First off, I would like to point out that jet lag is real. I woke up several times during the night thinking that it was the morning, but it wasn’t even 6 o’clock. Nonetheless, I woke up at 6:45 feeling really refreshed and ready to take on the day!
The breakfast that our hotel provided was probably the best breakfast I’ve had in a long time. The bacon was my favorite part because it was thick cut and crispy and just tasted a lot more real than the bacon back in the states. The sausage was also way more real, and the steamed buns were awesome.
We left for the Great Wall at about 8:00 with our tour guide, Uncle Joe. His real name isn’t Joe, but he wouldn’t tell us what his real name was. Anyway, Joe was a pretty funny guy and he seemed like he really knew his stuff, so he was cool. It took us about an hour to get to the Great Wall by bus. Beijing is apparently the size of New Jersey, by the way. It was at the entrance to the Great Wall (Mutianyu Section) that I encountered my first squat toilet. That was certainly a sight to see.
We walked through this little street with a bunch of souvenir shops in order to get to the stairs to walk up to the wall, and there was definitely a lot of interesting stuff in those shops. Walking up the steps to the wall was both an awesome and horrible experience. I realized how out of shape I was walking up those steps. Getting to the top felt so good though! The view was beautiful and one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. I love landscapes in China! The flatness combined with the jagged mountains is breathtaking.
Walking on the wall was an experience that I wish everyone could have. I even signed my name on the wall. Don’t worry, there was a designated area to sign. While walking on the wall, I noticed that Joe looked like he was about to die. I came up to him later and I found out that he threw up all over the wall out the window! I died laughing at that for a while.
We also came across some WVU students who were singing “Country Roads”, so Joe and I joined in and we got everyone’s WeChat. That was low key one of the best moments of the day.
Next we went to the Summer Palace. The Summer Palace was also a beautiful sight. There were also definitely a lot of people there that wanted to take picture of or with us which was honestly really cool. I felt like a celebrity!
After the Summer Palace, we all got dinner at a hot pot place and it was one of the best meal experiences I’ve had. The restaurant was pretty small and hidden, but it was an interesting and new experience and the food was very good!