Hello guys!
I am bringing it back with another China post. On our visit to China a must see was of course the Great Wall in Beijing. Now, one of the first things that you need to know about Beijing, China in January... It. Is. Cold! I mean very cold, it literally feels like it can chill your bones, but man o' man is it beautiful. My advice for anyone looking to go around this time of year, LAYER UP! You seriously cannot get enough layers. I was wearing a long-sleeve shirt, a jacket, a beanie, some gloves, and a heavy coat to top all that off and I still froze. Also, face masks are smart to wear for two reasons: first is that the pollution can get really awful, second, it warms your face. But put the cold aside and it really is a great time to go, because it wasn't really crowded and we had the liberty of stoping for as long as we want, in the areas we wanted to, to take pictures and just enjoy the general grandeur of it all. Worry free of holding people up for great picture spots.
On the way up to the Great Wall you take a train from the train station in Beijing and get to enjoy a scenic one hour ride up to it. Something else, the wait at the train station is also very very cold, so just prepare for that as well. Just because you are inside in the station, it is not heated. (Don't worry, the train ride keeps you very warm). Getting onto the train was an adventure in and of itself. When you buy tickets there are no assigned seats, so it becomes a complete free-for-all. It is sort of relatable to a first come, first serve basis, whoever gets the seat first, gets to sit there. So, if you want to sit with your whole group and/or get good seats, you have to run. Literally. I mean it, run. People will line up at the doors when it gets close to the boarding time, and when the guards give us the okay and open up the doors, people burst through like horses at a track straight out of the gate. And when in China do as the Chinese do, right? So we ran, and I actually highly recommend it because it was actually quite fun. People are laughing as they go sprinting off for the train and running helps also keep the cold at bay. So I say do it! It's all part of a good experience.
There are several different parts of this grand structure that you can visit but the one we stopped at was the Badaling part of the wall which also houses the highest point of the wall. With the wall itself standing at twenty-five feet high, the Badaling part of the rises 2,624 feet above the sea level. In contrast the lowest point, Laolongtou, stands right at sea level.
At the base of the wall there were bathrooms (blissfully heated bathrooms), food and little shops and convenience stores to go into and tool around in. As far as food goes, they of course have a lot of local selections to choose from, but if you aren't into that there are also a couple of places like Subway, etc. Ordering food there comes with a lot of pointing to pictures on the menu when you don't know the language.
It was a really cool experience that I will always be grateful that I got the opportunity to have. Even in the absolute freezing weather every part was worth it to me.
Link to my Great Wall YouTube video for anyone curious!:) --> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGeUvkb64Dg
