The Great Wall--was it heaven or hell?

so, like many others before me, i visited the great wall. awesome, no doubt, but quite an experience. and i'm not talking about the hiking. so, first, we got stuck in traffic for 2 extra hours on the way there. then it rained almost the entire time we were hiking. then our bus got a flat tire upon leaving and we had to turn back and wait for an hour and a half. in the meantime, this stupid guy in our group got drunk on really strong rice wine with these chinese dudes and ended up puking the ENTIRE 3 hours home into several plastic bags, while intermittently passing out. one time, he actually passed out on the bus floor, flat, and so the tour guide had to sit next to him and hold him the rest of the ride so he wouldn't fall. just when i thought it couldn't get any worse, i transferred to a mini van to get to my hostel and guess who also got on the same van? yep, but first he puked about ten times in front of our open door into the street. then he got on and started grumbling, "it's ok, i've got a plastic bag!" before passing out. oh my GOD. i was sooooo angry. but, other than that, the wall was really cool. with the clouds, it gave it this mystical feel. even t\our tour guide, who climbs the wall every other day, said he had never seen it look like that. plus, i hung out with two really nice french girls the whole day. so i got to speak french all day! it was awesome. it totally made me want to go back there, of course. so, all was not lost. and now ii have this....erm....great story to tell? so, then yesterday i just walked around beijing, saw a palace and then....missed the train to pingyao! great, huh? i couldn't believe it. i was in the taxi sweating, like i had 5 minutes before my train left. i got there with enough time to spare, but just as i got to the gate, the guy came up and closed it. i got so angry, like desperate. i even stamped my foot! and he had the audicity to laugh at me!! i was so mad. so i had a little freak out and a few tears, then went and got info. turns out, i could just change my ticket to  3 hours later! of course. then i upgraded to a sleeper and took the train here. it took 12 hours. it was full of people spitting like crazy. i wanted to kill everyone. it was like india but with more spitting. anyway, it was an experience. now i am in pingyao in the cutest hostel with really comfortable beds, really nice people from all over the world who invited me to join them for dinner last night (which happened to be the best meal i've had in china. we shared a bunch of plates and got to try tons of stuff), and free internet that was able to upload my photos!

well, i'm off to walk around more in the rain. this town is so cute and peaceful. i'm so glad i came, even if the sounvenirs are shit and everyone is trying to rip me off. i havn't felt this much peace in literally months. whewwww.