The Great Wall:
After a dreary and rainy day in Beijing, Mark and I woke early to start our day of trekking on the great wall. We had the rare opportunity to be driven to a remote part of the wall that is not open to the public and began our hike there. We were able to hike this section because of a friend of Mark's who lives in Beijing and is part of the Wall preservation project. Such an amazing opportunity.
We started at a local farmer’s house, where his wife made us a delicious breakfast of porridge and ginger sautéed, shredded potatoes that were ridiculously good. From there we began our hike up to the wall along a small and steep footpath. Through dense foliage and trees we climbed, the Wall hovering above us in its ever-present and formidable way. I can only imagine what the Mongolians must have thought, after traversing and climbing over mountain rage after mountain range, to be met with “The Wall.” Snaking over 3000 km, the wall follows the ridgeline creating a barrier that can be seen from space. Interestingly, the wall was the first “building” to be represented on world maps.
Once we climbed our way to the wall itself, we were able to walk along what is referred to as the “wild wall”- sections of the wall that have not been restored and are slowly being reclaimed by the landscape. It is difficult to even describe the vast and overwhelming magnitude of the wall and what it entails: what it took (lives, time, and materials) to build it, and just its visual presence in an already striking setting. A perfectly clear day (rare in Beijing and the surrounding areas), we were able to stretch our vision, following the wall’s route along the mountain range, and disappearing into the distance.
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