My Great Wall of China

( left to right ) Stephan, Emma, Yulia, Karen, Ling, Al, Tamara and Barry.

September 24, 2011

I finally got to see the Great Wall of China! I was so thrilled. It did not disappoint with the spectacular view and the history around me and beneath my feet. I woke up this morning at 5:30 a.m. to meet my staff for a planned trip to the Great Wall of China, the Ming Tombs and to Beijing. The school was gracious enough to pay for a bus for us to see the sites.
We were so fortunate.

History beneath my feet...

The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications built, rebuilt, and maintained between the 5th century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire during the rule of successive dynasties. Several walls, referred to as the Great Wall of China, were built since the 5th century BC.The most famous is the wall built between 220 BC and 200 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang; little of it remains; it was much farther north than the current wall, which was built during the Ming Dynasty.

The Great Wall is the world's longest human-made structure, stretching over approximately 6,400 km (4,000 miles) from Shanhaiguan in the east to Lop Nur in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia, but stretches to over 6,700 km (4,160 miles) in total. It is also the largest human-made structure ever built in terms of surface area and mass. At its peak the Ming Wall was guarded by more than one million men. It has been estimated that somewhere in the range of 2 to 3 million Chinese died as part of the centuries-long project of building the wall.

Today we visited Badaling section of the Great Wall.
The Badaling section is the best preserved and the most popular one amongst all the sections. It is more than 1,000 meters (3281 ft) above sea level, and commands a strategic position for transportation and defense in ancient times.
Badaling, literally meaning “reach eight directions”, got its name because the maze of its ridges stretches in all directions. It is easily accessible and has easy walking conditions. At points we were walking at 45 degrees. I am glad I wore good shoes. Some people were wearing sandals and struggled immensely.

The Great Debate: Do you really think you can see the Great Wall with the naked I from space? We debated it quite fervently. What do you think?