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We climbed and climbed and climbed. We took pictures of the other line of people going up the other way. What struck me was how relatively “low” the wall was if attacker actually reached the wall. This would have never worked in Lord of the Rings! They would have just climbed the wall and got in. It seemed like a lot of work for a relatively low wall. But then after thinking about it more, I decided that the invaders would have probably been so exhausted by simply climbing the mountains that by the time they got to the wall, they wouldn’t have had enough energy to climb anyway. So it probably worked. They told us that there is an annual 10 mile marathon along one part of the wall – based on how steep some of the wall sections were – that would more grueling than Robie Creek.
On the way back, we came to one of the “guard towers” where there was a traffic jam. There were guards there that weren’t letting us through. I assumed that they were just conducting traffic flow between those coming up and those coming down. Right then, another American came down, saw us, and said, “Hi – do you know how I can get down from here? I’m trying to get down, but won’t let me.” I guessed that he had just gotten here – and told him that I thought they were just conducting traffic, and he smiled and calmed down. And then we visited the whole way down. He was from LA and had just decided to come to Beijing on a whim as part of a business trip. We laughed and compared notes. Our only funny part coming down was when we got to the really steep part. Emily got stuck behind an old Chinese man and a child. We were all going slow, clutching onto a handrail, but this man was going super slow – in slow motion. We got down, said goodbye and met up with our group. It was only then that I noticed that my back was soaked and covered with sweat. I had been carrying a backpack and didn’t realize how much effort I had expended. I spent the next hour recovering. It was great however, and we got some great pictures.
We had our second Chinese meal on this tour. Up until now, Emily and I have been very careful or too busy to have formal meals. So we have been living on Yogurt, Juice, and snacks. I don’t think we’ll be gaining any weight on this trip. We then visited the Ming tombs and several tourist “trap” places.
We did learn a few more interesting things from our guide this afternoon as well. I told her that we had a Special Olympics Chinese athlete stay at our home and that he always said a word like “Shula”, “Shula” – and asked her what it meant. She laughed and said it meant “loss” meaning that he or they lost. Then I remembered that he had used it a lot when we were playing the Nintendo Wii game in our basement. I thought it mean he was having fun. Evidently it meant he had lost the game.
On the way back, we came to one of the “guard towers” where there was a traffic jam. There were guards there that weren’t letting us through. I assumed that they were just conducting traffic flow between those coming up and those coming down. Right then, another American came down, saw us, and said, “Hi – do you know how I can get down from here? I’m trying to get down, but won’t let me.” I guessed that he had just gotten here – and told him that I thought they were just conducting traffic, and he smiled and calmed down. And then we visited the whole way down. He was from LA and had just decided to come to Beijing on a whim as part of a business trip. We laughed and compared notes. Our only funny part coming down was when we got to the really steep part. Emily got stuck behind an old Chinese man and a child. We were all going slow, clutching onto a handrail, but this man was going super slow – in slow motion. We got down, said goodbye and met up with our group. It was only then that I noticed that my back was soaked and covered with sweat. I had been carrying a backpack and didn’t realize how much effort I had expended. I spent the next hour recovering. It was great however, and we got some great pictures.
We had our second Chinese meal on this tour. Up until now, Emily and I have been very careful or too busy to have formal meals. So we have been living on Yogurt, Juice, and snacks. I don’t think we’ll be gaining any weight on this trip. We then visited the Ming tombs and several tourist “trap” places.
We did learn a few more interesting things from our guide this afternoon as well. I told her that we had a Special Olympics Chinese athlete stay at our home and that he always said a word like “Shula”, “Shula” – and asked her what it meant. She laughed and said it meant “loss” meaning that he or they lost. Then I remembered that he had used it a lot when we were playing the Nintendo Wii game in our basement. I thought it mean he was having fun. Evidently it meant he had lost the game.
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