Historic Stone Walls

Throughout history, many societies have built walls to either keep people in, or more often, to keep others out. Many of these historic walls still stand after hundreds or even thousands of years, and are now popular tourist destinations. These feats of engineering can be found in many different parts of the world, and were built to last. For many travelers, there are few monuments that represent living history as well as a towering historic stone wall.


The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China is one of the oldest, and perhaps the most famous, historic stone walls in the world. The original base of the Great Wall was built in the 200s BC, and was built in part to repel barbarian hordes, especially the Huns and Mongols. The Great Wall has been extended many times to become the giant 4,000-mile-long stone wall that is now visited by tourists from all over the world. Many parts of the wall are over 2,000 years old.

This structure was named by UNESCO in 1987 as a world heritage site. The Great Wall of China can be seen from outer space.


Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was built to separate modern-day Scotland from the rest of the British Isles by the Roman Emperor Hadrian in the AD 120s. This wall was meant to separate Roman-controlled England from the Pict tribes of Scotland, who sensed weakness and raided south. Hadrian's Wall isn't nearly as widely known as many other historical walls, despite its age and impressiveness. The original stone wall was 12 feet tall and anywhere from 6 to 12 feet thick. A ditch was placed in front of the wall, which had "mini-castles" every mile or so that housed up to 64 Roman soldiers per section. The wall isn't completely intact anymore, as it was often used as a source of stones for northern tribes, but large sections have been restored and maintained for modern tourists and history buffs to visit.


The Wailing Wall
The Wailing Wall is located in Jerusalem, and is also commonly known as "The West Wall." This wall is on the southwest corner of the Temple Mount, which is considered a holy spot for three different religions: Christianity, Judaism and Islam. This historical wall is visited by locals and pilgrims alike. Prayer occurs here at virtually every hour of the day. This is a common stopping point for tourists in the Jerusalem area, even those who are not devoutly religious.

How to Decorate a Wall in a Large Great Room

The decorative ambiance in the home's great room should reflect not only the character of the room, but also the character and tastes of the people inhabiting the home. The great room is typically the living room or den of a house and as such should be a place where people can come to unwind, connect with friends or to play around with a favorite hobby. The way the walls of the room are decorated enhance these feelings; they can also provide a visual focal point, an important consideration in the interior decorating decisions for any room of the house.


1 Paint the wall you'd like to emphasize. You should designate one wall in the great room as the focal wall. This wall functions as the most prominent wall visually and helps direct the eye to the rest of the decor by giving an anchor from which to start. One simple method for bringing this wall to the forefront visually is to paint a different color than you've painted the other walls surrounding it. Color combinations such as red and honey yellow or mint green and light pink work well together.


2 Add some visual anchors such as an entertainment cabinet. Many families use this room as the TV room, so placing the TV up against this wall makes sense; however, putting it into an entertainment center will also support the decorating style of the room.


3 Look for proportionate artwork for the wall. If the wall runs on the large side make sure at least one of the pictures or paintings is large enough to do justice to the wall. You can add other paintings or photographs as well, but don't skip this one. Visually it will look a bit like the wall is "floating away".


4 Hang the artwork in groupings and mix up shapes. Also make sure the artwork is hung so that your eye falls at the center point of the piece.


5 Remember to add items of visual interest, such as the antique sign you found at the flea market, framed pressed leaves or even a framed version of your child's school project.


6 Add wall sconces for area lighting. Include mirrors in the arrangement, because they will make the room look larger and reflect the light from the sconces, which makes the room lighter.

10 Great Wall of China Facts

The Great Wall of China--widely regarded as one of mankind's most impressive structures--draws 10 million tourists each year, notes ShanghaiFinance.com. For centuries, it has served as a beacon worldwide to people fascinated by its history and great length. Built initially as a military defense, it remains an iconic representation of China's culture and its people.

