Great Wall suggestions

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Today we are venturing to the Great Wall. Lauren tells me she will be bringing a backpack as well as me because we need to bring "quite a few things" and I know if you are anything like me, you also would have replied, "like what?" And this is her reply, "we need hand sanitizer, toilet paper, lunch, water and something to read on the bus". Does this tell you anything about the day I am about to have? Also, she took exception with the shirt I chose, a red knit polo shirt because it may be too hot, do I have a simple T-shirt, she asks. Also, I may want to borrow a pair of her tennis shoes because my comfortable crocs that feel like wearing nothing on your feet, will not be that useful when climbing the mountain. "THE MOUNTAIN?" I said, isn't there stairs going up to the wall?, she said, "Yes", but apparently the stairs are more rugged than what I am used to. Wish me luck!


We made it to the Great Wall and it is great! It is apparently over 5000 miles long and unbelievable how thousands of years ago men built this through the rolling mountains. Lauren tells me that the soldiers took turns living in the towers along the way and when someone would see the enemy coming he would light a fire at the top of his tower and then the towers on either side would light theirs and so on along the whole wall. Every vista was breathtaking, there were some stair like steps and some spots that were just flat tiled inclines, some about 30 degrees going up and some a solid 45 degrees going up, it is definitely NOT for sissies. When you come here, may I suggest the Badaling section of the Great Wall. It not only is just an hour bus ride from Beijing (some parts of the wall are 2 hours or more) but also because at one point of the wall they have a 'gravity' train that takes you back down and believe me, that comes in handy. Lauren referred to it as a gravity train, it is on a track and the guy in front only has brakes, the decline just sends you down. Not only that, it ends at a nice little village with shops and black bears you can feed (yes, they are in cages) as well as where the bus had let us off. Again, you're welcome.

In deep contrast to the work ethic of the taxi drivers, the construction crews work around the clock, seven days a week. It is amazing, no matter what time of day they are working on these new buildings or renovating the old ones.

I failed to mention that Lauren and I took 2 subways to get to the bus area to get to the Great Wall. We walked 20 minutes to the first subway stop. Another,
glad to know tip here, lots of dried up vomit at the bus stops. Apparently, the huge egg burrito they like to eat for breakfast doesn't agree with the early morning rides on the bus. Just step over them, everybody does.

You would swear all of these Chinese people have spent time on the beaches of Pinellas county and experienced the seagull action we get when we bring our lunch to the beach. They do not have these pesky critters here but when you see them eat in public, the food is in a little plastic bag and they practically bury their faces into the plastic to take a bite. Reduces the need for the Tide stain stick as well, never too old to learn, huh?

Here is some additional Chinese Trivia, that will answer a lot of your questions when you arrive:

1. You will notice some men have grown out their pinky finger nails to a nice healthy length, both hands; this means that they will never have to work in the fields to earn their money because they can grow their fingernail and not have dirt under it. (kind of a "in your face" sort of tradition as I see it)
2. Men walk with men and women walk with women with arms interlocked or women holding hands and it means nothing other than that they are walking with a friend.( however with the shear numbers of people on the streets, I suspect it might have something to do with "holding on for dear life")
3. All the pets speak Chinese. (I know, I couldn't resist throwing that in, but I am still impressed)
4. They always hand you your money with both hands, it is an ancient tradition that showed you did not have a weapon, sort of like how our handshake originated. But not the taxi drivers, in too big a hurry so just expect the one hand from them.
5. Everything is so cheap here especially if you are converting American dollars. For example the taxi ride from the airport translated into $17 and it was the longest trip other than the Great Wall that we have taken. If you bring enough money, just take a taxi around town and forget the subway, you can afford it. However, if we are talking about buying DVD's, electronics, clothing, purses etc., they have LOTS of "knock offs" and it may not be good quality. The personal services are worth it though. We got great pedicures for like $7 but if you think you are buying a Sony camera like we get in America, you might be disappointed.
6. HOORAY, no tipping, nowhere, no how, NO TIPPING, seriously, fight the urge, they don't want it, they will give you your change, take it and RUN.

I believe that is all the wisdom I have to share at this time, hope you've learned something.

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