We made it - The Great Wall of China!

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Some things in life are built up with such anticipation that the only possible outcome is disappointment. Take New Years Eve in London for example; you expect it to be a good night out but in the end you pay ridiculous prices to go somewhere and are left frustrated by the huge crowds and constant queueing for everthing - we were both praying that the Great Wall of China, something that had been on our 'bucket list' of must do's for years, was not one of those occasions . . . Anyway, more on that shortly.

We arrived into Beijing South on the very comfortable but cold express train from Shanghai and were pleased that after consulting the metro map we were only a few stops away. We had decided to stay in one of the traditional Hutongs (neighbourhoods), which are a type of narrow street/alleyway which supposedly represent the real under-belly of Beijing, just off of Tian'amen Square, and as soon as we got there we knew we would love Beijing.

As we arrived fairly late in the afternoon we decided to hold out for dinner, but on a quick scout of the neighbourhood we came across a well known duck restaurant and when we saw fresh duck spring rolls on the menu for 40p we couldn't resist! These only gave us a taster so of course we had to properly sample the dish that Beijing is famous for - Peking Duck. We headed to an area that evening called 'Ghost Street' which has a vast array of local restaurants, many serving the same thing, but all specialising in duck, so we picked one and enjoyed a feast of duck sliced two ways, complete with pancakes, hoi sin sauce and vegetables - just like at home, only better! It was delicious and we devoured it quickly enjoying every mouthful, then went back to our hostel for an early night as we wanted to be up early for our first full day in the city.

Unfortunately we woke the next day to grey skies, cold temperatures and rain, so what we had planned to be a full day turned out to be the opposite. We were up quite late so had lunch in our hostel and wrapped up warm and headed out. We walked a few blocks to the Beijing Police Museum, which was quite interesting as you could see all the big crimes which had been solved by the police in recent years including the murder weapons in glass cases, as well as all the different guns and uniforms which were on display. Of course you wouldn't see anything negative about the police force here, like most things in China, as everything is aimed at influencing the public to see the country in only a positive light. After this it seemed to turn colder so we called it a day and went back to the hostel bar where we spent the evening in the warmth, catching up with online bits, playing cards and chatting - this was to become a theme for most of our evenings.

We planned our next few days in the city, and obviously number one for us was a visit to The Great Wall, so as the weather was looking good for the next day we decided that would be when we would see it. We explored all the different ways to visit the wall (on an organised tour or on our own?) and researched the different areas we could see and what each would offer (Badaling? Too touristy. Simatai? Probably the least visited but time consuming to get there and many sections closed off) before choosing to make the journey on our own as it seemed quite straight forward, to a part of the wall which was 80km outside of Beijing so would still offer us solitude but with picture postcard views, called Mutianyu.

We went to bed dreaming of seeing this Wonder of the World the very next day, something that had been a large part of choosing China as a destination on our trip, hoping it would measure up to our high expectations as previous Wonders had that we have been fortunate enough to see in recent years. The Pyramids in Egypt left us in awe and wondering how they were built, Machu Picchu in Peru was an engineering marvel built by the Inca's, The Taj Mahal in India was simply magical and stunning, and probably our favourite so far, watching the sunrise over Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia on Christmas day was like being let into a secret world. What would The Great Wall of China hold for us? We were about to find out...

Thankfully the next day was gloriously clear and sunny, perfect weather for such an occasion, so we excitedly made our way to the bus station to catch a local bus most of the way to Mutianyu. This was easy and took about 45 minutes, and even though we had heard that people dressed as bus conductors usher you off the bus too early so that you pay over-inflated prices for their mini bus to take you the last few miles, we were confident that we wouldn't fall for this. We did, but managed to negotiate the mini bus price to what we knew it should be and shared the ride to the foot of the wall with an American couple so it all worked out fine in the end. On arrival to the ticket office the driver (who had now lost the bus conductor uniform) tried to take us to the ticket window, no doubt to get a share of commision, but we ignored him and got tickets at student rates by showing our student cards which we were pleased about.

At the foot of the wall there were lots of stalls selling t-shirts, drinks, snacks, toys and other bits which the tour groups were lapping up, so we bypassed them and declined taking the cable car up to the wall, instead choosing to climb up to it from the start...we must have climbed over 1000 steps to get to the top in the heat which was hard enough, but the views of the Autumn leaves and surrounding scenery were worth it alone, and that was before we got a glimpse of the famous wall.

Honestly, it took our breath away from the moment we stepped on it. We were actually on The Great Wall of China!

The Wall has played a significant part of history in China over the years, and was first built back in the 13th-14th century to protect the Chinese empire against intrusions by various nomadic groups or military forces, which the guards in the thousands of watch towers would ensure, until parts of it were destroyed. The Mutianyu section which we were visiting is over 22km long and is a mix of original and restored wall, while the entire wall stretches for over 8000km, from China to Inner Mongolia.

