2007 - Asia - Day 11 - Beijing, China

This morning we drove an hour and a half to the Great Wall. There were 2 sides to climb. One side was a little less steep, but more crowded. The other side was a bit more difficult and less crowded and better views. Mark, Josie and I went up the more difficult side, and mom went up the other side. I felt a little guilty leaving her to do it on her own. The climb was very steep in some areas. We got a nice workout. We got some nice photos of the wall and mountains. It was quite amazing. Many people were calling their families at home from the top of the wall. There were also many vendors along the wall. Mark and I bought a marble carving of the wall and T-shirts. When we left the wall, we went to a restaurant for lunch. I’m getting tired of Chinese food. Then we went to the entrance of the Ming tombs, and walked down the scared way. It was so beautiful and peaceful. They even had music playing. Mark had me climb on top of a marble horse for a picture. It was against the rules. So the joke was this is the picture that shows why I was arrested in China! Before we came back to Beijing, we stopped at a jade factory for lunch. They had such beautiful jade pieces. I love jade, but it was way too pricey for me. On our way back into Beijing, we stopped at Silk Alley. It’s a market place mainly for tourists. They sold a lot of pearls for a good price. I bought a single black pearl necklace and a large fan to put on the wall. I also bought a painted vase along the way, which I love! We left Silk Alley at dinner time and went to a restaurant for dinner. After dinner we got back to the hotel around 8:30. Mark, Michael R. and I walked some more around the city and stopped at McDonalds again on our way back.