The Great Wall

The Great wall is not what we think. It isn't a single wall that you can walk end to end. It was built over the centuries, spanning many dynasties. It looks more like a subway map. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_the_Great_Wall_of_China.jpg

Don't quite believe the claim that Abramavic and Ulay walked the whole thing. No disrespect, but...

We spent an exhilarating two days up at the JianKou portion of the Great Wall. This particular section has not been restored so along with the amazing views it provides the thrills and chills of mountain climbing. Scrambling up and down shear cliff faces can sure get your adrenaline pumping.

I thought I would start off this entry with a map of our journey to date. Just ignore the dot in Calgary and the one on the equator. Not quite sure how they got there

Fish farm at the foot of Jian Kou
There are a number of restaurants where you can catch your dinner

Yi Shen, Wee Lit and John, The Intrepids

                 

The lilacs and mock oranges in bloom filled the entire area with a sweet fragrance

Tower view

If you look closely that dot is J

Looking down from where J was in the picture above

My Lucky pet

The new wing of the hostel. The family that ran the place were amazing

Scarcrow

the begininng of Day two and our 7 hour trek up and back to Jiu Yan (nine eyes) the highest point on our visit

Tower interior

view out and down

J just beginning to climb down a 25 metre cliff face where the wall had completely collapsed. Still smiling

The way around. The route not taken

Jiu Yan. I count more than nine eyes.

Views from the top

Back in the village

the ride back to Beijing