Construction History

China built the first sections of the Great Wall--corresponding to borders between states--during the Zhou Dynasty, which lasted from 1045 to 256 B.C. But these sections only became a unified line of defense during the reign of Emperor Qin Shihuang, between 247 and 221 B.C. The Wall has been under construction or experiencing maintenance ever since, ChinaHighlights.com points out. Construction on the parts left standing today occurred during the Ming Dynasty, from 1368 to 1644.

Length

As the Great Wall has gone through so many incarnations since its inception, calculating its exact length poses a challenge. Often called the "Ten-Thousand-Li-Long Wall," equal to 3,100 miles, modern estimates put the wall's length at 5,500 miles.

Builders

Millions of people--including criminals, soldiers and commoners--worked on the construction of the Great Wall over more than 1,000 years, according to the Travel China Guide website. Some saw it as part of their duty to their country; others saw it as a punishment. For all, it meant protecting and unifying their collective home.

Materials

Made of materials transportable over short distances from their origins to constructions sites, the Great Wall contains brick, stones, dirt, lime and wood.

Purpose

Built mainly as a military defense mechanism, the Great Wall also served as a symbol to unify the country in which it stands.

Location

It remains a source of contention exactly where the wall begins and ends, but it stretches west to east, roughly, from Kansu to the Yellow Sea. It crosses over 10 cities and provinces between these two points, with many sections open to visitors along the way, but the most popular opening exists in Badaling, reports ChinaTravel.com.

Preservation

Due to its age, natural forces and the military tactics that surrounded it for so long, much of the Great Wall has collapsed or fallen into disrepair. According to ShanghaiFinance.com, tourists and locals have also done significant damage to the wall.

Communication

Along the length of the wall, you can see many towers once used to communicate by fire and smoke. Due to the mountainous terrain along many parts of the wall, this was the most efficient means of communication for centuries, ShanghaiFinance.com says.

Visiting

The Great Wall remains a tourist attraction in all seasons, with the fewest tourists coming in the winter season, according to the Travel China Guide. The views surrounding the wall differ from season to season, with spring and summer offering an explosion of flowers and plants, and fall unveiling the changing colors of the leaves. The winter vistas of snow and ice lure some, but cold temperatures keep many away.

Seen from Space?

Many people once widely believed that, due to its great size and length, the Great Wall of China was the only man-made structure seen from space. Many astronauts have definitively said, though, that they could not see it from space, notes the Travel China Guide. It would only be possible if the entire wall were illuminated, as bright lights can be seen from space.

In The Words of R Nixon "That Was Some Great Wall"

So I, James wake up with a headache because I have no alcohol tolerence left..... after 4 beers, damn. After a breakfast of eggs and toast we got picked up by a coach bus and spent the next 2 hours with our driver playing chicken with traffic. When we arrived at the wall our tour guide Monica told us all about the wall and how much time we would have before we met up again. We had the option of either climbing the hill or getting a chair lift so our journey began with a chair lift up to the top of the hill because the wall would be hard enough. Let me just say right now, it is a big damn ass wall. We could either go left and walk from tower 6 to tower 23 or go right from tower 6 to tower 1. We decided to start left and see how far we could get then turn around and go and check out the other side. We managed to get to tower 14 before turning around due to time restictions and the fact that we had taken a crap load of pictures. When we turned around the walk back seemed to be harder than the way there and we went through water like it was goin out of style

When we finally ended up at the other end (the end of the renovated section) we stopped and saw what the wall is supposed to look like, boulders everywhere and trees and shrubs growing out of everywhere. Its amazing how much they have restored the wall from what it looks like if it were unrestored. When we started back down we met up with Steve, the british guy, in our group who had walked all the way to tower 23 then back to tower 1, he walked very fast, and he was very tired.

For the trip down we had purchased tickets to the toboggan slide which is just like a luge track made of metal and you sit on a little cart with a break to slow yourself down. It was awesome; I filmed the whole thing and we got going considerably fast. There were chinese people sitting in chairs along the track telling us to slow down but you don't have to do what they say you'll just fly by in two seconds anyway.

