So far we have been here for 6 days. It has been great catching up with Pickle, Fo and Steve. We went exploring the Forbidden City at the beginning and followed it with the Great Wall Experience. For those of you that know me, despite being here twice I still haven't managed to climb the Great Wall. Curious locals always want to talk to me, take photos or invite me to picnic. So I was going to do it this time. We went the hardest leg of the Wall. Samatai! 10km trek along the wall, up and down steps, sometimes as high as 85 degrees. No given that I have had a broken foot for the good part of 3 months, I was in no way fit enough for the this adventure but.....i did it. We powered on home and I was able to see some of the most amazing scenery of rural china. I loved it. Today, we spent at the Summer Palace where I played tour guide and told them all about Cizi. She was a bit like the Marie Antoinette of CHina. Spending all of the peoples money on refurbishing her home away from home instead of on the Chinese Navy. Consequently the Japanese Navy destroyed the Chinese fleet and leaving Cizi with egg on her face. Unlike Marie, Cizi dies peacefully with her head firmly attached to her body! We also saw the Temple of Lama. Home of the worlds biggest Budha. Made of a single piece of sandlewood it stands 20m tall and is worshiped my many locals. It is also in the Book of Records. Well tomorrow we are off to Mongolia by train...this is where the adventure really begins! Til we speak again!
