Having once lived in China for 11 years, I still travel there frequently. This post is from my recent trip to China and its southern provinces in May 2012. View more stories and photos from that trip and other China trips here.
Beijing, ChinaI think it's been 8 times - 8 times that I have been to the Great Wall. For my 8th time, I didn't need any of the fancy tourist stuff - no guided tours, no chairlifts, no souvenirs. I wanted to hike as much of the Great Wall as I could, before the waves of tourists arrived. Even though my plan called for waking up at 6am, it was my favourite visit to the Great Wall. The silence in the mountains and the cool breeze of the early morning was perfect for reflecting on the physical sacrifice that went into constructing this magnificent World Wonder.
My only regret was not able to camp there overnight and to catch the sunrise in the morning. Looks like that's a reason for me to return some day soon.
5 comments
The history of the Great Wall is fascinating! The first part of the wall was built in 220 BC by the first Emperor of China (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_wall).
ReplyDeleteAt the time that I've visited it, it was full with tourists! https://plus.google.com/photos/109868944887238285797/albums/5102247092867811873/5102247174472190626?banner=pwa
It's certainly a great sight. The key to avoiding tourists is to get there before 7:30am - it's worth it though!
ReplyDeleteEight times is impressive! I hope I will at least manage to go once in my lifetime!
ReplyDeleteI hope you get to do the hike one day too! Thanks for dropping by~
ReplyDelete[...] other people there. Even though my plan to avoid other visitors called for waking up at 6am, it was my favourite visit to the Great Wall. The silence in the mountains and the cool breeze of the early morning was perfect for reflecting [...]
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