The Great Wall of China

This day was the big one. Our trip to The Great Wall. We choose to go to Mutianyu because it was close to Beijing but also a little less crowded than other spots. It also had the benefit of a toboggan on the way down. Now I’m not saying that the toboggan was what swayed us but it sure did help.
We knew we wanted to make our own way to the wall since the tours were extremely expensive but we did get a little swindled. We caught the 916 bus to Huairou from Dongzhimen bus station which only cost us 5RMB but before reaching our final destination some men jumped on the bus shouting “Stop for Great Wall. Stop for Great Wall.” As the only two foreigners on the bus everyone stared at us until we jumped off.  Once the bus was just a dust cloud in the distance  we realised that this wasn’t our stop at all but a trick to get you to pay more for a taxi . I was enraged as I hate stuff like this (but obviously silently since I’m British), Lee is the calmer one in situations like this and said it wouldn’t be too much of a difference so started to haggle. I’d read online how much it was to get to the wall from the bus stop so I was ready. We had also read a rule to work by in China. What ever price they say, it’s normally worth 3% of that price. This seemed cruel to us. We couldn’t bring ourselves to quote back 3% of their offer so we would say 10% and haggle from there.
This taxi driver had us by the wontons. Lee was in charge of haggling and I was ready to see his skills after years of living in the haggling capital of the world,Saudi Arabia. So when the guy quoted us a outrageous price, Lee dropped it by 10 RMB and then gave in I was left opened mouthed. His haggling skills were obviously rusty (plus he’s a big softie) so I stepped in and got us an additional discount. Not something I’d have ever done in the past but teaching middle school kids has obviously hardened my soul. Later Lee did point out that we are talking about pennies. It’s easy to forget how little  things cost in China compared to the west . I really was arguing about pennies. In the end a taxi to and from the wall which was about an hour in total (as well as a escort to the ticket office and shuttle bus) cost us about 180RMB for there and back which is 45RMB. It’s actually a great deal. You couldn’t get a taxi to the local shop for that price in London. I felt like a proper tycoon for being annoyed once I realised he had waited at the bottom of the wall all day  to drive us home. That money was his entire day’s wage and he was a lovely man. But if you are in that situation you may not be lucky enough to get a nice driver like us so make sure the bus is at your stop when you hop off. It will make it easier to haggle with those taxis.
Saying all that, Lee was taken off haggling duty for the rest of our trip.
Anyway, the wall was a mystery to us. Once we arrived we couldn’t see the wall itself and had no idea what to do. We were ushered (by our enthusiastic driver) to the shuttle bus ticket office. We were coaxed very quickly past lots of hat and trinket shops and even a burger king that was being build, yes you can get a whopper on the wall. The ticket cost about 40p and we jumped on board. This shuttle took us to the cable car entrance. Believe me it was as confusing on the day as it is to read. I’ve never taken so many modes of transport just to see some bricks. At 10am we had already got a bus, a taxi , a shuttle bus and now a cable car. We bought a cable car ticket up and a ticket for the toboggan down. We also got an entrance ticket to the wall which was discounted with our Korean ARC cards and left the driver behind in the boiling sun. All of this happened in such as rush that it was if we were part of an assembly line in a Looney tunes cartoon.
We took a second to take a breath, put on crazy amounts of sun tan lotion (factor 50++ for my see through skin) and headed to the cable car. It was only at this point that we realised we hadn’t bought tickets for the shiny new looking cable car with enclosed pods and comfy seats but the chair lift. Lee may be one of the tallest men around but heights aren’t exactly his favourite thing so the chair lift wasn’t a happy discovery. He jumped on like a champ and we soared up into the Chinese skies.
That’s when we saw it, sprawled across the mountain. The Great Wall. And great it was. It curved and dropped effortlessly with the mountain peeks and gave the impression that years ago a powerful nation had walked along it. It was only very high up that we also realised, like a slap to the face that we were at the end of the wall. Most people get the cable car up, walk along and get the toboggan down. Unfortunately our chair lift and toboggan were at the same place. This meant we would have to walk the wall once and then walk back. Most people find it tough to do once; we were going to do it twice in 4 hours. With a giggle and a shrug we warned out feet of the day ahead and started to climb.
When you see pictures of the wall it looks like soft inclines and calming surroundings.  The calming surroundings part was right but soft inclines – hell no! The drops and inclines on this thing were extreme. At one point we thought we’d gone the wrong way as it didn’t seem possible you were meant to climb it. Everyone one walking towards us nearing the end of their trek was red faced and clinging onto the railings. Who would have thought that a 4 hour trek on the hottest day of the year would have been hard? We even had to stop and help a poor German man at one point who was suffering to offer him some water. We were all in this together.

