The GREAT Wall

After the Forbidden City, or as our guide Michael put it, the morning exercise, we headed out of town for lunch and a tour of a local facility that makes many things including brass vases and art. Joy found a beautiful tea set and we had them wrap it for travel, as if 6 pieces of luggage were not enough. I need a pack mule to help me tote all of this stuff and she still has 11 more days to shop! We then moved on to the Great Wall and started the climb to the top. The pictures don't do it justice. Several times we thought we had made it to the last tower only to make it there and see 2 or 3 more in the distance. Joy and Olivia went to the first landing and then turned in to the shopping facility. I am still not sure how much that cost me. I headed towards the top, determined to get there and back by 5, the time the bus was to leave. About half way up there was a station that sold drinks and shirts for those who had the stamina to make it that far. I pressed on and I have to say the views from the top were worth the climb and 2 days of sore thighs and calves. The biggest obstacle is that no 2 steps are the same size. You might have 4 steps that are 4" high followed by 2 that are 24" high. At times the grade was so steep that you could not climb without using the handrail. Several sections had sloped ramps with no steps and once in a while you had to go back down before going up, ARGH! I hate giving up ground. By the time the handful of us who made it to the top got there, all we could do was smile and look. Nobody had enough air left to say much of anything. You can see a long ways from there in every direction including mountains, lakes, roads and tunnels. As we headed back down, we noticed a herd of sheep and then we noticed that a man was herding them down a long mountain path. A real life sheep herder working the hills just as they have for many years. We worked quickly to get back to the bottom and made it with just a few minutes to spare. I think I enjoyed the wall and seeing how it was constructed more than anything we have done so far. After the wall we rode back to the city through the Olympic Village. I took several pictures of the Water Cube, the Bird's Nest and the huge hotels built for the Olympics. One of them even has a 6-story television monitor on the side. We finished the day off we a visit to a local Thai food joint and then back to pack up for our 5:30 AM departure to the airport to leave for Nanjing. The flight was a little delayed due to weather but was uneventful and we met our guide at the gate to head to the hotel. This hotel is nicer than the one we had in Beijing. It has much softer beds and pillows, more food choices and AIR CONDITIONING! This catches you up through Sunday night. The next stop is Gotcha day which is 2 hours away as I type. We didn't get much sleep last night. We all crashed after the early flight but then we woke up before midnight and haven't slept much since. Goodbye for now. The next time we post, the family will have 2 daughters!