When we got to the bottom of the hill we walked to the restaurant and ate lunch and that gave our legs lots of time to cool down while talking with some new people. We sat at a huge circular table which we shared with about 7 other people. They brought out a few big dishes of various chinese meals which we were to each take a bit from and set on our own plates. Then they just kept bringing out more and more different dishes, there was a LOT of food and it was delicious.

After returning to the hostel we all just sat in the bar before going to bed early tired from the long day.

Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum

Located in Xiannong Temple of Xuanwu District, Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum is China's first themed museum that focuses on the collection, study and exhibition of architecture. Through lots of pictures, photos, and elaborate models, the museum shows the technology, development and achievement of Chinese ancient architecture from primitive times to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

After restoration, the buildings have regained their heroic bearing, and form a magnificent open-air ancient architecture museum. Taisui Hall is the most imposing one in the temple with decorative color paintings, and black glazed tiles. Two wing halls are attached to it on either side, each having eleven rooms. The Bai Hall with its seven rooms stands opposite the Taisui Hall.

The exhibitions of the Ancient Architecture Museum are mainly in Xiannong Temple. The temple was first built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and renovated in 1754 during the reign of the Emperor Qianlong in Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It was the place where the emperors of Ming and Qing dynasties offered sacrifices to Xiannong, the God of agriculture. It shows that the royal courts paid much attention to agriculture. The low capacity of agricultural productivity in ancient China brought about the people's great respect for Xiannong God; so naturally, the Xiannong Temple enjoyed great esteem.

In the museum, the most distinctive and valuable articles are the model of ancient Beijing, and the caisson in Longfu Temple. Made in 1950, the former consists of 108 pieces and displays a comprehensive picture of the buildings in ancient Beijing. The caisson is a special ceiling used in traditional Chinese structure. Built in the Ming Dynasty, the wooden ornamental caisson in Longfu Temple is umbrella-shaped with artistic carvings of pavilions and figures. In the center is a horoscope map, and each constellation bears its name in neat regular script. Generally accepted as a unique work in the architectural field, this caisson is crucial for studying ancient astronomy.

Admission Fee:	CNY 15
Opening Hours:	09:00-16:00 (Tuesday-Sunday)
Bus Route:	7, 17,20, 36, 120, 203, 504, 707, 729, 744, 803, 826, 943 to Xiannongtan (Xiannong Temple, 先农坛), and then you could walk to the Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum (中国古代建筑博物馆).

Yuyuantan Park

Yuyuantan Park, totaling 137 hectares (338.5 acres), is located on Xisanhuan Road (Xisanhuan Lu), in Haidian District. The park boasts extensive waters and beautiful gardens. Half the footprint is occupied by four lakes: the East and West lakes, the gourd-shaped Bayi Lake and Yinshui Lake. As early as the Liao Dynasty (916-1125), this area had become an imperial fishing spot. The northwest Cherry Blossom Garden, Yinshui Lake Scenic Area in the northeast, Zhongshan Isle in the south and the southeast Liuchun (Keeping Spring) Garden are the main scenic spots.

As its name suggests, the Cherry Blossom Garden is noted for its fascinating cherry blossoms. Today, with thousands of cherry trees sent from Japan and other parts of China, the garden is one of the largest in northern China. Every year, the Cherry Blossom Festival is held from March to April, drawing thousands of visitors. A waterside pavilion offers visitors a place to relax in the Chinese way: chatting while having a cup of tea and listening to birdsong.

Liuchun Garden offers a broad lawn, delicate pavilions, zigzag corridors, luxuriant trees and blossoming flowers all the year round. By piecing bits of porcelain together, the colorful mosaic near the south entrance showcases the theme of the garden-keeping spring. The sculpture of a girl playing a flute on the meadow enhances this leitmotif, and suggests the world's love for spring and youth. A square pavilion in the southwest gives a panoramic view of the garden. And, if you're lucky, you just might see an amateur performance in the fan-shaped pavilion in the west of this garden.

