In which we walk the Great Wall

As before, I apologize for the update delay. China is so interesting that it is sometimes hard to find time to sit down and write a blog entry instead of getting outside and seeing the country. Look for updates from the Ming Tombs soon, as well as the Summer Palace coming up, the latter location featuring pictures from my newly purchased Sony camera.

The Great Wall (长城 Chángchéng) is perhaps China's most famous ancient construction. Visible from space, it was built in 221 AD after China was unified under its first Emperor, Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇). The Qin emperor used the northern faces of the walls built by his former rivals to create a single long fortification to keep out raiders from the north, such as the Xiongnu and Mongolian peoples.

The Great Wall is stunning, and for good reason. This construction took the lives of many of China's working men at the time of Qin Shi Huang's rule, and was one of the many reasons for the overthrow of his rule and the institution of the Han Dynasty, one of China's most beloved imperial dynasties. As a testament to the ingenuity, skill, and determination of the ancient Chinese people, as well as the overwhelming authority of the Chinese Emperors of old, the Great Wall is truly a monument unlike any other.

These pictures were taken from the Badaling (八达岭) section of the Great Wall, the closest to Beijing. As you can see from the pictures, this section is quite crowded and can be kind of nerve-wracking to walk. Many parts of the wall are smooth slopes, making it quite difficult to walk down without feeling like you're going to slip. The steps of the wall are also rather uneven in height and width, and when the steepness of the mountainside combines with these uneven stairs and crowds of people, you begin to feel quite intimidated by the task of traversing the Great Wall safely.

Many thanks to Navin for the use of some of his pictures. Here he is in one of the windows on the sides of a guard tower.