Whenever we have returned from China one of the first questions is usually "Did you visit the Great Wall?" If you are staying in Beijing this can be done easily enough as a portion of the wall is located about a one hour's drive north east of the heart of the city.

Circa 200BC mounds of earth dotted with watch towers were raised to link the existing fortifications of 5 cities as a defense against Mongol invaders on horse-back. Down through the years these fortifications were adapted and expanded until the Great Wall became what we know it as today, a massive stone and brick rampart tracing a sinuous path along the tops of high ridges stretching out over 3,900 miles in length. If you visit the Great Wall north east of Beijing as part of a bus tour be prepared to hike as the buses actually park in a lot about a mile from the Wall. The walk from there is up a narrow, twisting two-lane highway where cars, trucks, buses and pedestrians mingle much more freely than we are accustomed to in the US. We were both fortunate and unfortunate in that it was foggy and misting rain the day we were there. We had been told that the alternative to rain that time of year was sweltering heat so while the rain was welcome it kept us from seeing much farther than a few hundred feet at a time.

more pictures from the Great Wall

At the Wall there is a small fee to pass through the entrance gates. The cost was similar to what you would expect to pay for a visit to some parks. The area is lined with vendors selling souvenirs of questionable quality at negotiable prices. On the Wall itself people were hawking T-shirts, photo books and other memorabilia. You will even find a Starbucks there. In the shops prices are negotiable as well and it is usually possible to obtain most items for 50 to 60% of the original asking price. If you travel with a guide you may begin to notice that your guide is discreetly collecting a small commission from the shops you patronize in return for bringing you there. So you can safely ignore any comments from your guide during negotiations such as, "that price is probably rock-bottom."

One of the surprises for us was the sheer number of people visiting that Saturday. In every direction we could see hundreds of people milling about. Walking along the wall is a unique experience as it has some unusually steep stretches especially leading up to the watch towers. The surface of the walk way provided good footing in spite of the wet weather. We did not see any evidence of provisions made for wheel-chair access although it may well have been available somewhere nearby.

We were informed by our guide that at various times the wall has been refurbished with much effort by local people, even to the point of donating individual bricks. He said that for defensive purposes the original idea of linking the 5 cities was effective but the wall as we see it now was ill-suited for this purpose. He asked us to note in particular how unlikely it would be for people on horse back to attempt an attack by riding over the steep ridges upon which much of the wall was built. He said that its most effective use had been as a means of communication, the regularly spaced watch towers being well-suited locations for signal fires.