Yinshui in Chinese means diverting water from one place to other places. So the water in Yinshui Lake comes from the East Lake and flows to Diaoyutai (Fishing Stage) State Guesthouse. Used as a tree nursery in the past, the Yinshui Lake Scenic Area is dotted with white poplars, gingkoes and cedars. In spring, serried flowering crabapples, together with the cherry blossom, make this part of the park an ocean of flowers.

Between two lakes is a long and narrow sloping field, called Zhongshan Isle. It was piled up with earth dug when the lakes were made. A monument erecting in the west commemorates the youth who devoted themselves to this country. The high point of the isle is the double-eaved pavilion done in the old style, which allows a whole view of this section.

In addition, a water park in the northeast of Bayi Lake and an amusement park for children on the south bank of the East Lake are also attractive spots. If you come here in winter, you can even see widgeons and white swans.

Admission Fee:	CNY 2 (CNY 10 during the Cherry Blossom Festival)
Opening Hours:	06:30-19:00	December 1-March 31
	06:00-20:30	April 1-May 31, September1-November 30
	06:00-21:30	June 1-August 31
Bus Route:	323, 368, 374, 394 to Yuyuantan Ximen (玉渊潭西门)
	114, 717 to Yuyuantan Dongmen (玉渊潭东门)
	32, 414, 617 to Yuyuantan Nanmen (玉渊潭南门)
	320, 717, 727, 827, Te 5 (特5) to Muxidi (木樨地)
	1, 4, 40, 52, 68, 212, 337, 613, 728 to Gongzhufen (公主坟), and then you could walk to the Yuyuantan Park (玉渊潭公园).

Culture of Badaling Great Wall

The Badaling Great Wall locates the northwest of the Beijing, its position is longitude 116 degrees 65 cents east and latitude 40 degrees 25 cents north, it's a pass of Jundu mountain. It extends in all directions which is the reason it be called Badaling.The name of Badaling, can be read in the oldest poem "Visit Badaling in the Night" that wrote by Jin dynasty poet LiuYing and the "Come out Badaling".

In the Yuan Dynasty, it was called as "North mountain pass", which is comparative to the "South mountain pass".The South mountain pass locates in the Changping county, between them is a gorge which extends 20 kilomitres and be called "Juyong Gate", this gorge is called "GuanGou". The Badaling Great Wall locates on the ridge of the northern part of the GuanGou. Here, Two peaks face to face, there is a alley between them two, it's a very strategic place.

Look down the JuYong Gate from the Badaling, it looks like a well. The ancients said "The risk of The JuYong Gate is not the Guan city, but the Badaling". Because of the importance of the Badaling, it has being the place that the military fight against for. The Badaling became the martial strongpoint from the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. According to the "Shi Ji" and the work of the archaeologists, we can prove that there is The Great Wall in the Warring States Period in the Badaling. It also consistent with what we can see today. The "Shui Jing Zhu" of North Wei records:"JuYong Gate locates in the JuYong place, there a vertical gorge in the south of it ……" So, the experts Badaling is just the Guan Zhi. The name of "JuYong" comes from a story, Long time ago, the Qin Shi Huang force a group of farmers build The Great Wall, and these farmers dwelled in a country, later the country was named Ju Yong country by the Han Wu Di.

1500 years ago, North Wei built a strap of Great Wall in the Badaling. According to the "Wei Shu Shi Zhu Ben Ji", in the 446 year, at Datong, the emperor built the Great Wall whose name is "Sai Wei", The eastern part be in the Badaling and the western part be in bank of The Yellow River. Since to the 555 year, the Great was extended to the sea.

