Secret Wall

The climb to the top
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Leo Hostel does a "Secret Wall" tour to the Great Wall that sounded right up our alley; RMB180, no tourists other than our group of 20, and an unrestored section of the wall.  It was a long drive out (2.5 hours) and, on the way, we passed the normal tourist part that had been restored.  We were pleased we weren't going to those spots after seeing the throngs of people climbing up and down the wall.  We were also lucky enough to be on the other side of the hills from Beijing, where the pollution didn't reach.  We were treated to the first clear blue skies we'd seen in a couple of weeks!

Adrienne and Sean on the wall!!
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We had met another Kiwi couple (Mark and Carrie) in line at the Mongolian embassy, and they offered to take photos for us of the wall - we were lucky to be on the same tour. We gave them our new SD card, and quickly discovered it didn't work.  We hoped we could take it back to the shop in the evening, and get it replaced.

Stones crumbled under our feet and, onto one girl's back!

The Great Wall is impressive, particularly when you see it conquering the formidable terrain.  A steep ascent welcomed us and Adrienne was (proudly) the first girl to the top (where our walk on the wall started).  Mark and Carrie's van was a bit late, and they ended up helping one poor guy, who almost died on the first gentle slope.  We didn't realise someone could be so unfit.

Mark, Carrie, Kev, Sean and Adrienne - 4 kiwis and a kea!
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The walk was pretty easy after that, but not long enough.  Stones crumbled under our feet and, onto one girl's back!  Sean had accidentally dislodged an unstable brick while walking on a tower and it had tumbled down onto a girl standing below.

We were surprised, on our "Secret" Wall walk, to see a stall selling refreshments and souvenirs in the last tower we visited.  It didn't hinder our experience and our views were of blue sky underlined by beautiful green mountains.  The wall gracefully draped itself on top of the razorback ridges - a kind of mascara for the mountains (isn't Sean poetic?).

The Wall going over some formidable terrain
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After a free vegetarian lunch at the bottom of the hills, we headed back into the bright lights of Beijing.