The Wall that is Great

My internet has given me such a hard time since I have returned from China. It is my 'welcome home' present from Doha. Sorry it has taken me so long.

We took a nonstop flight to China and it seemed like going from one planet to another. Could the Middle East and the Far East be any more different? Beijing is a bustling city and far more modern than I expected. I know about the facade for the Olympics, but they did a pretty good job making it seem like it is a world class city. Many people complain about the pollution, but after living in Nepal, it didn't seem bad to me at all. In other words, my black boogers weren't nearly as dark as they were in Nepal, and my lungs burned a bit, but I couldn't feel chunks of blackness in the back of my throat. Everything is relative.

My friend had been to Beijing 3 times and told me the highlight of her last trip was going to the Great Wall via a sidecar. I was skeptical, but since she was the same person who advised me to go on a balloon ride over the Mara in Kenya, I trusted her suggestion and booked before we left. Andrei (from Cluj, Romania-where I served my mission) picked us up in the morning with his Chinese friend and we zipped through the city.

There can't be a cooler way to see Beijing than on the side of a motorbike. You can smell the smells and feel the air blowing through your hair. You can also feel every pothole, but it is a small price to pay (except when you have a full bladder, then it sucks). Beijing traffic is quite tame compared to Doha so it didn't feel unsafe to me. However, if you are coming from the states, you might be slightly queasy on the way out of town.

Oh, and there was a slight mishap as we were driving out of the city. There was a Chinese worker who jumped out in front of the motorcycle in front of us. He stood there like a deer caught in the headlights wavering from side to side, not moving in any practical manner. Sure enough, he was hit and flew twice in the air until he landed on his side. At first I was shocked, especially since just minutes before he was hit, I was at the front of the line. Apparently, this is not an uncommon practice for Chinese because they know if they get hit, they could receive a large sum of money from the foreigner who hit him/her. And that is just what happened. He sat at the side of the road and our group helped examine him. He had a few bruises and cuts, and after a long, dramatic deliberation, he received two months worth of wages. Once he received his money and appeared happy with the outcome, we hopped on the bikes once again and moved a long.

Our first stop was to pick up a few other members of the group. We stopped at this beautiful hotel, and adjacent to the hotel grounds were some beautiful American style homes owned by rich Chinese folk.

A Chinese bride taking photos in front of the colonial hotel

Once we got out of Beijing, I saw the China I always dreamed of. There were lush trees and rock faced peaks everywhere. The streets were lined with trees and the country folk were all engaged in their daily activities (hauling branches on their backs, or transferring rock by a horse drawn carriage).

A typical countryside road

We made one stop to view some Buddhist pagodas. Again, the China I always dreamed of....

Note Amber walking in the middle of the pagodas and the man to the left who is ruining my picture.

The next series of pictures are fairly self explanatory. What was so cool about taking the side cars is they take you to a secluded area of the wall. This may not seem that significant, but if you think about all the Chinese tourists that you see at the American landmarks, you can only imagine what Chinese tourists are like IN China. Insanity, I tell you.

Every corner we turned it was picturesque and breathtaking. The wall extended as far as the eye could see and crowns all of the highest peaks. The wall was build between the 5th century BC to the 16th century. It covers approximately 6,000 miles. Stunning. The height of the wall is also exceptional (anywhere from 16 to 26 feet high). I now understand why when our friend Brad fell off the wall only a few months ago, they send an emergency medical evac to save him. He was fine, but possibly scarred for life.

My freakish flexibility

We spend the entire day at the wall and even had a Parisian lunch in one of the watchtowers. The climb is not for weak. There are sections that only have slippery rock and very little traction. Some of the walk feels like 90 degrees up or down.

On the way back from the wall we stopped at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Park--the one place Amber insisted on missing while in China. We both laughed when we arrived because she was going to see it whether she liked it or not. The beautiful buildings are useless now. Apparently, the Chinese don't care too much about sports and the acoustics are terrible for music concerts. So, here they sit, spending thousands of dollars looking pretty.

Dragon buildings- Bill Gates owns the penthouse of the second building

Our awesome drivers

Our final ride was through the Hutongs, ending at the Forbidden City. Both of which deserve posts of their own. I can't recommend the sidecar experience enough. If you want to see the Great Wall in all of its glory, do it sideways.