Badaling was rebuilt in the Ming Dynasty.The Ming Tai Zhu Zhuyuan Zhang understood the importance of the Great Wall, after his ascending the throng, he repaired or rebuilt the Great Wall. Zhuyuan Zhang commanded the general XuDa and FengSheng lead the army to guard on the Great Wall to guard against the force of the Yuan.

1403 year, the 3th emperor of Ming Dynasty ZhuLi ascent the throng. 1420 year, he move the capital from the Nanjing to Beijing. He decided to unify the whole China. 1488 year, he began the vast project of building the Great Wall. Pass through 270 years, The Great Wall was linked one chain. It begins from the Yalu River and end on the Bulongji in the Ganshu province, that is The Great Wall we now refer to. The Ming Great Wall extends more then 7300 kilomitres, passages 7 provinces,citys and municipalitys. Its level of project and recovery extent are both best with the old Great Wall. Now we can say,The Great Wall was built in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period; linked in the Qin Dynasty; perfected in the Ming Dynasty.

The Ming Great Wall, is no longer a simple high wall, but a rigorous recovery system. Ningxia, Shanxi, Shangxi, Heibei all have the parts of the Great Wall. Many Guan citys and short walls were built in this important place,for instance Yanmen Gate etc.

The Badaling is the testimony of the fatal historical events. The first emperor Qinshihuang came back to Xianyang, Xiao queen mother went on a tour of inspection, Yuantaizhu enter the Chian etc. The poems and articles are without number. The great historical dramas about the disputes between nations are also without number. Now these things have been become the history. Age endow The Great Wall with the new meaning and mission. It is a historical monument, which stands tall and upright in mountains, materialize the Chinese civilization and sapiential. It has become the bridge between us and foreign people.It is the Oriental culture inheritance belongs to the whole human being.

After the People's Republic of China coming into existence, 1952 year, Guomoruo associate premier suggested rehab the Great Wall to welcome the visitor that come from domestic and fremdness.

Since the Qing Dynasty, the Badaling Great Wall has been becoming deserted. The city towers to west of Guan city had been destroied severity, the body of the city wall, buttress, wall, fight building etc had been destroied severity too. After the State Department decided to repair it, The Great Wall had been rehabilitated several times.

1961 year, the State Department confirmed the Badaling Great Wall was the significant cultural relic unit to be protected in China. 1984 year, Dengxiaoping called people "Loving our China,repairing our Great Wall". Now The Great Wall is becoming more and more beautiful and gallant. 1986 years, the Great Wall was choosed one scene of the sixteen scenes in Beijing. 1987 year, the U.N. accept it as the "Oriental culture inheritance of the whole world". 1991 year, 1992 year,etc.

The Badaling Great Wall resound in the whole world, it is the first part which open to tourist of the Great Wall. Heretofore. It has welcome tourists more than 130000000. Nixon, Riken, Sarchel, Mikhail Gorbachev, Yilizabor etc, 372 mugwumps visited the Great Wall.

The Badaling Great Wall is the soul of the whole Great Wall, it is welcoming the tourist come from the whole world. The man who has visited The Great Wall are all acclaimed as the peak of perfection.

Beijing Bazaar and the Changping Challenge

We arrived early. Not stupidly early as in Vietnam, but early enough that it was a bleary eyed Steph that returned to Beijing 5 years after she had last been here. This was unfortunate as alertness is a required trait when you arrive in the largest train station in Asia. It was due to this that we struggled to find the stop for the number 47 bus to take us to our hostel and, in the end, had to resort to asking.

About twenty minutes later we were on a rather crowded bus in rush hour heading towards the hostel. There were a few flair ups with the conductor who wanted me to put my bag to the side, irrespective of the four people I would have to leave comatose by the action of getting it there. Nevertheless we preserved and were soon getting off the bus and heading towards Dairy Queen, the only marker we were given to find our hostel.

