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The driver of our brand new coach spent the majority of the eight hour journey weaving in and out of more lorries than I imagined one country could have; they must have easily outnumbered cars by at least 50:1. He did this at times with breakneck speed, that amazingly produced only a few hairy moments.
We arrived in Beijing just after midnight and getting off the coach we were hounded (a rare occurance these days) into a taxi. Our driver took one look at the hostel card we produced and gestured enthusiastically that he knew where to go. Forty minutes later we were still in that taxi on a journey that should have taken half the time. Our driver however, was out of the car (again) asking the sixth person as to the location he seemed to previously know like it was his neighbour's house. We finally arrived at our destination just short of an hour after getting into the cab; we were not amused. His cheek to ask for the full fare was commendable, which due to driving around trying to find this place had reached the same amount we'd just paid to travel the eight hours from Taiyuan to
Takin' a breather
In a watchtower on the Great Wall. Beijing. We gave him an amount we considered worthy of this impromptu 'Beijing-by-night' city tour, and he was lucky to get that! Sensing our mood he didn't pursue his claim....
Beijing is big! No, it's MASSIVE!! To put some kind of perspective on it, China's capital (with outlying areas) is the size of Belgium. Studies show it has the world's worst pollution and a day's walking in the city streets breathing the toxic air can be the equivalent of smoking, get this, 70 cigarettes.
Due to a lie in, we began our three day habit by puffing through about fifty as we navigated the streets, subways and underground rail network. We had to arrange a few flights and booking them required some urgency due to failings online and arriving one day prior to a three day holiday period in the Chinese working calander. This all, rather frustratingly, took longer than anticipated, but we did manage to get out and see the new Olympic Stadium before it became too dark; it looks very impressive. A perimeter fence kept us at a distance due to ongoing work, but as the picture suggests, the holes in the fence were big enough
to squeeze a lens through. We finished our first day in the capital at a locals restaurant. Once again we were the unexpected, but welcomed entertainment for the rest of the diners as the only wide-eyed Westerners in the place.
Our own entertainment was drawn from reading the Chinglish (which we gave you a taste of in a picture on the last blog) menu. So you can share in our amusement, we'll list a few of those dishes to see if you can work out what you would order. You'll have to keep in mind that some of the translations are purely descriptive and contain no clues as to the main ingredient of the dish. To make things slightly easier we'll kick off with a relatively easy one:
*Hot Bulls Penis
*Thousand Layer Ear
*The Peasant Family Cooks Vegetables Ingeniously
*Superior Pork Joint With Good Luck
*Pig Killing Pot
*Happy Life
*Hat Pie
*Spicy Hot Regular Front Feet With Garlic Flavour
So, what will it be then??
We had no idea what some things were either, but some how it seemed a shame to ruin the surprise by asking...
When our food arrived, our waitress seemed genuinely concerned
for her clueless new customers, and began scraping off the top of the mountain of chillis that seemed to form a top layer on our main dish. I half expected to see molten lava underneath, and sure enough after taking the first mouthful I felt like a circus clown that had volunteered to stand in as a favour for one of the fire eaters to have a night off. It was very nice, just very, very hot!
We returned to our hostel that night, with our noses still running from all that spice, and booked a trip for the following day; to go and see a wall.
Just like the Pyramids and Angkor Wat, The Great Wall of China is one of those ancient manmade structures that even through the ravages of time can still promote an entire country and remain high on peoples' 'wish to see' list.
Dispelling the Myth:
In 2003 China's first astronaut Yong Lewei failed to spot 'The Wall', finally putting to rest the notion that it was the only manmade structure visible from the moon. The fact is, the moment it does become distinguishable (in low earth orbit), many other objects such as
motorways and railways are already more recognisable. That said it still remains one of the most gargantuan undertakings the human race has ever conceived.
To make the most of the experience in the time we had, we decided on going a little further out to a part of the wall that would see less tourists and has seen little, if any, restoration. The strenuous hike took us from JinShanLing to Simatai and covered approximately 10km, all done on the wall itself.
You build moments like these up in your mind and hope that you won't be disappointed, and we certainly weren't...
It's hard to describe how such an ugly idea as a huge wall can complement such a naturally beautiful landscape; but it does, and it does without question. I'm sure aesthetics were not high on the list of priorities when the plans for this bastion were first drawn up, be it in the early or later stages of its design and construction. However, it does have a beauty that yet again our photos may not capture. The hike took us a little over four hours as we alternated between clambering and strolling the inclines and declines, as well as
negotiating watchtowers and steep stairs that required free hands as the wall 'big dippered' over the undulating hills. We were passed by a few competitors taking part in The Great Wall Marathon; a race where not stopping for a breather would be beyond even you, Simon. Other than these, the wall was relatively quiet and although we were part of a coach trip, we were simply dropped off and told to make our way to the collection point at the other end. It was another great highlight of the trip and completed our main trio of things to see in China (prior to knowing about Jiuzhaigou) - the karsts at Guilin, the Terracotta Army and the Great Wall of China.
We spent the following day back on the fags as we explored The Forbidden City and took a stroll through Tiananmen Square. Unfortunately, due to the holidays, the crowds that we had avoided at Jiuzhaigou and on the Wall were here in their droves.
It had been a brief but unforgettable stop in the capital and we'll follow the progress of the Olympics when we can. But the time had come to grab our nicorette patches as we
headed off to the airport in order to fly to our next and last stop in Asia; Hong Kong.
The trouble is, we're watching an electrical storm whilst sat in Beijing International Airport and we've been delayed...........indefinitely....
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