ya’, I made my exit remembering that for four hundred years, people were excluded from seeing what I
had just saw.
There is a lot to see in Beijing, but what I found most interesting were the Hutongs - Traditional Chinese streets just bursting with activity. I hired a bike and spent a day simply cycling around. There’s so much for the senses to enjoy. I highly recommend doing this. Sure the palaces are on everyone’s itinerary - but these streets are simply fascinating. The hutongs also relate to another new experience I had in Beijing. I have not stayed in a hostel since I was dragged around the Lake District as a child. In Beijing, I stayed in the Far East International Youth Hostel which is situated on a great hutong. To be honest I wasn’t in a shared dorm room - but my private room with ensuite cost a very reasonable £15 a night. The facilities are great, free internet, good restaurant and friendly staff. Opposite the hotel is the main hostel part with beds at £6 a night and also a great bar which is part of the hotel/hostel. I might not be a total hostel convert yet but I’ll certainly be considering them in future travels. I hear they’re doubling costs during (and
maybe beyond) the Olympics so it may be a good idea to ‘do’ Beijing before the rush! It’s well worth it.
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Judith
non-member comment
For all the tea in China.......
Marvellous once again Joe... captivating reading and fab pics