Wall

So, who on earth thought it would be a good idea to do this during winter? The usually treacherous wall became decidedly dangerous with a dusting of snow, at least to a man with no apparent goat genes. On the other hand, it did look rather nice.

In one of my favourite shows (Futurama) there is a scene where, in the year 3000, a hole is knocked in the Wall, and after a few seconds some Mongol horsemen come charging in as if they've been waiting there for 2000 years. Very funny, but not, sadly, true. We climbed up from the Mongolian side and there was nobody there.


This particular stretch of wall is about 8km long with some cracked and broken bits (scary) and some smooth bits (too slippery to walk on). That's about 30 of the towers. Every time you stop concentrating (you know, to think about breathing, drinking water) you fall down. On a rock wall. I also got adopted by a guide who was clearly trying to win some kind of "who can kill a tourist fastest" and selected the fat, old one as an easy mark. Oh boy, we went quickly (for me). I hit the floor a couple of times, but not unreasonably, I think. I'll be paying the price for that, though.

But, it was incredible.


This shows the contrast between the 500 year old bits (on the left) and the reconstructed bits (on the right)

It's not an easy trek.

This is what I wanted to see. Glorious.


You end up crossing a chain bridge. See?

The view from it is pretty lovely, and nice to have some variety after the imperious hills



The post-walk food and beers did taste all the better. I was exhausted, drenched and cold. But actually a little proud of myself. Sorry about that.

It. Was. Great.