The Great Wall – Sacred Way – Ming Tombs
Thirteen…. Fourteen… fifteen… just 2 more…Roger was right, all these steps are uneven numbers.
Ok… take a break… breath deep… drink some water… move on.
“You OK Honey? Just a few more steps and you can rest over here?”
“You really want to get way up there?”
“Yes Dear… and you can do it too!”
She is such a trooper to get up here with Teng and I… just two more towers to go….
Yeah… you'll have to wait for the rest. Now that I've set the scene…lets start the day.
The Alarm went off at 630AM as we needed to get a jump on the rush hour traffic to the Great wall which was a normal hour and half drive. A quick “Dance of the Tiny Bathroom” and quicker breakfast and we meet Teg and ZhangYong for the trip.
I took the laptop along to make notes along the way [it's 45 minutes to Ba Da Ling so why not] and to finish yesterdays NOWAT. Zhang the "Kung Fu driver" got a big kick out of this as did Teng. It really did make it easier to remember the details he was imparting as we went along.
A few facts about the wall that might interest some and cause the eye glaze in others [you know who you are].
First important fact… the Chinese LOVE walls. They build them all over for the weirdest reasons.
Next: Only the 5000km of the Wall north of Beijing can be called the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty. The Qin & Han dynasties built their own “Great Walls” elsewhere in the country but according to our guide they don’t count. Those were built mostly of earth and wood not the elaborate brick and mortar version that snakes from the Pacific across the grassland to the Gobi desert,
Of the 24 dynasties that ruled in China – 5 did not build or add on to the great wall.
Built from 1369 to 1644, The Qing dynasty actually put in a section facing their own nomadic
tribe, never rebuilding any part of the main wall that had been either torn down by successive dynasties or deteriorated do to weather conditions.Said to be built from the sea and ending in the Gobi dessert it was actually started just north from Beijing and spread to the East and West as its initial purpose was to protect the Purple Forbidden City. It actually stretches a total of 6350km, not counting the 1000km that the Qing tore down to build their little addition.
From the wall to Beijing there are over 3600 beacon towers the number rose and fell according the government coffers as soldiers had to be stationed at each one.We arrive at the Ba Da Ling Section of the wall, one of the most popular areas for tourists… so popular there is 4 star hotel there.
I'm beginning to feel the emotion well up again as it did in the Forbidden City. I am about to step foot on another life long quest and Teng again senses my excitement.
Relax Meng Tsi,” he smiles, “save the energy for the Climb.”
After a few pictures of the wall as it snakes across the mountains we ascend the eastern side and set our sights on the watchtower we are told is approximately ½ a kilometer away… of
course that half a klick is at a very steep incline. Since the placement of each watchtower on the wall was measured by the distance of one Bow shot [insuring that any breaches would be caught in crossfire] I figured NO PROBLEM.... WROOOOONG!!
The jumping off point has all the resident vendors that hustle all sorts of tchotchkies including plaques that are engraved on the spot attesting to ones completion of the trek. So of course I had to order a couple for collection upon our descent from the summit.
We step onto the first section and head out at a medium pace stopping first for a picture of Chucky’s first step onto his goal. Teng has told me that it takes him 25-30 minutes to make the ascent and after evaluating my condition decides that a reasonable pace it should take Illy and I [yep… she vows to do it with me] about 40 minutes +/ -. And the first section has me fooled… fairly level we get to the first watchtower quickly… but then it turned ugly…
Thirteen…. Fourteen… fifteen… just 2 more…
Roger was right, all these steps are uneven
numbers.Ok… take a break… breath deep… drink some water… move on.
“You OK Honey? Just a few more steps and you can rest over here?”
“You really want to get way up there?”
“Yes Dear… and you can do it too!”
She is such a trooper to get up here with Teng and I… just two more towers to go…
The trek up the wall is getting steeper and steeper, originally designed with such an uneven surface to keep any breaching army from running up on any watchtower [run… Hell I may not be able to even crawl up dammit!!!] and I really Wanted to do this?!?! I gotta have my head examined when I get back. Huff… puff….[if I ever get back!] Wheeze.. wheeeeze…..boy am I looking forward to the descent!!! [Be careful what you wish for I recall an ancient sage once saying]
Tower 3 done and the Big Mutha up top still looms… the steps up are
big time uneven and the traffic down doesn’t make it any easier, but after several stops for pics and more importantly many deep breaths and hydration we reach the steepest stair set… feet don’t fail me now…. this baby makes the trek up Coal Hill look like a walk in the park [wait… that WAS a park].At last…. We reach the summit [or at least OUR summit] YES dear hearts… CHUCKY HAS CLIMED THE WALL!
We take a well deserved break, a few more pics and start the descent which ain't as easy as it looked. And of course I am really concerned about the Dragon Lady who fell down all over San Francisco with less incline than this.
We make it back to the tchotchke stand and proudly collect my plaque, a few postcards of shots I couldn’t get and head off to the refreshment stand for an espresso and a rest for the feet before we find the car and head to lunch.
Air Fare: $900
Private Tour: $2200
Checking #7 off your life’s list:
"PRICELE$$ "
Ming Tomb and Sacred Way will follow soon… time to crash.
再见朋友
Zài Jiàn Péng-You
Chuck and the fully exhausted but very proud to have made it
Dragon Lady
