The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall was built more than 2 000 years ago. The construction started between 7^th and 6^th century BC, now stretching on some 6 000 km (4 000 miles) from east to west of China.

It was enlisted as a World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987.

They say it can be seen from out of space, but I wasn’t able to see it from the plane…

When I first reached it I was already exhausted – Chinese guides took care of this! Ours got there late, in the after noon, because the summer heat was too high, [even there], making the air impossible to breath.

I took a moment and a deep breath when I first stepped on it. Its ends cannot be reached by the human eye. You ask yourself where it starts and where it ends, when, where, why and especially how they started its construction?...

Once I began to walk, with every step, a strange feeling raised in me: the feeling that I wanted to stop climbing, because I had no straight for doing it, and, in the mean time, that I wanted to continue as far as the feet could take me. I wanted to reach the end. But, again, which end? And after the End, what?! With every drop of sweat my forces were ending far too soon…

Even if I reached only five check points, at the end of my ‘Walk on the Wall’ I looked back and I couldn’t believe my eyes. The beauty of the wall is immeasurable. The immensity of the Wall left me speechless and breathless. It is an extremely exhausting experience, but when you finally get there… it’s amazing!

The only thing I could think about was: “How fortunate I am!” – I never fought my steps will take me so far, on this side of the world, on this masterpiece of the mankind, on this beautiful land that looks so pure.

That was the ultimate experience! It's exhausting! It's great! It's unimaginable! There, I really felt like on top of the world!

Practical tips:

ü The Great Wall of China lies 70 km northeast from the capital. If you don’t have a solid plan for Beijing, book rooms at Leo Hostel (52 Da Zha Lan Xi Jie, Qianmen, Beijing, zip code 100051, China). When you first arrive in the city get to the hostel – they have very good tips and trips concerning the Great Wall.

ü Don’t go there without a bottle of water. You risk to dehydrate!