Lee looking for the huns

The views were stunning; the mountains around us looked still and peaceful. When you climbed to a peak you could see the wall all around you and  it felt serene. It is sometimes hard to picture the history around you when you visit historical sites but here it was easy to imagine guards at their post watching our for Mongolians, defending their country.
Every few hundred meters along the wall there is a guard tower; these offered a perfect rest bite and much needed shade. They were filled with tourists reapplying sun screen and chatting with each other.
The photos definitely don’t do this place justice and it was one of those places where you needed a camera. Although most people will think, ‘yes I’ve seen the wall before’ you will look at the photos and remember the achievement of walking the bloody thing. I’m tired just thinking about it.

problem as a couple is finding people to take photos of you together.

We made it to the cable car (which stung knowing that should have been our original starting point) and headed back. That’s when we started to notice the tourists thinning. It was about 12pm and the sun was at its highest but the heat had been the same since about 9am so it didn’t make too much difference. On the walk back we had almost no one to share the wall with and it was fantastic. If you do want a bit more of a peaceful walk I’d recommend going at about 10am like we did. Finally after 3 hours, we did it! We walked the wall, TWICE. That’s when we noticed two things:
1. An extra part of the wall the other side of the chair lift
2. The huge queue for the toboggan
So we made deals with out feet to be kind to them later if they could just get us through this last trek. And we set off.
I’ll list some tips at the end of this article but we took 3 huge bottles of water in a backpack when we went and we drank all of them. Lee carried these all day like a trooper. I don’t know how we would have done the trek otherwise. There are occasionally locals selling water on the wall but we only saw 2 in the 4 hours we were on it so it’s smart to pack your own.
The last bit was by far the hardest and most challenging. It was the steepest wall I’ve seen intended for climbing but we persevered. People were helping each other and maneuvering their way up. This part of the wall may not be able to be done by everyone particularly older people but this is the only part that I’d say was  un-doable for some. With the rest of the wall, anyone can do it as long as you aren’t in a rush. This extra bit was hard core.

The money shot

We pushed our vertigo down, got to the top and were rewarded with spectacular views. The wall was laid out in front of us and the old, untouched wall was behind us. It was odd to see the part of the wall that hasn’t been renovated. Covered in trees and falling apart. It really gave you an idea of how old this bunch of bricks really was.
Once at the top we sat on the cold stone in the shade, caught our breath and dragged our butts back to the toboggan. Luckily by now there was no queue so we were able to get straight on. It’s embarrassing to say this, since I was stood on one of the wonders of the world but it was my favourite part of the day. Since it was quiet we could whizz down the whole way and really pick up some speed. I am a bit of a speed demon so I had a great time. It was the perfect end to the trip. We headed back to the taxi and posed for some photos with traditional guards (which cost us way to much) and slept the entire way home.
I’d recommend this day trip to anyone. It was tough but it’s only as tough as you want it to be. There are ways to get down on both ends so you can always just stroll for a bit and head back either end. If you do trek it like we did on the hottest day of the year there will be moments when your whole body is telling you it is not worth it, but looking back I’m so glad we did it.
Tips for visiting The Great Wall –
. Bring your own water (and plenty of it)
. Bring snacks
. Have a camera which has lots of memory space, you will be taking pictures of bricks    than you ever thought possible.
.The general rule when taking photos is more sky than land in landscape shots; this is the one time to break that rule.
. Wear a hat
. Check that you are buying the mode of transport you want and where they are. I’d advised the cable car up and the toboggan down.
. Later in the day is much quieter
. It’s not a race! Take your time
. Learn a bit about the walls history before you go as it will make it even more significant.
. If you are a Korean national or have a Korean ARC card you will get a big discount on the entrance price.
.The cable car/ toboggan and chair lift are about 80RMB each way.
. Some great info on getting to the wall can be found here http://www.wildgreatwall.com/mutianyu-bus-867-to-visit-great-wall/
Are you planning a trip to the wall? What part are you heading to? Have you visited a different part of the wall, what did you think? Did you find the climb as hard as us lazy bones? We look forward to hearing your stories.