Scaling The Great Wall Of China

The Great Wall of China is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Captivating images of the Great Wall, winding up and down like a gigantic dragon, always raised my curiosity. I got eager to scale the Great Wall, at the earliest, and be a part of its impressive history.

The Great Wall of China is world’s longest man made structure and a World Heritage Site. The Great Wall was constructed to protect the empire of China from Mongol invaders. This served as military defence.

When I, finally, made it to the Great Wall of China, during my much awaited China trip, the grandeur of Great Wall entranced me. My starting point to scale the Great Wall was Badaling, near Beijing. Badaling is the most popular tourist point and well maintained, too.

Whole Badaling area was teeming with tourists. My reason to choose Badaling was not because of popularity but the beautiful vistas and historical sights it offered. I was told that scaling the Great Wall was supposed to be very tiring. If I intended to ascend till last preserved point that was going to take many hours both ways. So I needed to consume lot of liquids. Along with water and juices I purchased fruits, too. That meant carrying lot of weight while ascending but that was needed, no other choice.

While scaling I found the Great Wall with different heights, in between, which served specific purpose from security point of view. On the way, I crossed many shelters and watch towers. Watch towers were used by military, in ancient times, to keep vigil. To get the same feel I stood  straight, posed like a military personnel and peeped through different watch towers. So much fun!

Major part of the Great Wall was steep ascent. In spite of pleasant weather in October month, I was sweating. With dry mouth , every few minutes needed some water drops, so consumed everything liquid  I was carrying, only oranges left. I started feeling little tired but excitement overpowered my tiring body. I kept moving, admiring the solid thinking and execution behind the Great Wall of China. And, proud of me leaving my mark on legendary great wall.