Hi all,
Sorry for the lack of communication. Internet cafes are nowhere to be seen and we were lucky to find out that this hotel has a business centre. And to make matters worse, I can not log onto my blog, the first real indication that I am in a communist country with no frredom of information or free speech. So no blog until I return.
It was great to reunite with Meredith after not seeing her for 2 years. I arrived at 1.30am after a taxi ride through what looked like Gothem City (Beijing at night). We have 2 others with us on the trip - Evan and Tony and they are great!
Our first 2 days were spent hiking the Great Wall of China. And wow, what an incredible experience!! We trekked a very remote section on the first day with no one to be seen. It was nothing like I had imagined. We walked along a precarious dirt path which was an original section of the Great Wall with no areas of restoration. I overcame my jetlag quickly as my guide 'Ricky (AKA Dung Wah) called out 'Melissa, run!!!!!' A 1.5 metre snake slithered by and I screamed and ran for my life!!! I have never seen such a thick, long snake ever, ever, ever!!! Apart from that hair-raising experience, the remainder of the walk along the Great Walk was smooth sailing. Oh, apart from my calf muscles. My calves are still aching as we climbed thousands of steps during the 2 days of walking along this spectacular, man made wonder. The scenery stretched for miles - a rugged mountain range which was covered with pine trees, willow trees and patches of orange dirt. You could easily imagine what it would have been like hundreds of years ago.
After the Great Wall, we returned to Beijing and visited the Forbidden City and Tianaman Square. Tianaman Square was deeply moving. It was just a huge outdoor open area where children played, couples strolled. Our guide couldn't really describe what happened there. He, like many others has been brainwashed by propoganda or perhaps is too scared to express his own opinion. Mao is still revered and there are billboards of him everywhere.
We are now in Xi An and just finished cycling along the 14 km perimeter ancient wall of the city. It was awesome fun as we cycled along the cobbled wall, bobbing up and down. This city is covered by an overhanging haze. I haven't seen the blue sky peep through and there is a layer of soot over everything. It seems oppressive.
My experience of the Chinese people has been neutral. They are not the beautiful, warm, friendly people that I met in Cambodia. They are distant, yet curious and have often taken photos of us with their mobile phones. When I catch them out, I just stop and pose, just to get a laugh out of them. Laughing is not something I have witnessed all too often here.
I can't wait to get to the Yunnan province and experience the amazing scenery.Off to Lijiang in a few hours, our first internal flight.
Hope to be in touch again. If not, I will update my blog with photos and stories when I return.
Sorry for the lack of communication. Internet cafes are nowhere to be seen and we were lucky to find out that this hotel has a business centre. And to make matters worse, I can not log onto my blog, the first real indication that I am in a communist country with no frredom of information or free speech. So no blog until I return.
It was great to reunite with Meredith after not seeing her for 2 years. I arrived at 1.30am after a taxi ride through what looked like Gothem City (Beijing at night). We have 2 others with us on the trip - Evan and Tony and they are great!
Our first 2 days were spent hiking the Great Wall of China. And wow, what an incredible experience!! We trekked a very remote section on the first day with no one to be seen. It was nothing like I had imagined. We walked along a precarious dirt path which was an original section of the Great Wall with no areas of restoration. I overcame my jetlag quickly as my guide 'Ricky (AKA Dung Wah) called out 'Melissa, run!!!!!' A 1.5 metre snake slithered by and I screamed and ran for my life!!! I have never seen such a thick, long snake ever, ever, ever!!! Apart from that hair-raising experience, the remainder of the walk along the Great Walk was smooth sailing. Oh, apart from my calf muscles. My calves are still aching as we climbed thousands of steps during the 2 days of walking along this spectacular, man made wonder. The scenery stretched for miles - a rugged mountain range which was covered with pine trees, willow trees and patches of orange dirt. You could easily imagine what it would have been like hundreds of years ago.
After the Great Wall, we returned to Beijing and visited the Forbidden City and Tianaman Square. Tianaman Square was deeply moving. It was just a huge outdoor open area where children played, couples strolled. Our guide couldn't really describe what happened there. He, like many others has been brainwashed by propoganda or perhaps is too scared to express his own opinion. Mao is still revered and there are billboards of him everywhere.
We are now in Xi An and just finished cycling along the 14 km perimeter ancient wall of the city. It was awesome fun as we cycled along the cobbled wall, bobbing up and down. This city is covered by an overhanging haze. I haven't seen the blue sky peep through and there is a layer of soot over everything. It seems oppressive.
My experience of the Chinese people has been neutral. They are not the beautiful, warm, friendly people that I met in Cambodia. They are distant, yet curious and have often taken photos of us with their mobile phones. When I catch them out, I just stop and pose, just to get a laugh out of them. Laughing is not something I have witnessed all too often here.
I can't wait to get to the Yunnan province and experience the amazing scenery.Off to Lijiang in a few hours, our first internal flight.
Hope to be in touch again. If not, I will update my blog with photos and stories when I return.