We walked the length of this section of wall for over 4 hours, taking in the panoramic views, marvelling at the amazing architechture and detail of this sheer masterpeice, which stretched for miles and miles, all the while not quite believing that we were finally here. I mean, does it get any better than this? Hiking one of the ancient Wonders of the World, with someone you love, on a trip of a lifetime? At times it was tough as parts of the wall were deceivingly steep and difficult to climb, and our legs ached and we were hot, but we just didn't want to stop and spent hours enjoying this awesome structure, pushing on and just breathing in the wall and our surroundings. On some parts higher up, where a lot of people didn't make it, we felt we had the wall all to ourselves which was an incredible feeling - just us and the Great Wall - simply wow.

This really was a once in a lifetime experience and one which we took full advantage of. We didn't rush our time on the wall and at times it even felt like a leisurely stroll high up in the clouds, until what seemed like hundreds of stone steps would appear in front of us, winding their way up to another amazing view point where we could admire The Wall snaking into the distance as it meandered further into the countryside. At one point we reached what we thought was a peak, only to delve past the 'no tourists allowed here' sign to discover another part of the wall which was deserted, peaceful and beautiful. We felt we had reached our nirvana and acheived one of our lifelong goals up there. Scott went even further and managed probably the most memorable phone call of his life with his dad which was surreal - just calling to say hi from a deserted spot on The Great Wall of China!

We could have stayed on The Wall for a few more hours but it was time to go (as in Winter it shuts at 5pm), so instead of clambering down to the bottom the way we had come, we chose to toboggan down (how many people can say they have tobogganed down The Great Wall of China?!) which was awesome, and gave the Jamaican bobsleigh team a run for their money, twisting and turning at high speeds down the narrow slide until we reached the bottom, throughly exhausted but pumping with adrenaline after one of the best days of our lives.

We dragged our tired bodies into a minibus which took us to the bus stop so we could catch the bus back to the city, where we fell into our hostel and after a bite to eat and reliving our amazing day through our photos, went to bed satisfied that yes, The Great Wall of China lived up to and exceeded all our expectations and was completely incredible in every way.

S&V's Travel Info & Tips:

General Info: Approx 10 RMB/Yuan to £1. Beijing is vast and surprisingly there is little to no English spoken in the capital. Stay near a metro station and it will be easy to get around.

Transportation: Our bullet train from Shanghai to Beijing only took 5 hours but was pricey at 550 RMB each. We had intended to get a sleeper train which would have taken 14 hours, but it was even more expensive at almost 700 RMB each so we saved in the end. Getting around Beijing by metro is easy and cheap, with each journey costing just 2 RMB each. To get to the Mutianyu section of The Great Wall, take the metro to Dongzhimen stop, then get bus 916 Express which takes approx 1hour 15mins and costs 12 RMB pp. For the last few km (the driver will tell you when to get off, or the fake conductor will) you will need to take a minibus, of which there are plenty waiting on the roadside when the bus stops or you can go with the fake bus conductor - either way it shouldn't be more than 20 RMB per person for this, although they will start off at 60 RMB.

Food: The duck spring rolls at Quan Ju De (on Qianmen Da Jie/Walking Street) are awesome at just 4 RMB each and the duck & pancakes looked good there too for 120 RMB. Ghost Street (near Beixinqiao metro stop) has tons of Chinese-style restaurants and the duck there is great, but you may not recognise some of the dishes on offer ! Otherwise, food at our hostel was good, and of course there is Mc Donald's and KFC for desperate times. Chinese food hasn't been exactly what we expected - more on this in the next blog!

Accomodation: We stayed in 365 inn which is located in a Hutong 5-10 mins from Qianmen metro stop and Tian'amen Sqaure, so very central. The hostel has a great bar and serves decent food but is our most expensive to date at 220 RMB for a private double room. Dorms are cheaper at 60 RMB each.

Other observations:

x) Like in Shanghai, watch out for scams involving English speaking Chinese students who try to take you to a tea house/ceremony.

xx) Do the trip to The Great Wall on your own by public transport - its easy, cheap and you get as long as you want there.

xxx) Our student cards have been invaluable for us in China so far, getting us free or reduced entry into loads of sites including The Great Wall (25 RMB entry instead of 50 RMB) - get one from the STA travel website

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Comments

[Home and Away]

I've made my flight reservations to arrive in Beijing on 22 March...
I will meet my son there and then take trains everywhere. I've heard that they don't sell tickets until a couple days before a departure. I want to make sure I get specific trains between Beijing, Pinyao, Xian, Lanzhou, Jiayuguan, Dunhuang, and Urumqi. How far in advance can I make reservations and is it best to go through a travel agent? Details on buying train tickets would be appreciated!