Now, whilst the idea of a courtyard hostel sounded great when we booked it in Xi'an, the problem with them is that they are all inevitably in the hutongs. These windy streets are often a nightmare to

navigate at the best of times, and after a poor nights sleep on the train - due mainly to sharing a carriage with a guy who snored loudly and talked in his sleep - these weren't the best of times. Needless to say we got slightly lost, but did eventually find it and manage to check in to the hostel.

After a pretty good breakfast we headed out to explore the surrounding areas including the nearby hutongs, which was definitely on purpose and not because we got lost, and also to the nearby lakes. We had also seen a recent TV program about the bell and drum towers in Beijing, something not previously seen by Steph, so made these a top priority as well.

It was slightly odd walking around a lake in the near centre of Beijing watching people from the decking of the boating lake. Not because this should appear out of the ordinary in a big city, but when there has apparently been an 11 year drought, with a critical shortage of water such that they are going to store snow in winter to melt, it seems that nobody really knows about it. Still it

was a very picturesque lake and there were some nice cafe's around.

As for the bell and drum tower, well, they were very impressive architecturally and they did put on a performance of the drums which, whilst considerably louder, was probably less impressive then the one we had just seen in Xi'an. Still it was well worth the money. A highly active return to sightseeing on our first day in Beijing was topped off in a suitable style.. with a dish of rather stinky and horrible tofu. How they managed to make it smell so bad is beyond me, that it tasted the same as it smelt was stomach turningly bad! However the rest of the meal was good.

The next day we headed out to do some of the main sights of Beijing, Tianamen Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. We arrived on the bus at the bottom end of the square and, for the first time that day, I was disappointed. For something world renowned as a massive square, full of history, it was amazingly underwhelming. This was in part due to the rather large, bland looking, mausoleum stuck in the middle of

the square. That anybody would actually want to turn up and see his remains, and there was a surprisingly large crowd to do so, is an amazing testament to the propaganda machine at work in China. In my eyes all he managed to achieve was to take one of the largest nations, kill a lot of people for very little/no reason, and turn it into a backwater country; so much so that after 30 years of unparalleled economic growth they still aren't the power they could become. Still, just my view of Madman Mao.

Anyway, pressing on, we soon arrived at the Forbidden City, home of the Emperors of China through various dynasties for hundreds of years. The gateway entrance to the city was formidable and a truly impressive sight. The other main structures were a bit of a disappointment as, after fighting your way through the crowds you were met with a pretty dull throne room, or a glass screen that largely showed your own reflection and not the contents of the room. It did improve greatly the second you got off the main path and left the tour groups behind, but many of the problems remained. Ultimately,

after having seen a few houses of various monarchs, both former and present around the world I would still have to say – for an amazing tour and grand rooms go to Buckingham palace; for an amazing garden go to Versaille.

Afterwards we took a long walk down to the Temple of Heaven. Set in a large park it is one of the few places in Beijing to get something attempting, but failing, to be clean air. In true Beijing style, they took an amazing piece of historical architecture and turned it into a pretty bad tourist attraction. Seriously if you have a building with an amazingly intricate ceiling design putting a barrier up to stop people entering the room, and then not putting any lights in the room, make it impossible to see the thing!

Still they did have a lot of signs up explaining the significance of the building, where the Emperor a.k.a the Son of Heaven would come to pray to the God of Heaven, and seemingly every other deity going, for an abundant harvest. Done largely by the reading of scrolls, offering of wine and an intricate animal sacrifice which saw the animal killed,

cremated and buried at various different sites around the complex.

After a hectic day of sightseeing we finished the day off with a hot pot meal and then possibly the best dish of the trip so far, which Steph remembered having when she lived in Beijing so specifically asked for. What it was called I don't know but some form of hot caramelized toffee apple, was possibly the sweetest tasty thing I have had in a long time.

The next day we awoke and started the Changping Challenge. 5 years ago Steph came and taught English at a school in Changping and we were determined to pay it a visit. Undaunted by the fact that the hostel staff had no idea how to get there we headed off for the nearest main bus station. A bit of confusion at a large road junction later and we were in a subway station marveling at the new Changping Line. Sure it served the district and not the city but it was a start.

