Mon. 11/19-08 The Great Wall

Our visit to the Great Wall took us several miles out of Beijing. On the way there, we saw more of the countryside. I asked about the innumerable lines around the mountains. Solomon said that was the tree planting effort. Mountain after mountain had the ridges and lines. What a labor intensive plan that was!

The Great Wall was built between 476 B.C. and the 14th century. The first emperor to unify China in the third century B.C. was Qin Shi Huangdi (221-206 BB.C.) He had 300,000 workers working for 10 years to protect China from outside attack. It was originally several walls protecting different cities. Then these walls were joined. The Great Wall is more than 6,000 kilometers long. There are watchtowers at intervals along the wall. I have read that today hikers use them as shelters, and even hostels. The wall is crumbling in many places, but has been rebuilt in other places. Our visit was to one of the places that has been restored.

This was our first glimpse of the Great Wall and one of the watchtowers through the bus window. The Great Wall is also the largest cemetery, because many workers died and were buried under or within the wall. There are many legends about the building of the wall. One of them tells of how Meng Jiangnu's bitter weeping made a section of the Great Wall collapse. Meng Jiangnu's husband Fan Qiliang was caught by federal officials three days after their wedding and sent to build the Great Wall. Meng Jiangnu heard nothing from him after his departure. She cried every day and sewed warm clothes to take to him, and she set out to look for him. Unfortunately, by the time she reached the great wall, she discovered that her husband had already died and was buried within the wall. Hearing the bad news, she cried her heart out. Her howl and her tears caused the collapse of a part of the Great Wall. This legend has been spread widely through textbooks, folk songs and traditional operas. It is well-known in China. For the story in greater detail see this website. http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/culture/mengjiangnu.htm >

Several other stories are at this website>http://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/culture/

Here we are, beginning our journey. As we began, we had no idea of how steep and laborious the journey would be. There are different levels of the walk. They have created flat landings for resting, thank goodness. The steps were almost like a ladder in places, and the height of the steps varied, so I found myself almost stumbling because I had not raised my foot far enough. The next step might be more shallow and that was a surprise, because we were following the next person so closely.

We were relieved and excited to arrive at the watch tower. It was very crowded there, because many people like us had decided to rest there and wondered how the journey down was going to be. We explored the tower and enjoyed many phenomenal views.

I climbed up to the top of the watch tower. It was again very steep, and after the climb up the hill, my knees were shaky. But I am glad I did!

After our exploration and rest, our knees had lost their shakiness, until we began the descent! Going back down was very difficult, too, with the varying heights of the steps--one high and one thinner. Both were difficult and ellicited cries of surprise from me. We appreciated the smooth walkways and rest stops toward the bottom. We were hungry and tired and cold. We bought some snacks and joined the group back on the bus. This was a morning none of us will ever forget.