Todays trip to the Great Wall was to a section of the Wall where very few tourists went. The busy part (Badaling) was not recommended by the tour staff because it is mainly a section that has been rebuilt and is heavily visited by tourists. The section that we decided to do was the Sima Tai. It is further west of the Badaling and is a 10km stretch of preexisting wall. I had dinner with Ferran and Maria the night before and they wanted to do the trip as well so we set out at 6:30 a.m. to hike the Great Wall. The transportation to the Wall was an excruciating 3 hours. I say excruciating because people in China drive like mad men. Traffic laws exist but are rarely enforced. People weave in and out of traffic and the horn is a courtesy beep to let others know you’re cutting them off. Pedestrians have no right of way and if a driver sees you step out in front of them they will honk to let you know they are going to drive through you. So 3 hours of this was like clinging on for dear life. After we get there we are greeted by Mongolian guides there to offer their company for a price. They saw my camera and tripod a mile away and flocked me with there souvenirs. They basically follow you the entire trip trying to sell you books, postcards, water and soda for 100’s of Yen. I kept telling them no but for some reason when one trailed off another appeared. It was like they were working in shifts. After I ditched the third guide I was free to enjoy the rest of the hike. The wall was amazing. I had no idea that something that could stretch farther than the eye could see could be so magnificent. I couldn’t imagine the labor that went into building the entire thing. It was utter madness. The section we did was 10 km of broken steps and rubble. The 10km stretch covered about 30 towers. The initial hike from the valley to the wall was a painful 30 mins of sheer climbing. Once on the wall it was step after step of broken stone. I wanted to take a piece but was so tired at the end that I forgot. We reached our destination 4 hours later and had lunch at the Sima Tai Restaurant. It was probably one of the worst Chinese food I’ve ever had but I was so tired and hungry that it didn’t matter. We headed back to the hostel for some rest. Dinner was the best meal I’ve had while in Beijing. If you travel to Beijing you’ll have to try the Peking Duck. It was amazingly good. Tomorrow I head back to San Luis where I look forward to sleeping in my own bed again. Hopefully the 13 hour flight will not be as bad.