Climbing up and up and up

The Great Wall of China - Now I'm allowed to leave...

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June 2nd 2008
The Chinese customs officer is reviewing my exit information carefully. I fidget hoping he won't notice my answer to question #12, the last question, but when he gets to it he goes rigid and slowly looks up at me, staring me directly in the eyes. "It says here you have not hiked any section of the Great Wall of China. Is this true?" he asks. "Well I intended to" I assure him, "friend ... read more

Asia » China » Tianjin » Huangyaguan

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For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. A... ... read more