The Great Wall of China is one of those places where you
can’t help but have exorbitant expectations prior to experiencing it. What
those expectations entail is likely a litany of vague, second-hand information
or photographs. You can subdue those expectations by trying to convince
yourself that it’s “just another place.”
You would be right if you stopped at the main gates of the Mutianyu section after
walking through the preliminary crowds and past the aggressive street vendors as
they shill their wares at inflated prices – I got a pair of sunglasses for 20 Yuen
when I was first asked to pay was 85. Once you’re past these early distractions
and begin the climb, to whatever area you have entered, it takes on a life of
its own.
The feeling of impending awe will loom as you walk up the
steep walkways and stairwells. Before reaching the actual wall, people were
already resting on the side. It is an arduous climb but any pain or stress will
immediately disappear when you come to the stairs leading to the wall. Reaching
the top I looked out across the landscape at mountains in the hazy distance and
saw the wall stretch for what seemed like infinity in every direction. To be
standing on one of the only man-made structures that can be seen from space
carries a feeling of insignificance and wonder that I don’t think I have ever
reached before.
We walked, we joked, we haggled for beer, and we saw a small
fraction of a magnificent place. Down in the valleys sat villages of tin roofed
houses, shacks and invisible locals. Talking with another Westerner after
returning from the trip I was told that many people who live in areas near the
wall have likely never even been to Beijing and yet here we were venturing to
their necks of the woods. It makes sense. The lives of these people are still a
secret to us. The people who worked the area weren’t likely locals from the
Wall. They spoke decent English and had items for sale that certainly weren’t
hand woven or carved. My real or knock-off Ray Bans were not assembled down in
the valley.
The come down was inevitable. For such a large portion of
the day I flew high, astounded at every sight my eyes fell upon. Leaving after
a quick meal and belt of coffee trying my best to lose myself in my headphones
a heavy sense of emptiness descended. I was returning to routine, to a sense of
normalcy. I had experienced the extraordinary and had returned to the ordinary
-- this is only in the context of living in China, which upon extra thought is
not all that ordinary in my case.
I sat on a cannon on the Great Wall. That is not something
that happens every day or, in most cases, ever.
Going to such a breathtaking and incredible place will be a
personal journey for all those who enter. You may share it with friends as you
hike together but everyone will feel their own individual and emotional rush.
To predict how one might react to the place inwardly is impossible.
It is a place to be seen, a place to behold. It is certainly a place but it is one unlike any other. Obvious sentiments, sure, but words cannot do it justice.
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