HEY I HAVE VISITED THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA ! , CHINA JOURNEY

 It was THE big day for me, I was finally going to see the Great Wall of China which forms one of the new Seven wonders of the world, along with Taj Mahal in India, Machu Pichu in Peru, Roman Colosseum in Rome, Christ the Redeemer Statue in Brazil, Petra in Jordan and Chichen Itza in Mexico

The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese States as protection 

Several walls were built from as early as the 7th century BC, some later joined together by Qin Shi Huang (220–206 BC), first emperor of China.

Many successive dynasties later built and maintained multiple stretches of border walls.

The most well-known sections of the wall were built by the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644).

Apart from defense, Great Wall has served as border control, allowing imposition of duties on goods transported along the Silk Road and the control of immigration and emigration.

The defensive characteristics of the Great Wall were enhanced by the construction of watchtowers, troop barracks, garrison stations, signaling through the means of smoke or fire.

Today, the defensive system of the Great Wall is generally recognized as one of the most impressive architectural feats in the world

Great Wall of China has historically had different names in both Chinese and English.

In Chinese History, the term "Long Wall" and Ten-Thousand Long Wall appears in Sima Qian’s writings 

Only during the Qing Period did "Long Wall" become the popular term to refer to all border walls regardless of their location or dynastic origin, equivalent to the English "Great Wall".

By the nineteenth century, "The Great Wall of China" had become standard in English and French, although other European languages such as German continue to refer to it as "the Chinese wall". 

From our hotel in Beijing, we went in our van to Badaling to see the great wall as it has the portion of the wall running through the site built in 1504 during the Ming Dynasty, along with a military outpost reflecting the location's strategic importance.

Most of the preserved parts were built and reinforced during the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644 AD) to defend Beijing against the intrusion of northern Mongolians

The highest point of Badaling is Beibalou approximately 3,330 ft above sea level.

Even before we reached Badaling we could occasionally see the China Wall 

I was thrilled to finally see it though it was partly dilapidated and partly preserved, finally we reached Badaling

We got down from the van at the Guntiangou Parking Lot, as we had gone quite early, the crowd was less comparatively. 

There were restaurants, small souvenir shops, a museum and an exhibit on the Terracotta Warriors.

There are two cable cars in the scenic area, one for reaching the No. 8 North Tower and another for the No. 4 South Tower

At the gate, we presented our tickets and lined up for the cable car to North Tower the car took us to the 8th watch tower

The cable car was small but took us to the top within 8 minutes, funnily whenever I take a cable car I feel as if I am an eagle flying high above the ground and then seem to have a different perspective about things 

We were gradually going up the huge mountains, the views around were indeed beautiful, we were lucky that the weather cooperated with us, there was no smog obliterating, we could see the great wall extending like a river through the silent mountains with an occasional watch tower here and there

We stepped out and walked down the wall, now we were joined by a lot of tourists most of them Chinese, many of them were carrying their children too

The great wall is unfortunately not for the faint hearted nor for people who use walkers or wheelchairs

I pride myself on my physical endurance to walk long distances without tiring but the wall simply humbled me, I was huffing and puffing and I could see that my hubby was in no state to help me, it was each to his own.

In occasional places the wall was almost at 90 degrees incline and we had to pull ourselves up using the handrails, in places the granite flooring was worn out due to usage and we nearly slipped and fell 

At the top near the watch tower the wind was blowing so fiercely that our hair literally flew up vertically, I was indeed glad I was not wearing a wig, L.O.L

The views around were awesome, the wall curved around in a serpentine manner sometimes visible to naked eye and occasionally disappearing into the sky like an errant child, the green trees around us and the magnificent mountains seemed to remind us of our insignificant existence in this world

There was no way that we could take an individual snap with the mighty wall, there were huge crowds around us, each trying to get a good shot of the wall, I am sure we must have featured in many of their snaps too, Ha, Ha!

The total length of this section is 7.5 miles with 43 watchtowers, however only 2.3 miles and 19 watchtowers have been restored and opened to visitors.

The wall averages about 26 feet tall, and 20 feet wide, which would allow five horses to gallop or ten soldiers to march abreast.

It is built of tall granite slabs, huge bar-stones and bricks. The interior of the wall was stuffed with rammed earth and small stones to make it firm and solid and cemented with indigenous glutinous mix of rice gruel

 The mountains slope where the section is located is very steep and tortuous, it sets us wondering and admiring the lakhs of men who worked there night and day as per the emperor's wish for constructing a perfect military stronghold.

 Much of the labor force during construction during the reign of Emperor Quin Shi Huang (Around 221 B.C.) consisted of convicts and soldiers. Some 400,000 of them died constructing the wall and many were buried inside it

 I noticed that the walls had number of holes drilled probably meant to shoot arrows and to watch enemies.

In 1958, Badaling was opened to tourists after being partially renovated.

There are 43 towers on the Great Wall of China Badaling in total, but only 19 of them have been restored and opened to visitors. They look similar but each has its own features. Some are walled terraces for soldiers to patrol and stand sentry, some are beacon towers to send fire and smoke signals about enemies’ attack, and some are two-storey watchtowers. 

The ground floor was used to store supplies and accommodate soldiers, while the second floor serves as a lookout with shooting holes and crenels. The construction of these hollow watch towers dates back to the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). Originally, the watchtowers were built with wood, but they were easy to catch fire and collapse so gradually they were built of granite and cement

Ever since an American named William Geil published the book 'The Great Wall of China' in 1909, the Wall has drawn tens of millions of tourists both from home and abroad.

More than 370 foreign leaders and celebrities have visited it, including former US presidents Nixon, Reagan, Carter, and Gorge W Bush, Queen Elizabeth II of UK, and former South Africa president Mandela.

The North Section which we had visited winds up and down the mountain ridges, offering more magnificent scenery, therefore preferred by most tourists but requires more energy to climb.

On the Great Wall of China Badaling,near the North Tower stands the “True Hero” Tablet inscribed by Chairman Mao from a line of Chairman Mao’s poem “He who never reached the Great Wall is not a true hero”.

 South Section has seven watch towers and the slopes are gentle and less energy-consuming, there are fewer visitors here and one can enjoy it at a more leisurely pace.

The best times to visit the Great wall at Badaling is April, May, September, or October, when it is neither too cold nor too hot, and the surrounding natural scenery is amazing, however, one should avoid the Chinese National Holidays

We finally came down from the great wall after lining up for the cable car, indeed it was a memorable day seeing the great wall and realizing its enormity and uniqueness 

Can The Great Wall of China be seen from the Moon?

In early 19th century, the immense scale of the Wall had once given rise to a rumor that it could be seen from the moon with naked eyes.

In fact, research reveals that it is invisible from the space but I feel that it doesn’t matter at all because a thing of beauty is joy forever and the Wall stands a living testimony to the times bygone