A Climb of a Lifetime!

---

Geo: 39.9165, 116.391

We got up very early, before our wake-up call -- still trying to adjust to the time change. Again, we had a huge breakfast.

We took the bus to the Sacred Way of the Ming Tombs. The air today is quite polluted and Brennan actually put on a mask for a short time.

This burial site was chosen by the Ming emperors because it lies in a valley surrounded on three sides by mountains with an opening to the south protecting the dead from evil spirits from the north. (We could see the mountains, but not clearly due to the smog.) Most of the tombs have not been excavated and several were robbed so we did not visit them. We walked along the Sacred Way which is a beautiful avenue lined with 36 huge stone sculptures of lions, camels, elephants, generals, and mythical creatures. There were willow trees on each side of the pathway and soft, peaceful music was piped in. It was a very beautiful walk and Brennan was able to climb on a lot of the sculptures. He had fun!

After a short ride, we arrived at a government jade factory. It was a huge building where they met our group and showed us around. We saw craftsmen carving the jade, were shown the rough rocks that when split open house the jade and the many colors of jade -- green, light green, white, purple, yellow, red and brown. The showroom contained some really beautiful pieces and the gallery section had items that cost over $100,000.

Brennan wanted a jade knife and sheath but realized it was really a piece of art and that there was not much he could do with it. Dave wanted a family ball which actually has 12 carved balls inside one another that represents generations. They are impressive and all have a dragon and phoenix carved on the outside. They were well over $100 so he did not get one. Sue did get a bangle bracelet with a beautiful natural design. The free gift offered if you purchased something was a jade ring. They did not have one small enough for Brennan so the cashier took a red cord and tied it around his neck. He wore it constantly!

They say jade will continue to get more valuable and it improves your health?! Women wear bangles on their left wrist which is close to their hearts. Jade bangels also represent married women and the bracelets are often handed down to a bride by the mother-in-law representing acceptance of the woman.

We had lunch on the top floor of the jade factory. The room looked like a wedding reception hall with white tableclothes and white covered chairs. The lunches and dinners have always been around a round table with a lazy susan in the middle served family style. One problem is that everyone is constantly spinning the dishes so you have to be fast! Brennan liked the fried fish but not much more. There were lots of dishes, but not much of anything that stood out -- a typical tourist lunch.

Back on the bus to drive to the Great Wall of China! The mountains along the roadside were tall and we saw several sections of the Wall before getting to Badaling which is the area that we would climb. The Wall is over 3500 miles and was built to keep out foreign invaders. The street leading up to the entrance was wide and lined with shops, restaurants and a hotel that also had a coffee shop and gift shop. This is where we would meet our group after 2-1/2 hours. There were also beautiful stone carved walls with pictures of the Great Wall along the street and hedges being covered for winter.

At Jo's suggestion, we climbed the north section where we could see several towers above us. She said that going north on the Wall went to a higher elevation and would give us the best view.

The furthest and highest tower or guard post was called Number 8. From there, you coud see in all directions (360 degrees) and spot an enemy invasion from any direction. The views were spectacular and it was so impressive that such a structure could be built in such rugged, mountainous terrain.

In the two to three mile stretch that we climbed, the Wall averaged 10 feet wide with a few short stretches of only a few feet. The side walls were three feet high. We passed through several guard or lookout structures and some still had roofs. At the Badaling site, there was a gondola you could take up or a short tram. However, there were hundreds of people walking from the age of 2 to 80. Jo had told us that you were not a real Chinaman until you climbed a section of the Wall.

The higher we climbed, the fewer the people. Of our group of 25, we were 1/2 of the six people to make it to th Number 8 lookout. Our guess is that this might be the same split for all visitors. We have done a lot of hiking and we don't think we have done anything steeper! Most of the step's risers ranged from 4" to 2'. The sections without steps were very steep ramps and all was made of stone. No wonder it is one of the 7 Wonders of the World!

Our drive back to Beijing highlighted just how bad the traffic can be in this city of 21 million people. We drove at speed limit for the first 50kms of our 70km drive. The last 20km took over two hours!

Dinner was a rerun of the previous lunch and dinner -- private room, tables for 6 to 8, 10 to 12 items on a lazy susan. The food was okay to good. Beverages of tea, soda or beer. Brennan slept the last 1-1/2 hours on the bus ride and was still not awake through dinner. He again ate like a bird.

Outside the restaurant was a small convenience store and we bought a large bottle of local beer for back in our room. It cost 450 RMB ($.80).

We got back to the room about 9:00pm and repacked for the next day which included a flight from Beijing to Xi'an. Brennan was asleep within minutes so we enjoyed our cheap bottle of beer and called it a day!

---