Tuesday - The Great Wall
I think I need to buy the electronic Chinese to English translator soon. I just opened a box of juice and inserted the customary straw. My first sip told me this was not a fruit juice, at least not know to me. I think it's a form of milk, warm milk at that. Remember no refrigerator and therwas no need for bed covers last night. The air temperature at landing yesterday was 80F. Having no information about the forecast, I suspect today will be the same.
So far I don't notice any
breathing difficulties or taste in the air. Perhaps when we go downtown.
Getting Started
We met Philo at 7:30 to have breakfast at the CAFA cafeteria. At that time there were only a handful of students seated at 3x8 in a single huge room. Two young ladies stood at attention behind a small table which we approaching assuming they would take our money and direct us with regard to where to go next. Behind a glass wall one could see huge pots for boiling foods, and huge wok shaped pots sitting on gas burners. Young men were running water into a boiling pot and stirring with a utensil more the size of a garden shovel than a kitchen spoon.
We were informed the serving wwas closed and no food remained. After some time persuading we convinced Philo that we would be fine and would eat some of the food Yulin had left us. So we gathered some cheese packaged in single slices, bread which came as four slices in a plastic wrap, some very ripe large grapes and water.
As we had come from the cafteria
we met Yulin who arrived an hour early so after a quick breakfast, we
headed out in a car that she had rented for us for the week. The driver
is Shi Fu and will be with us all week. He is a great driver but it appears
that the traditional philosophy that the community is more important than
the individual does not apply to driving. It appears that you can drive
anywhere there's no car orperson, and if there is either you can honk
your horn before you proceed. While this is an exaggeration, it helps
identify an approach different from America.
The Wall
We 
headed
directly to the Great Wall some 60 kilometers (according to the signs)
northwest of Beijing. After many kilometers of flat land filled with buildings
and trees, we saw mountains through the smog on the horizon. Soon we were
climbing as indicated by prssure in the ear the the very slow moving trucks.
For the most part we drove on four lane roads much like American interstate
highways. However, we did drive through a toll booth where we were handed
a small ticket. We returned the ticket later at another booth as we exited
the highway where the driver paid about 15 yuan. Traffic was very light.
We had been seeing the Great
Wall for some time before we stopped as well as several signs indicating
exits to the great
wall, but we continued to a site that included a cable car to the top
of the highest point of the Great Wall. (The cost for the car and entrance
to the Wall was 105 yuan,except a senior citizen, which is about $14US.)
The long undergraound tunnel to the Wall entrance was lined with barrier
for controlling crowds and if it wasn't for the fact that the four of
us were the only persons in the tunnel it would have reflected crowd control
at Disneyland. The last hundred feet before stepping unto the Wall were
lined with kioshs selling sournevirs and energetic merchants.
There 
seemed
to be wall all around us and the continuity of these visual snapshots
was not obvious. Our first steps on the wall were up a very steep incline
followed by hundreds of steps of varying rises and runs. One side of the
wall of about waist high while on the other side the wall was head high
with opening was watching for the enemy. Smaller holes lower in the tall
wall faced downward to safely view and fight the enemy. At the top of
the highest part of the Wall were more vendors and many photographers
shooting their perfect picture with the companions standing in the ideal
location.
The greatness of this wall
lies in its size in the location where one stands and also in its vast
length over thousands of miles. The feat bringing the materials together
in this extreme terrain remains beyond the imagination of the mind, and
the fact that someone thought to build this wall taking years to build
and thousands to build it, to
protect the people of China long into the future. Their long range planning
is remarkable.
After retracing our steps down including the cable car, we were guided to a fine restaurant in about the sixth ring of Beijing. The menu was huge in physical size as well as in content. Pictures shown each food in tempting color. The uniqueness of the restaurant was the barbecue type tray in the center of the table where we could cook our own unique foods. To the disappointment of ourselves we ordered bowls of steamed rice to match the moods of our stomachs. We were erred on the side of caution.
The Ming Tombs
A short
drive took us to the Ming Tomb, actually the Chang tomb, the central and
largest tomb. What we saw where the structures, gates and buildings around
the tomb. The largest building included artifacts from the tombs and a
large centrally located statute of the Emperor. The Ming tombs numbered
13 for the thirteen emperors during the Ming dynasty starting in the 17th
century.
Another short drive took us to the Dingling or Ding Ling or Ding tomb, the most recent tomb and othe only one where one could actually descend and enter the tomb itself. The tomb seemed to be about five stories down and was originally sealed with a series of large doors which were designed to self close and lock from the inside, and finally mortaring in with a brick wall. They discovered the tomb from evidence on the surface and their understanding of the tomb relative to these remains. The items in the tomb were a mix of authentic relics such as Ming vases and recontructed coffins, and boxes to storing the artifacts that were buried with the emperor, and in the case of Ding, his two wives.
And yet another short drive
took us to the rows of carved animals that lined the road to the tombs.
These
exquistely 
carved
animals, some real and some ficticious, were huge begging the question,
where did the stones come from, how were they moved and what artists did
such fine work. The walk was beautiful, peaceful and very relaxing even
though we were exhausted. The restroom aside the path was designed for
emperors, flush overstuffed couches in a waiting area, stalls with automatic
lights, flush toilet, handicap rails and a private lavatory. Still there
was no paper, not even for wiping one's hands. The driver met us at the
end of the mile walk saving us the return walk.
The Olympic Site
As we 
were
where driving along the central portion of the fourth ring we spotted
much construction and also a very uniquely shaped structure. Conversation
lead us to the conclusion that this was one of the stadiums for the 2008
Olympics in Beijing. We stopped and got out to take some pictures, starting
to realize that almost everything we could see were buildings and structures
connected to the future games. A look at the map suggested that across
the highway were many other sites for the games. Traffic on the highway
past this area was very bad and in part due to the construction in the
highway which were also in preparation of the games.
The evening meal was a family restaurant and we requested that we not order as much this time. We ended up with egg rolls, a cold soup, a tofu stir fry, a beef stir fry and tea. We were served in a private room around a table with eight chairs. Here the menu was again complete with color pictures, but we ordered by marking our choices on an eraseable checklist. Well satisfied we returned to the car and discussed the next move. It was suggested that since no one was very decisive we decided that we were passively agreeing to return to our rooms. It was just after 7:00PM and a rest sounded good.