Guessing at the station we needed we hopped on the subway only to arrive at a seemingly invisible university in what appeared to be the middle

of a field. After a rather strained conversation with the ticket seller we were back on and heading for the end of the line. Disembarking we spoke to three members of staff about getting a bus to the right area. Needless to say we got told to take three different buses! We therefore found ourselves standing around in seemingly the middle of nowhere asking every bus that arrived if it went to the right place. A few finger points later and we were on a bus hoping Steph remembered enough about the place to figure out when we arrived.

True to form Steph did not disappoint and we were soon standing in her old stomping ground. Sure the dumpling pace had changed management – but still did good dumplings- and the supermarket had gone but we were there. We popped around to see the flat she stayed in – granted no one was home but you could see most if it through the cloth front door anyway. We then tried to find the school she taught in. We managed to find the building, and also the builders busy gutting the place. A few futile attempts to talk to the

locals and find out where it had moved to lead to the inevitable conclusion that we had failed to find the school. We ended our slightly disappointing day with an amazing vegetarian meal at the Buddhist restaurant near Steph's old flat before returning to Beijing.

With most of the main tourist attractions ticked off it was time to head off to the Great Wall. Determined not to do an over priced tour, and with Simitai closed, we found ourselves heading to Badaling – the tourist centre of the wall. As the train pulled up it was soon clear that the only parts of the wall I would see would be between my legs as the sheer number of tour groups dwarfed anything I had seen before. That said when we got on the wall they all appeared to head off in the same direction and we were soon on a quiet section of the wall with only a few other people.

Two things can be said for the Great Wall of China. Firstly, it is truly breathtaking. On a good day, which we had, watching the wall snake off into the distance of steep cliffs and through valleys

is an amazing feat, especially for the time. Secondly, it is probably the most impractical and useless defensive wall ever built. That you can walk around it at one end says as much about it's design as the number of times China was conquered/invaded from the North after it was constructed. In a much smaller scale, the stupidly steep gradient that the wall traverses makes reinforcing it impossible as even troops in the nearby barracks would be shattered by the time they arrived. Still a nice wall nonetheless.

Our final day in Beijing was taken up with the Summer Palace. Set in a large park, which is predominantly a lake, the Summer Palace was the former retreat of the Emperors from Beijing's heat. Granted it is now accessible from line 4 of the Beijing Subway but they couldn't have forseen how large Beijing would grow.

Having fully explored the Summer Palace, reading nearly every English sign in the place I know two amazing facts about the place. Firstly it is a truly remarkable feat of ancient Chinese architecture and culture and it is almost impossible to overstate how important it is (a direct quote from many of the

signs). Secondly that pretty much everything in the Summer Palace was burned to the ground in 1886 by those dastardly French and English in their evil alliance.

Fortunately the Dowager Empress invested a small fortune – largely meant for other things – on rebuilding the summer palace and adding important new things like – a marble boat. True she was meant to improve the navy which might have helped later when the 8 Allied Forces returned to attack China.

Still the grounds were amazing and it was just a shame that so much of the view was lost due to an impenetrable fog of pollution over the lake. That said what remained of the Buddhist Temple at the top of the hill was amazing and the intricate working and detail in many of the ceilings was, for once, clearly visible – hurrah!

After returning from the Summer Palace all that remained was to pack our bags and get ready to say goodbye to China as we depart on the trans-Mongolian the next day. Luckily Beijing was not through with us yet. Determined to throw one more curve ball our way we went out to dinner in a

city renowned for Beijing duck, but not for spicy food. It was therefore a bit of a shock when our food arrived and contained possibly the most chillies I have ever seen in one dish! It was with full bellies, and hot mouths, that we returned to our room to get ready for the next stage of our world adventure.