juls random thoughts

Saturday, May 31, our agenda: Great Wall of China, Ming Tombs and Summer Palace.

First part of the trip - Great Wall (UNESCO world heritage site) – we went to the Badaling side, which is the part of the wall nearest to Beijing, we left early kasi since it’s a weekend, madami daw tao. I was so in awe of the place when I saw it, parang I can’t believe that I am actually there. Fortunately, nakayanan ko akyatin yung tallest tower, fourth tower, which has total of 888 steep steps, some parang stairs, others as in steep road lang. grabe talaga experience! Pagod! Pero so worth it, I can’t actually describe how it feels, basta kakaiba. Had lunch in Starbucks, yes, there is starbucks in great wall = ) then off we go to Ming tombs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badaling; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_wall_of_china

Ticket booth:


Group picture at the entrance:


Roel, me and My with the awesome background of One World One Dream (theme for the olympics) and the wall that we will climb, it'll take us 888 steep steps, some stairs some just steep road, to rich that top in the background and that'll be the fourth tower.

Now, we're the same level as the olympics theme:

Few more steps, three towers past:

Finally! on top! but once we got on top, that's when we saw more of the wall at the back and I am so at awe of those people who continued on walking to think I am so dead tired when we got to the top. As obvious in the photo, only five of us survived the climb to the top, others gave up midway. I almost did actually but seeing that I'm a few steps to the top made me decide to go for it.

One of the unexplored side of the very looooonnnngggg wall:

Window in one of the towers on our way back down:

A photo on the other side: