Great Wall, Take 2!

Day 3 of my Spring Festival started with an early wake up at 5:30 to get ready to go to the Great Wall in Mutianyu. I was suppose to meet friends and some co-workers from all the EF schools at the Beijing 2 school, but I had been given incorrect directions. I walked for about 30 minutes the wrong way getting off at the subway. Eventually, with some phone calls, I was able to make it to the bus we had rented for most of the day. It took only about an hour and twenty minutes to get there via our private bus. When I took the public bus, it took about two and a half hours.

I spent most of the day with Laura, James, Stephanie, and David, a teacher from another Kids and Teens school who has worked with Laura in the past. We were a good little group, and we each took a ton of pictures. It was the first time Laura, James, and Stephanie had been to this section of the Wall, so it was fun watching them see it for the first time. It was cold in the morning when I left my studio, but I was plenty warm by the time I made it to the top to start the Great Wall walk! I had to take off my scarf, gloves and hat on the way up, but I prefer the cold over the hot when climbing up to the top.

We wandered up on the top of the wall for a few hours, which was really nice. I felt like I got to notice more details the second time, and since it wasn't so hot, I think I enjoyed it more. I also brought Bartholomew along with me to take pictures of him, which was really fun. Bartholomew started a few chats with some of the English speaking foreigners we passed, and lots of smiles and hand gestures with a few Chinese families! He can be a good ice breaker sometimes.

Stephanie and I decided to skip the sled ride back down, and just walked down and took lots of pictures. I realized the stairs up are so much more rustic than the steps down. Maybe they think people are more likely to hurt themselves up on the way down compared to the down. Stephanie and I found a special sculpture garden that had some interesting and beautiful rock sculptures.

Luckily, this time I had packed a lunch and didn't have to eat at the gross Subway station there. We got back on the bus around two. When we arrived back to the city I went with Laura and another teacher to a Temple Fair near Beijing 2. I learned that there are many, many Temple Fairs located around the city for the New Year. It was crazy crowded! You could barely get to where you were going, and had to just follow a big group to make any moment through the fair. We didn't stay too long, but got to see a lot of food and craft boots.

It was a really great day, with the exception of being a bit lost, and late to the bus!