在北京第二天 (Beijing Day 2)

Today was our day to visit the Great Wall, in Chinese: 长城 (Chang Cheng). We were nervous because for the entire night it was pouring rain and lightening was striking constantly. Especially for me, who had already been to the Great Wall, I was not feeling too thrilled about the prospect of going to the wall in the rain. Rain or shine, we would have had fun because we were all together and in awe of the amazing design of the wall. Fortunately, the rain was not an issue and the weather cleared up as we drove to the edge of Beijing to 慕田峪 (Mutianyu), one of the nicest portions of the wall to visit. I had already been there, but it was nice to relive the awesome time I had with my mom there. The sun was already beating down on us, but I felt like I was ready to conquer the wall one more time. We got up to the base of hiking path where some of or group decided to take the lazy way-the chairlift-up to the wall. Yang Laoshi, Shanna, and I were feeling adventurous so we walked up the steep hill to the wall. By the time we reached the top, we were exhausted, overheated, and thirsty. Dr. Chen told all 31 of us that we had to put out trip shirts over our already sweaty shirts for a group picture. His request was definitely not appreciated. Imagine going to the beach in the hot sun and being asked to put on a hoodie. NOT FUN! We were with Yang Laoshi, who is really fun to hang out with, so the time went by fast. Shanna, Merrick, and I trekked up the wall to one of the highest lookout towers. The stairs on the wall are so steep it almost feels like you are falling backwards when you take a step. We got a chance to take photos and enjoy the view before we headed back to meet the group. Unfortunately, for liability reasons, the state department doesn't let us take the Toboggan down to the base. So instead, we paid 80元 to take the chairlift down so we could take photos of the mountains-it was really beautiful. We got a chance to shop at the base of the wall, and then we went to eat a big lunch. By the end of lunch we were all ready to take a nap, so we slept on the bus ride to the Beijing Hutongs (胡同). Hutongs are neighborhoods of alleys found in various areas around Beijing, and up until the early 20^th century were some of the nicest places to live in the city. Homes found in Hutong areas follow 风水 (feng shui – literal: wind water) which is a system of layout and organization so that the energy of an area is in proper order. So, the Hutong homes are generally courtyards with different parts of the house corresponding to the different components of 风水. During the Cultural Revolution, those with money and an education were targeted and were often forced out of their homes and left without their most valuable assets. Afterwards, families were able to buy the house back, but only for a large sum of money. We got to go inside one of the courtyard-houses and even met the old women who grew up there before it was taken from her family by the communist party. When she was growing up, it was considered to be one of the nicest properties in Beijing, but today it is more of a touristy old-style area. Since we had gone to the Great Wall before the Hutongs, we all rode bike-rickshaws to get around. It was a nice way to see things more quickly and enjoy the architecture.