The Great Wall!

The last part of the trip was our Great Wall trip!  Yes, I’m still catching up, and yes I’m actually still building this site (lorem ipsum anyone?).  Anyways… the Great Wall!

The Great Wall was started as early as the 7th century BCE.  Small sections of the wall were built in different areas around China, which were later strengthened, and connected as the centuries passed, into what is now called the Great Wall.  Click the pic from Wikipedia to see more about where the walls actually are, and when they were built.  

The part we went to is called Mutianyu, built almost 1000 years after the first section was started.  This is where we hiked for a good half a day. If you’ve seen the Great Wall on television or in movies, this could be the part you’ve seen.

We started out at the official entrance, about a kilometer away from the actual wall.  This is where you can grab drinks, snacks, umbrellas and souvenirs before you get to the wall itself.

After you get out of here, you’ll be “pleasantly surprised” to find out that there’s ANOTHER area to buy food, drinks, souvenirs… you have to go to before you get to the wall itself.  If you got to the first place by bus, you’ll get to the next place, by a different bus.

When we FINALLY get there, the trip & multiple vehicles are worth it.

When you’re there, you WILL end up with a crowd of people, and not everyone pays attention to where they’re going.  Keep this in mind, and you won’t fall down any of the numerous steep steps.

We spent a good 3 hours there, walking about an hour in one direction, then heading back in order to get back to where we got in, leaving about an hour to pause for pics here & there, and pick Cam up so he can see over certain sections of the wall.

Keep in mind, the hour long hike is both up and down hill, and depending on the direction you pick, one of them is VERY uphill, all differently sized steps.  Be prepared for this.  If you are, you’ll get some great shots!

It’ll be nearly impossible to get shots without people in them, but if you’re patient, you’ll pull it off.  I have more, some are up on instagram (look down), so check them out!

After our time there, we spent a bit of time having a snack on the wall, then headed back for a proper lunch at of all places, Subway.

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